AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



123 



follow their own instincts. Young 

 queens, those under two years of age, 

 usually are the most desirable. They 

 begin laying earlier, fill their combs 

 more completely, and bring their colonies 

 out in a more populous condition at the 

 beginning of the white honey harvest. 

 There is less disposition to swarm with 

 young queens, and the same may be said 

 in regard to the building of drone comb 

 if swarming occurs, and foundation is 

 not furnished. 



As to the rearing of queens artificially, 

 so to speak, I should strive to secure the 

 same conditions as those under which 

 they are reared naturally. There must 

 be warmth, food in abundance, plenty of 

 nurse-bees, and nothing but eggs or just- 

 hatched larvae for the bees to develop 

 into queens. As to the details of 

 commercial queen-rearing, each breeder 

 is a law unto himself, and I think I have 

 now said enough to start the discussion 

 upon "The best all-purpose queens and 

 how to rear them." — Read at the Michi- 

 qan State Convention. 



Moie of Wintering Bees, 



O. R. HAWKIKS. 



I put 5 colonies into Winter quarters 

 about one month ago, one of which I am 

 afraid I shall lose before next Spring. 

 My method of wintering is very simple, 

 yet it is as good as the more costly way. 



1 nailed 2 sticks to my stand, put a top 

 piece from one to the other, and then 

 braced them well and put my hives all 

 together and stacked corn-stalks around 

 them on 3 sides, leaving the south side 

 open. 



To keep the corn-stalks in place, I put 



2 pieces of wire about them, 1 near the 

 top, and the other at the bottom. A 

 piece of rope or old cord would have done 

 just as well as I used old cord the two 

 previous Winters. 



When Spring comes, all I have to do 

 is to unfasten the wire, throw the stalks 

 in the stock-yard, give the frame a lift, 

 set the hives in their old places on the 

 stand and everything is in order. 



The apiary is in a nice grove, or more 

 properly speaking, a strip of oak and 

 pine trees, 20 feet across and several 

 hundred feet long, and a more beautiful 

 spot cannot be found. 



Two years ago I saw that the bees 

 were in great need of something to light 

 upon when they came to the hive, and to 

 fly from when leaving it, so I invented a 

 fly-board. It sits snugly up to the face 

 of the hive and if the wind or anything 



else troubles it, put a nail, or screw, 

 through it into the hive, or stand. 



I placed a colony in for the Winter, and 

 when I looked at it yesterday the bees 

 were in splendid condition. Do you 

 think they will freeze before Spring, or 

 die from anything else ? They were a 

 small colony and only filled their hive 

 half full of comb, which was packed 

 with honey. 



The weather has been fine though 

 severe, and windy at times, I could not 

 have wished for better. The prospects 

 for next season look good. The last 

 hive in the apiary in Brookhaven, the 

 nearest town east of me, has been 

 destroyed by moths. The apiary at East 

 Patchoyac has been gradually reduced 

 from 27 colonies to 3. In a year or two 

 I will be the only apiarist left for miles 

 around. I have increased from 2 colo- 

 nies and learned from experience. 



Bellport, N. Y., Dec. 24, 1890. 



MoTiDE an Auiary a SM Distance. 



E. c: AiKiisr. 



A question often asked is: "Can I 

 Move an Apiary a Short Distance with- 

 out loss." About Nov. 1, I moved an 

 entire apiary of 80 colonies, a distance 

 of about 400 feet. I was preparing to 

 pack the bees for Winter, so I built the 

 cases, or packing boxes on the new 

 grounds. 



When all was ready and the bees were 

 all in, I stopped all entrances and at 

 once proceeded to move them. I made a 

 small sled by nailing boards on 2 pieces 

 of 2x6 about 6 ft. long. One horse did 

 the moving, taking 4 to 6 colonies per 

 load. All hives were left closed until the 

 whole were moved, the -©Id yard cleaned 

 up, and as thoroughly changed in appear- 

 ance as circumstances would admit. I 

 then proceeded to mark each hive. The 

 hives were placed in the boxes, or clamps, 

 ready to be packed for Winter, and so 

 were in long rows and about 6 inches 

 apart. 



The marking was done as follows: I 

 took scraps of board, odd sizes and 

 shapes, and placed alighting boards in 

 front of the hives, so that no two hives 

 adjoining, should look alike. Pictures, 

 colored papers, pieces of pasteboard, tin 

 cans, etc., were tacked on the front of 

 the hives in various positions, and pieces 

 of boards and sticks leaned up in front 

 for them to "bump their heads against." 

 Now all were liberated, (this had best be 

 done just near the close of the day when 

 the flight will be short), and finding all 



