236 WEALTH IN HONEY 



apiary. If there are any colonies affected with moths or 

 foul brood, they should be kept separate from the others. 



It is best to take out all the honey where there are indi- 

 cations of disease and give the bees a clean hive, with a 

 fresh supply of food. Wash and fumigate the old boxes 

 before they are used again. It is important to have clean, 

 well-made hives, with joints so tight that worms cannot 

 secrete themselves out of reach of the bees. 



Owners of apiaries who are not satisfied with the 

 appearance of their swarms in spring will be wise to intro- 

 duce a new lot of Italian queens bought from reliable 

 dealers. This, with clean hives, will be apt to bring 

 success again. 



A vigorous swarm will gather ioo pounds of honey in 

 a season, in addition to its own food supply, provided the 

 distance to travel does not exceed a quarter of a mile. 

 This product is worth $14 to $20, according to whether 

 the producer sells at retail or wholesale. Call it $15 for 

 the sake of the illustration. One hundred colonies would 

 earn $1,500. Letting the food supply be governed by 

 chance, a colony will produce thirty-five to seventy pounds 

 in a good season. One hundred colonies will earn about 

 $750. Owners need to provide a patch of buckwheat or 

 alsike near the apiary. This will insure honey-making in 

 bad seasons and save the bees a great deal of travel. 



It is easy to handle bees when you know how. Undoubt- 

 edly a beekeeper often gets stung; it would be useless to 

 deny it, and it is scarcely consoling to a novice to tell 

 him he will get used to being stung; but after a time a 

 beekeeper really does become inoculated, after which, 

 although the momentary pain may be sharp, there are no 

 disagreeable after-effects, such as swelling, etc. 



The fear of stings prevents many from liking the 

 work, and yet, when properly protected with a bee-veil, 

 and working only in the warm part of the day, and never 



