676 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Tl^lth Replies tbereto. 



[It is quite useless to ask for answers to 

 Queries in this Department in less time 

 tkan one montb. Tliey have to wait their 

 turn, be put in type, and sent in about a 

 dozen at a time to each of those who answer 

 them ; get them returned, and then find 

 ■pace for them in the Joubnai,, If you are 

 in a "hurry" for replies, do not ask for 

 them to be inserted here.— Ed.] 



Colonies tliat Killed tlieir Oneens. 



tluery 486.— In the apiary referred to in 

 Query 487, the bees kilted very early, just after 

 being put out in the spring, several queens, and 

 quite a number of neigliboring apiarists had 

 the same experience. It was so here, also. Can 

 you give a plausible reason for the bees doing as 

 they did ?-W., New York. 



We do iipt think the bees killed 

 their queens. "We think the queens 

 died, of disease.— Dadant & Son. 



No. Bees often do so. Perhaps 

 the queens were poor and needed 

 superseding.— C. C. Miller. 



No, not without seeing or knowing 

 more of the details of tne condition 

 of affairs in the apiary referred to.— 

 Jambs Heddon. 



I can give no reason why this should 

 have occurred to a greater extent one 

 year than another, unless it might 

 have been lack of a honey-flow, or 

 something of that kind.— W. Z. 

 Hutchinson. 



I can give no plausible reason why 

 bees should " kill " their queens in 

 early spring. It often happens that 

 ■weak, badly-wintered colonies lose 

 their queens in the spring, but the 

 quees are not "killed."— G.L. Tinker. 



The queens were lacking in vigor, 

 or at least such was the case when 

 my bees did the same thing some 12 

 years ago.— G. M. Doolittle. 



Many plausible reasons could be 

 given, but it would be all speculation 

 in your ease. I have known bees to 

 mix up when first put out, and kill 

 several queens.- H. D. Cutting. 



Such freaks of bees killing their 

 queens early in the spring are 

 common. As the cause is not always 

 the same, I cannot tell what prompted 

 it in your case, without knowing their 

 condition at the time.— J. P. H. 

 Brown. 



I cannot, and do not think that any 

 one else can. I can guess a dozen 

 things that might be right or wrong, 

 and just as liable to be wrong as 

 right. If all the particulars were 

 stated in a question, answers of more 

 value could be given.— J. E. Pond. 



It is not unusual for bees to " ball " 

 and kill their queens early in the 

 spring. It seems to be the result of 

 discouraging conditions with which 

 they are surrounded ; and sometimes 

 it has the appearance of pure mean- 

 ness. I lost about 10 good queens in 

 this way during our deep snow last 

 March. I have proven to my satis- 



faction that the fault is not usually 

 with the queen. If the queen is 

 taken away from the bees when they 

 are balling her, she will do good ser- 

 vice when the bees become reconciled 

 to Ler.— G. W. Demaree. 



Probably the queens were diseased 

 or disabled, and were superseded. 

 Bees do not usually kill their queens 

 in the spring, if they are of value.— 

 The Editor. 



fill tlie te_¥inter ? 



Query 487.— The brood-chamber of a 



hive has all the combs full of honey, but the bees 

 will not work in the upper story. The bees hang 

 out. There is not a particle of room for the 

 queen. Will these bees live until spring? What 

 should be done ? There is about 6x8 inches of 

 worker brood, and no drones to be seen. It has 13 

 frames, 12x12 inches. My friend has 17 colonies 

 in about the same condition. He asked what was 

 best to do. My reply was. take away half of the 

 frames and insert as many frames of full sheets 

 of foundation. He asked why strips 2 inches wide 

 would not answer. I replied, " Because you would 

 get drone comb." Was I right?— New York. 



It would all depend upon the time 

 of the season, and the age of the 

 queen, in regard to the drone comb. 

 I should prefer old comb to founda- 

 tion for bees to winter on.— H. D. 

 Cutting. 



Let them severely alone. By the 

 time you get them fixed up it will be 

 too late for brood-rearing.— C. C. 

 Miller. 



You might take out a few frames 

 of capped honey, and give frames of 

 empty comb in their place. It is too 

 late for foundation. But if let alone 

 and properly prepared for wintBr,they 

 will come out strong in the spring.— 

 J. P. H. Brown. 



If you had been one of those who 

 " get there," as Mr. Heddon terms it, 

 no such state of affairs would have 

 existed. My advice to you for the 

 future would be the words of our 

 much-honored Quinby, viz: "See 

 your bees often." There is no remedy 

 left thus late in the season, except to 

 double up the colonies. — G. M. Doo- 

 little. 



At this season, we should have left 

 those colonies as they were. They 

 must be in good health. It is too late 

 to build comb. Two-inch strips will 

 give bees a chance to build drone- 

 comb, and you were right in that par- 

 ticular.— Dadant & Son. 



I wish my bees were that well off 

 for stores ; perhaps it is time for them 

 to " wind up " the breeding business 

 for the season. I would not disturb 

 them this late in the season, unless 

 they needed room to store honey. But 

 I guess from what you say, there is no 

 honey to gather, or your bees would 

 not refuse to store honey in the upper 

 stories.— G. W. Demaree. 



Do not get scared. Let those bees 

 and combs alone, and if the seeds of 

 diarrhea are not in the hives, and 

 they are properly protected through 

 the winter, they will come out all 

 right in 1888. It is now too late for 

 yotir plan to work well. — James 

 Heddon. 



I am unable to give an intelligent 

 answer to this query, for like many 

 that are found in this department, it 



gives only a few facts, but not enough 

 from which to form a correct diag- 

 nosis, or give a prognosis, except by 

 chance, as an answer will be all guess- 

 word. Numbers 485 and 488 are of 

 the same stamp.— J. E. Pond. 



At this time of the year a colony 

 with but little brood, and stores in 

 plenty, is in fine condition. When the 

 query was written it might not be. 

 Yes, the bees woftld probably have 

 built drone-comb.— W. Z. Hutchin- 

 son. 



Only five such frames full of honey 

 will be sufficient to winter the bees. 

 It would be better to extract one comb 

 for each colony, put this in the center 

 with the five frames of honey, and 

 put in a division -board. The bees 

 will winter better on 6 than on IS 

 such combs, especially if not strong 

 in numbers.— G. L. Tinker. 



It is too late now to give the bees 

 comb foundation. Let them alone 

 until spring comes ; they must have 

 sufficient honey for winter stores, a» 

 you claim that the queen has no room 

 to lay.— The Editor. 



MMi M Colonies for f inter. 



Query 488.— A friend has bees in about 

 the same condition as in Query 485. He asked 

 wliat was best to do under the circumstances. My 

 advice was to insert at once full frames of foun- 

 dation in the centre of the brood-nest, or better, 

 if he had them, empty combs, and feed a little 

 sugar every night. Did 1 advise correctly ?— Col- 

 lamer, N. Y. 



Yes.— G. W. Demaree. 

 You did. Empty combs would be 

 better.— J. P. H. Brown. 



If the bees were lacking in numbers, 

 it was good advice.— W. Z. Hutchin- 

 son. 



Yes, in July and August, but not 

 for September and October. It is too 

 late now.— A. J. Cook. 



Your plan may work well, but I do 

 not like patching up matters late in 

 the season.— C. C. Miller. 



If the advice was given the forepart 

 of August it would be very good. If 

 in September, there would little good 

 come of it, in my opinion.— G. M. 

 Doolittle. 



Your advice would be all right if 

 not too late in the season. I find that 

 one cannot make queens lay just 

 when he wants them to. — H. D. 

 Cutting. 



It is now too late to get much brood 

 started by feeding. If the colonies 

 have plenty of honey, and are not too 

 weak, the advice given will be good 

 next spring.— G. L. TinivER. 



Yes ; still it may do no good. By- 

 and-by, when preparing the bees for 

 winter, you can double them up. 1 

 should advise a change of queens at 

 any rate, as the fault is in all proba- 

 bility with them. See answer to No. 

 485.— J. E. Pond. 



I do not think that any such manip- 

 ulation is necessary, and besides, I 

 never want combs built between com- 

 pleted ones. I think that the querist 

 of No. 488 is more scared than hurt.— 

 James Heddon. 



