April 13, 1899. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



231 



die with them much. Besides, they were in a Heddon hive, and 

 the Langstroth frames were easier to handle. 



I have empty, two more Heddon hives, 16 frames of good 

 combs to each ; seven Langstroth hives, combs for three of them ; 

 and another of those high hives. I want to get the bees into a 

 Langstroth hive from the tall hive, so as to get surplus in market- 

 able shape, but leave the combs in that hive so as to have an Ital- 

 ianized colony in there later and sell it to some one who does not 

 care for "new-fangled hives ' The Heddon hives will go. too, for 

 I am not an expert to handle hives. I examine each frame, and 

 they are too much trouble— 10 closed-end frames to a hive. The 

 surplus will be all right, over those hives, but there are only holes 

 cut in the top edge of each frame in the other, any small box is set 

 on top, so I want the bees out. Could I drum them all out into 

 two of those nucleus boxes Doolittle uses, give a good queen to the 

 queenless half, and put them back to care for brood and build up 

 to sell, and put the others in a Langstroth hive on as many combs 

 as they can cover with the queen, Italianize later, feeding them of 

 course ? I have some division- board feeders made according to 

 Doolittle's '• Queen Rearing." I think it a good plan, but hope you 

 can suggest something better if it is not. I have the nucleus boxes 

 with wire sides, and was successful with them, but have lost con- 

 fidence in my own plans. Johnstown, Pa. 



Answer. — Your letter interested me even before I opened the 

 envelop, for the postmark of that ill-fated city in Pennsylvania 

 where the flood swept so many away brought to mind the many 

 happy days I spent in that city in the long ago. Then it's quite 

 refreshing to find some one who has taken pains to keep her read- 

 ing up to, and ahead of, her practice. It is a mistake to suppose 

 that this department is mainly for those who have not read up in 

 any text-book ; indeed, many a question is askt by those who 

 have bad no little experience, and the advice can hardly be re- 

 peated too often that to make a success at bee-keeping one should 

 be well read up in one or more of the textbooks. Even after that 

 there will be always plenty of room for questions. 



Now between you and me, don't you think you ought to be just 

 a little bit ashamed of yourself to let other people ask all your 

 questions for you ? What if all should do that way ? But it's no 

 time to scold now, after you've commenced asking for yourself. 



I don't know the name of your tall hive. 



Considering that you want to get an improved queen into the 

 old hive at the time of making the change, your plan of dividing 

 may do very well. But don't operate till the colony is strong, 

 perhaps Just before clover bloom. You say nothing about where 

 you will set the two parts, and upon that much depends. If you 

 leave the old hive on the old stand, the other will not do very well 

 unless you give it nearly all of the driven bees. Remove the old 

 hive to a new stand, putting the new hive on the old stand, and ail 

 the bees you put in the old hive will stay there, and for a day or 

 two there will be an additional force coming from the old hive, for 

 all the fleld-bees of the old hive will enter the new one on their 

 return from foraging. The large number of young bees hatching 

 out will make up the loss in good time, and the old colony will be 

 strong enough. 



Bee-Keeping in Washington— Foul Brood. 



1. What part of the State of Washington is the best for bees 

 and honey ' Is any of it good ? I would like to know about the 

 east part, also on the coast. 



'2. What was the final decision of Messrs. McEvoy, R. L. Tay- 

 lor, and others, about transferring to get rid of foul brood ? Is one 

 transferring enough, or should they be transferred twice, the last 

 four days after the first ? Should they be starved during the tour 

 days ', Iow.\ Boy. 



Answers. — 1. I am unable to give the desired information. 



li. Nearly all agree that the bees must be thrown on empty 

 frames of foundation the second time. The bees are not to be fed 

 during the three or four days, the object being to get them to use 

 up all the infected honey before there will be any larvf?^ to feed. 



Localities for Bee-Keeping, Etc. 



1. Is Virginia a good State for bee-keeping ? 



3. Are the Southern States better for bee-keeping than the 

 Western ? 



3. Which hives are the best ? 



4. Do queens live as long as worker-bees ? Penn. 



Answers. — 1. Some good locations in Virginia, some not so 

 good, but I don't know where the best are. 



2. Taken as a whole, probably there isn't much difference. 



3. All are not agreed on any one hive. Perhaps at present the 

 dovetailed is the most popular. 



4. Queens live from a few months to four or five years. 

 Workers in the busy season live al)Out six weeks. Those batcht in 

 the fall live until some time the next spring. 



Running for Extracted Honey-Preventing Swarming. 



1. I want to run a few colonies of bees for extracted honey in 

 8-frame dovetailed hives, and prevent swarming as much as possi- 

 ble. Tbe plan recommended by some is to put one or two frames 

 of brood with the queen in the first story, filling out with full 



frames of foundation, and putting the remaining brood and bees 

 in a second story with an excluder between. What is there to pre- 

 vent tbe bees starting the cells above, and thus cause swarming ? 



'2. Why won't the cells have to be cut out to make it a success ? 

 I have never seen it recommended. 



'A. Would it not be just as well to use no excluder but alternate 

 the brood and combs with full sheets of foundation in both stories 

 just before the swarming season ? I have no empty combs. Which 

 plan do you think best, and can you suggest a better one '. 



4. What do you think of producing extracted honey without 

 using excluders ? Are not a good many doing that now ? 



Conn. 



Answers. — 1. The great amount of empty room in the story 

 that contains the queen is enough to prevent tbe desire to swarm. 



3. There is no mention of cutting out cells, because none are 

 expected. 



3. Your plan is not so sure to prevent swarming, and the 

 frames of foundation will not be so well built out. A frame of 

 foundation between two full combs is often made thin, while tbe 

 cells of the old combs are unduly lengthened. The other plan bas 

 been tried and approved. 



4. Probably no one who has tried the two ways thinks it better 

 to use no excluder. With the excluder you never need put brood 

 in the extractor. Read the article by C. Davenport, on page 179. 

 A good many put brood in the extractor, and a gocd many have 

 thus a poorer quality of honey. 



Combs Left with Honey in Them. 



What had I best do with some combs of honey that I have ? I 

 left 20 colonies of bees on the summer stands last fall, after pack- 

 ing the upper stories with forest leaves; but after the extreme 

 cold weather that we had for 20 days (the thermometer hardly 

 ever registering above zero, and at one time 48 degrees below zero) 

 there was not a live bee in the whole 20 colonies. Now, after the 

 weather gets warm enough tor bees to fly freely, would it do to 

 let my other bees— some .t1 colonies— curry out the honey from the 

 first-mentioned hives, and save the combs, and after cleaning hives 

 and combs, use them for putting swarms on, the coming season ? 



How would it do to clean up the hives and combs as well as I 

 can, and put swarms right on the combs with honey in them, put- 

 ting sections on swarms right away, or soon after putting the 

 swarms into the hives '. Wisconsin. 



Answer.— Either plan you mention will work all right. Only, 

 if you allow the bees to rob out the honey, be sure not to move 

 any of the hives they are robbing until several days after all the 

 honey is cleaned out. There is danger that worms may trouble 

 the combs before swarming-time, so perhaps the best thing is to 

 put each empty hive under one of your good colonies till swarm- 

 ing-time. That will make them safe from worms, and it will also 

 insure their being cleaned up well. 



Brood-Chamber Crowded with Honey. 



I have just bought 3 colonies in .S-frame Langstroth hives. 

 They seem to contain a good deal of honey, and I should think 

 that by and by there will not be enough room for brood. They 

 weigh about .50 pounds each. I am a beginner, and have no ex- 

 tractor as yet. Would it do, when the combs now empty are get- 

 ting full of brood, to take the two outside combs of honey and put 

 them in the middle, and put on a super ? Would the bees take the 

 honey up and store it in the sections ? We are earlier here than 

 you are; I had a swarm out on May 13, last year. B. C. 



Answer — You will probably find that tbe bees will use up 

 more of that honey in brood-rearing than you suppose. You will 

 hardly find it satisfactory to try to get tbe honey carried into sec- 

 tions. It's a good thing to have some combs of sealed honey on 

 hand in case of need. 



Keeping Bees in a Garret. 



I wish to ask you in regard to putting a colony of bees in tbe 

 garret of a bouse. I want to put them in tbe north end so they 

 will face the north. Will that do. or would it be better to face tbe 

 south ? Give directions how to build such a hive. A neighbor 

 wanted me to construct it for him in his house. The house. is 

 heated with hot air, and can be regulated. Illinois. 



Answer. — It is generally considered that bees will do better 

 facing south thau north. A hive for a garret may be built the 

 same as a hive for out doors, the special point of difference being 

 that particular pains must be .taken to have a passage-way from 

 the entrance of the hive to the outside by means of a passage-way 

 that shall allow no bee to get out into the garret. 



Brood-Combs with Candied Honey. 



What can I do with candied honey in the brood-frames ? Will 

 the bees remove it, or shall I destroy the combs ? Kansas. 



Answer. — I think I would try the plan of M. M. Baldridge. 

 Spray the combs with warm water and give to the bees, repeating 

 the spraying as often as necessary. 



