1883 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



299 



hung them up in a shady doorway where a 

 strong breeze was passing through, and the 

 temperature was soon down to tlie normal 

 condition of a cluster of bees. Had a new 

 swarm been in this predicament, they would 

 assuredly have decamped, simply because 

 tliey must do so to save their lives. I'lease 

 remember, friends, in handling swarms dur- 

 ing hot weather, when they are full of honey, 

 to give them a great abundance of air, aiid 

 keep them out of the sun. 



BOES A SWARM EVEIt GO OFF AVITH- 

 OUT CliUSTEUING? 



f 



AND SOME OTnER MATTERS AS WELL. 



SEE in your May issue that Mr. Fogy seems to 

 advance the idea, that a swarm never Issues 

 and goes for parts unknown without Ilrst clus- 

 tering, or settling, as wo may choose to call it. I 

 must snj' that his experience in the swarming lino 

 does not correspond with mine, for I can at this mo- 

 ment call to mind at least three swarms which is- 

 sued from the parent hive, and started for forest 

 homes, and that without clustering. Probably Mr. 

 Fogy would say that I might not have seen them is- 

 sue; but 1 did, for I was on hand at the time. One 

 of the swarms, I succeeded in capturing after I had 

 given about a half-mile chase; the other two made 

 their escape to their chosen home, for aught I know. 



LARGE EKTKANCES GIVEN AGAIN AS THE CAUSE. 



I have noticed, in mj- experience in swarming, 

 that those colonies with large entrances are the ones 

 which occasionally play such tricks. I think it un- 

 necessary to make any big hurrah, or beat drums, 

 tin pans, etc., for they will settle just as readily 

 without the noise. I will give you my method for 

 seltling swarms when they are not inclined to settle 

 rea(}ily, and^ou can take it for what it is worth. 



SETTLING TIIEM WITH A LOOKING-GLASS. 



When I have a swarm of bees, and they have no 

 disposition to settle, I get a looking-glass, if it is 

 to be had, and hold it in the rays of the sun so that 

 the reflection caused by the sun shining on the glass 

 can be thrown among the swarm. The reflection 

 should be kept wavering among them until they are 

 so dazzled that they will alight on the first thing 

 that comes ia their way. If the sun is not shining 

 brightly, the gla?s will be of co service. This may 

 be old to most bee-keepers, but will prove a success 

 if executed properlj'. 



DO FIRST SWARMS EVER ISSUE WITH MORE TDAN 

 ONE QUEEN? 



In 1879 I had a swarm issue from the old stock, ac- 

 companied by two queens. I supposed thai it was 

 the old queen and daughter. On the day of issuing 

 I hived them, and in doing so I caught a queen and 

 clipped her wing. The next day the same swarm 

 came out again, this time accompanied by a new 

 queen with a good wing. I forgot to state, in the 

 commencement, that this was a lirst swarm. 



DO BEES CHANGE EGGS FROM ONE FRAME TO 

 ANOTHER, TO REAR QUEENS? 



In the fall of 1883 I had a case where eggs were 

 changed from one frame to another, to raise queens. 

 The colony had previously become queenless, and 

 no brood was in the hive, until a frame of brood, or 

 eggs, rather, was given from a choice queen, and in 

 four or Ave days there were queen-cells with larvse 



on some two or three different frames within this 

 hive, all formed by those bees. 



THE DRONE THEORY, AQ.ilN. 



I have had two different cases in which drones 

 were reared from worker brood or eggs. I know 

 some will be ready to take exceptions to this; but 

 then, it should be in a friendly waj% while we are 

 aware that necessity alters cases. In August, 1883, 

 in the latter part of the month, a queenless colony 

 was given a frame of brood from which to rear a 

 queen. There was no drone comb on the frame, but 

 yet they capped a part of it as worker and the rest 

 as drone, except the royal cells. I took notice of 

 them at the time of hatching, and a part of those 

 cells which were capped as drone brood hatched out 

 worker progeny, and the remainder the opposite. 

 And again in April, 1883, I had a case of worker eggs 

 changed to drone; but this time every cell that was 

 enlarged, proved, on e.xamination at time of hatching, 

 to be occupied by a drone. In neither of those cases 

 was there any brood which was left in the native 

 hive treated in like manner; so in my experience in 

 bee culture I can not help thinking that the worker 

 bees have the power of changing the germ of the 

 worker eggs to that of a drone. 



HONEY FROM BUCKEYE. 



Bees are booming at the present. They are rear- 

 ing brood in abundance, and there is quite a flow of 

 honey at the present time. They arc getting the 

 most of it from the buckeye bloom. It has a pe- 

 culiar flavor, but I like the quality of the honey. 



Jordan, Ind., May 19, 1883. A. L, Lindley. 



ARE AVE SURE THAT STRONG COLO- 

 NICS ARE KIIiliED BY EXPOSURE? 



AVHERE DOES THE TRUTH LIE? 



to show that bees will endure long-continued, 

 intense cold below zero, night after night, 

 — ' for a considerable period of time, I will relate 

 the following; I found one colony in my apiary in 

 March, after the snow was gone (as I did not look at 

 them during winter, nor, indeed, since the honey 

 was taken off, about the 10th of Sept., for I then 

 fixed them for winter), in a Simplicity hive with 

 nothing above the frames but a half-story and cover 

 (with the usual number of knot-holes in the cover, 

 as you mahc them). This was one of your make, and 

 had one hole M inch in diameter, in and out of which 

 the bees flew when it was warm enough, and proba- 

 bly out, sometimes, when it was not. The half-story 

 I made myself, and it was not made to fit the cover; 

 but the top of the sides and ends was left flat, just as 

 the saw left them, and consequently the cover did 

 fit very well; and the lower story, also, was of my 

 make, and the joint just as flat as the saw left it. 

 The only part you made Avas the cover and 10 

 frames. 



When L opened it I was much surprised to find it 

 in that shape, and to find it full of bees, and in fine 

 condition, with plenty of brood for that season of 

 the year, but with their honey nearly all gone, which 

 shows that their exposed condition had caused them 

 to consume an unsual amount, as it had 10 frames, 

 which undoubtedly were well filled in the fall, while 

 others with only 8 frames were pretty well supplied 

 with sealed honey on March first, which, on looking, 

 I find to be the date of the examination. 1 at once 

 procured a box containing about 8 lbs. of honey, it 



