THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



133 



For the American Bee Journal 



Producing Comb Honey— ?io. 2. 



G. 31. DOOLITTLE. 



In Xo. 1, I told you how I managed 

 all the good, strong colonies I had in 

 the spring, to get them in good work- 

 ing order for gathering honey by the 

 time the harvest from white clover 

 arrived. It often happens that all the 

 colonies in an apiary are not thus 

 strong, and as I am requested by 

 several to give my method of treating 

 the weaker ones, I will do so, although 

 it will be somewhat of a repetition of 

 what I have before written on the 

 subject. 



Several years ago, when I wished to 

 unite weak colonies in the spring, I 

 did so early; in the season, for the 

 " books" said that the time to unite 

 was when it was discovered that two 

 colonies were too weak to be of use 

 alone, which generally happened in 

 April. That uniting two weak 

 colonies to make one strong one is 

 profitable to the apiarist, no one will 

 deny, (unless, perchance, we are 

 obliged to use everything in the shape 

 of bees, as we were last season, in 

 order to get our former number back 

 again after a heavy loss); still, that 

 uniting must make the one better 

 than each of the Uoo would have been 

 when the honey harvest arrives, or 

 our labor of uniting is worse than use- 

 less. After practicing the plan given 

 in the " books" for a year or two, I he- 

 came convinced that colonies thus 

 formed were no better, at the end of 

 two or three weeks, than each one 

 would have been had fhey been left 

 separate. I have put as high as seven 

 remnants of colonies together in April , 

 the seven making a good large colony 

 at the time, and in a month all were 

 dead. After coming to the conclusion 

 that I could not unite bees with profit 

 in early spring, I adopted the follow- 

 ing plan, which has proved success- 

 ful so far: 



About the middle of April, some 

 cool evening, I look over all my bees 

 by removing the cap and raising the 

 quilt a little, so I can see how strong 

 in bees the colonies are, and all that 

 do not occupy five spaces between the 

 combs are marked, and the fust warm 

 day are shut on to as many combs as 

 they have brood in, and a division 

 board placed in the hive so as to con- 

 tract the hive to suit the size of the 

 colony. Honey enough is provided to 

 keep them amply for two weeks, and 

 the rest of the combs I store away for 

 safe keeping, unless some of the 

 strongest of them are able to protect 

 them from robbers, in wtiich case I 

 leave them outside the division board, 

 so the bees can carry honey from them 

 as they wish. The entrances are con- 

 tracted so as to let but one bee pass 

 at a time for the smallest colonies, 

 while the larger ones do not have 



more than an inch in length of 

 entrance given tliem. 



The next work is to increase the 

 brood as fast as iiossible in these 

 small colonies. I keep them shut on 

 the combs tirst given them till they 

 are tilled with brood clear down to 

 the bottom, before they are given 

 more room. As soon as this is ac- 

 complished, I give them a comb of 

 honey prepared as I told you in No. 1, 

 placing it between two full combs of 

 brood. In about a week this comb 

 will be tilled with brood as full as the 

 others. I go over them once a week 

 in this way till I have five frames of 

 brood in the strongest, when I take a 

 frame of brood just hatching out from 

 those having live full frames, and 

 give it to the next strongest, say, one 

 that has four frames, putting a frame 

 of honey in the place where it came 

 from. Thus, I keep working till all 

 of them contain live frames of brood, 

 which should occur from the 10th to 

 the 1.5th of June in this locality. I 

 now go to No. 1 and open it, looking 

 the frames over till I find the one the 

 queen is in, wlien it is set outside and 

 the four remaining frames and all the 

 adhering bees are taken to No. 2; I 

 then spread the tive frames in No. 2 

 apart so as to set the four frames 

 brought from No. 1 in each alternate 

 space made by spreading the frames 

 in No. 2 ; No. 2 is now closed up and 

 in a few days it is ready for the boxes. 

 It will eventually make as good a 

 colony for storing in boxes as the 

 best of the stronger ones; at least such 

 has been my experience so far. I 

 have never known bees to quarrel, nor 

 a queen to be harmed by this plan of 

 uniting, as the bees are so completely 

 mixed up that they do not know 

 what to fight about. 



But to return to No. 1, where the 

 queen and frame of brood were left 

 standing outside the hive. I now 

 place this frame of brood back in the 

 hive and put an empty frame beside 

 it, adjusting the division-board, and I 

 have a nice nucleus from which to 

 get a queen to be used in swarming, 

 as given further on. Many of the old 

 bees carried to No. 2 will return, thus 

 making a strong nucleus, which will 

 till the empty frame with nice straight 

 worker comb in a few days, and still 

 another, if the queen is left long 

 enough. By-the-way, let me say that 

 such colonies will build comb at a less 

 expense than is required to purchase 

 and fill frames with comb from 

 foundation, besides the bee-keeper 

 keeps such amount to expend on some- 

 thing more necessary to him than 

 foundation for the "brood frames. 

 Now, if I wish no increase of colonies 

 during the season, I serve my whole 

 apiary as I did Nos. 1 and 2, beginning 

 early enough to be sure that none 

 have brood in more than five frames. 

 By putting boxes on the strongest 

 just before ajiple blossoms, and a few 

 boxes are often filled from this source, 

 as the bees must work in boxes if at 

 all, when shut on tive frames. It will 

 be seen that I use nine frames to the 

 hive, but the plan is the same with 

 any number of frames. This having 

 every frame in a hive crowded to the 

 fullest capacity with brood two weeks 



before the height of the honey harvest, 

 has much to do with a good yield of 

 honey, I assure you. This is the con- 

 dition I aim to have all my bees in, 

 and I have tried to tell you how so 

 you can do the same, if you wish to 

 adopt the plan I follow. My next will 

 be about preparing and putting on 

 section boxes. 

 Borodino, N. Y. 



For the American Bee Journal, 



Bee-Keepers' Compass. 



II. T. COLLINS. 



In order to reach the haven where 

 he would be, every bee-keeper, like 

 the mariner, should be guided by a 

 compass, and I herewith send a few 

 ideas concerning one, in hopes that it 

 may induce others to add their quota 

 and "to box the compass" in their 

 own way. 



To simplify matters, this compass 

 will not have as many points as the 

 mariner's. 



North.— A choice queen. This is 

 the pole star leading to success. She 

 should be not more than two or three 

 years old, and whose offspring must 

 have the following traits: Longevity, 

 which includes hardihood, industry, 

 docility, and let us add beauty, if for 

 no other reason, because it is "a sign of 

 good stock. 



Northeast. — Keep no scrub stock 

 but supersede it, otherwise there will 

 not be the opportunity of selecting 

 these choice queens above mentioned. 



East.— Strong colonies. As nature 

 cannot provide her stores of bound- 

 less wealth without the daily rising of 

 the sun, and the visit of his countless 

 rays, so the blessed bees cannot " make 

 boot upon the summer's velvet buds" 

 unless they are strong in numbers, 

 and abounding in courage. 



Southeast.— Know at all times the 

 condition of the hives. Do not be 

 satisfied by thinling that that colony 

 is prosperous, but find out by inspec- 

 tion, and if it needs your help, give it 

 without delay. 



South.— A comfortable home. That 

 is, let the hive be shaded from too 

 much sunshine in hot weather, and 

 yet be so situated as to have a good 

 circulation of air. To be comfortable, 

 the hive must not be so restricted in 

 room as to compel the bees to " lay 

 out," nor so roomy as to afford more 

 space than they can well occupy and 

 guard. The bee-master can easily 

 furnish this condition by means of 

 that wonderful trinity of helps, the 

 movable frame, extractor, and foun- 

 dation. Only with a comfortable hive, 

 and everything ship-shape can 



"The busy bee improve each shining hour, 

 And pather honey ttH (/le day from every opening 

 flower." 



Southwest.— Provide bee-pasture. 

 When this is done, it seems to me 

 that a good many of our present 

 troubles will be over. Colonies will 

 then be in an active and normal con- 

 dition during all the working season, 

 much robbing, ill-temper, and "gen- 

 eral cussedness" will be done away 

 with, and tlie stock will go into winter 

 quarters strong in young bees, and 

 well supplied with sealed stores. 



