1918 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



351 



2. Is there any State l>ee man in this State; 

 it so. what is his address 5 



3. Will bees carry in pollen if they have 

 no queen with them in the hive? 



4. Is cutting out queen-cells a good plan to 

 keep hees from swarming? 



.'». If I put a late swarm in a hive, in a few 

 days another small swarm issues and I put that 

 one in the same hive, will the queen that is in 

 the hive kill the one that is run in with the 

 last swarm, and will the hive of bees do well? 



'■ ' Ine of my colonies swarmed this season. 

 1 put the swarm in the hive and in half an hour 

 they all went back to the old hive. The next 

 day they came out again. I tried to hive 

 them, and they went back again. In two 

 week- they came out again. I tried to hive 

 them, but they would not go in the hive, but 

 went back and lit on the roof of the old hive. 

 What was the cause of these bees doing this? 

 PENNSYLVANIA. 

 i rs. — 1- Honey is sold in all the States 

 by avoirdupois weight, lfi ounces to the pound. 



2. Address Prof. I. G. Sanders. Harrisburg. 

 Pa. 



3. Yes and no. I think it's this way: When 

 a colony becomes queenless, the bees con- 

 tinue to gather -ollen; but when there is no 

 longer any brood to feed and a surplus of pol- 

 len is on hand, little or no pollen is gathered. 



4. In some cases cutting out queen-cells will 

 prevent swarming, but generally it will only 

 delay it for a time, if it delays it at all. 



5. If both queens are laying queens, or both 

 virgins, the bees are likely to do well; but if 

 one is a laying queen and the other a virgin, 

 there may be fighting. In any case, one of the 

 queens will De "killed, perhaps by the bees 

 rather than by the other queen. 



6. I don't know. It might be, however, that 

 there was some trouble with the old queen, so 

 that she could not go with the swarm, which 

 would account for the return of the swarm the 

 first times, and then two weeks later there was 

 a young queen (the old one having been 

 killed), and then it might be that the bees 

 merely swarmed out with the queen on her 

 wedding trip and then returned. 



Gasoline for Foulbrood 



Is it true that gasoline will kill foulbrood 

 germs? If so, how would it do to paint hives, 

 cover and bottom with it? Do you think the 

 uees would again work in built-out frames 

 dipped in gasoline after having been cleaned 

 out? CALIFORNIA. 



Answer. — I don't think gasoline would be at 

 all effective. I think bees would use combs 

 that had been dipped in gasoline; but I don't 

 know how long it would take for the combs to 

 dry out enough to be used. 



Speed of Extractors 



1 .What number of revolutions per minute 

 should an extractor make? 



2. How long should a comb be revolved to 

 obtain best results? 



3. Is there any arrangement by which the 

 slip gear improvement can be applied to the 

 old Cowan reversible basket extractor" 



4. Is an alcohol barrel, such as can be ob- 

 tained at the druggist's, suitable to store honev 

 in? MASSACHUSETTS 



Answers. — 1. To give a definite answer to 

 your question definite conditions should be 

 given. If one extractor ha* 6 inches from the 

 central shaft to the comb and another has a 

 less distance, the latter will require a greater 

 number of revolutions in a minute. If it has 

 a greater distance, it will require fewer revo- 

 lutions. If the combs are old and tough, it will 

 be well to run them faster than would be safe 

 with new and tender combs. The proper speed 

 for honey that is very thick and rather cold 

 may be four times as great a; for honey that 

 is thin and warm. With extractors of differ- 

 ent sizes, combs of different strength, honey 

 of different thickness, and of different tem- 

 perature, you will see that there might be a 

 thousand different answers. So there is wis- 

 dom in not attempting to give a definite num- 

 ber of revolutions per minute. After you have 



had some experience, and have broken a few 

 combs in running too fast, there is little doubt 

 you will be able to tell about what is the right 

 thing in your case. 



2. Again I don't know. It varies with vary 

 ing circumstances, and you'll have to learn by 

 experience, just as others have done. 



3. I doubt it. But I don't believe the slip- 

 gear makes such an immense difference. 



4. Yes. 



Fall Treatment of Foulbrood 



I have what I believe to be American or 

 European foulbrood in one of my colonies. I 

 want to use the McEvoy method of brushing 

 the bees on frame foundation and keeping 

 them confined for four days. I note you say 

 wait until the honeyflow is on. That would be 

 next June. Could I at once, after confining 

 bees four days, put them into a hive contain- 

 ing about 30 pounds of honey? Or should I 

 wait until spring? NEBRASKA. 



Answer. — If it is European foulbrood, I 

 wouldn't use the McEvoy treatment, but cage 

 the queen for 10 days. That's in case the 

 disease is not bad and the queen is a good one. 

 If the disease is bad, destroy the queen and 

 manage so that a week or 10 daye later there 

 shall be laying in the hive an Italian queen of 

 best stock. If it is American foulbrood, don't 

 wait till next June, but follow McEvoy 's ad- 

 vice, and as soon as there is no longer any 

 unsealed brood in the hive exchange the combs 

 for combs of sealed honey. That's all the 

 treatment required. Before doing anything, 

 better right away send a sample of the dis- 

 eased comb to Dr. E. F. Phillips, U. S. De- 

 partment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 

 and he will tell you which foulbrood it is and 

 send literature as to treatment. If you write 

 in advance he will send you a box in which 

 to mail the comb. It will cost you nothing. 



Removing Foundation 



I have a strong stand of bees and they had 

 three supers on that were pretty well filled. 

 I raised the three up and put on a super 

 filled with the one-pound sections that had 

 foundation in them. When I looked in them 

 the other day I found that they had taken all 

 the foundation out of the two outside rows of 

 sections. Now, what caused them to do that? 

 I have another hive that has got a super on 

 that I put on the same way, only I put it on 

 top, and this hive has got the 27 pound sec- 

 tions nearly full of honey. ILLINOIS. 



Answer. — I don't know. I should guess that 

 it was pretty hot and a heavy mass of bees 

 might have broken down the fastening of the 

 foundation; but in that case it would be more 

 likely to be the inside instead of the outside 

 sections. 



Prime Swarm Swarms 



In 1916 we bought a queen and 3 pounds of 

 bees. Same proved to be of excellent stock. 

 This same colony, on June 4, this year, cast 

 a prime swarm of immense size. We hived it 

 in a 10-frame hive, and on July 20 this same 

 prime swarm cast a swarm, also of large size. 

 Now, I understand a young swarm hardly 

 ever swarms again that season. The hive that 

 cast the swarm had 1 supers on, 2 of them had 

 56 well filled sections, and some work done in 

 the other. Whv did this swarm act as it did' 

 MINNESOTA. 



Answdr. — I don't know that I can give any 

 reason why a swarm occasionally sends out a 

 swarm. Possibly because very strong and of 

 swarmy stock, or because in some way the 

 queen feels crowded. 



Poison From Propolis 



I have been keeping bees for a few years 

 and have been right successful. But something 

 about the wax poisons my skin and makes me 

 break out, so I am afraid I will have to quit. 

 I went to a local druggist physician and he 

 recommended washing in a saturated solution 

 of borax water. This gives me relief in a 

 measure for the time. Can you recommend 

 something which would enable me to get rid of 

 the trouble without quitting the bees? 



COLORADO. 



Answer. — I am sorry to say I cannot help 

 you out. I think it likely it is the propolis 

 that makes the trouble, some skins being pe- 

 culiarly sensitive to it. The trouble comes es- 

 t ecially at the time of scraping sections, when 

 more or less dust must be flying from the dry 

 propolis. In such a case it is better to give up 

 comb honey and extract. If, however, the 

 trouble comes with you when producing ex- 

 tracted honey, I'm a little afraid the best thing 

 is to give up bees. Something was written 

 on this subject in the June number, page 202. 



Queen -Excluder — Drone Combs 



1. Do the Dadants usually use an excluder 

 for queen in their large hives to produce ex 

 tracted honey? Do you advise an amateur to 

 secure queen excluders if he uses the Dadant 

 hives? 



2. I often notice this advice: "Cut out all 

 drone-comb found on brood-comb frame and 

 replace with foundation or worker comb." How- 

 can this worker comb be fastened? Won't it 

 make a very uneven brood-frame, and won't 

 the honey-cells be cut and honey run out and 

 injure said brood-frame? 



3. In wintering in 10-frame regular hive, is 

 it necessary to leave on one or more supers, or 

 do you remove all supers" All bees are win- 

 tered outdoors in our climate. 



ALABAMA 

 Answers.— 1. The Dadants use no queen-ex- 

 cluder under their extracting-supers. but these 

 last contain shallow frames. If you use them 

 the same as the Dadants, it does not seem 

 necessary to use excluders. 



2. The patch of worker-comb to fill in the 

 hole made by cutting out the drone-comb is 

 made a trifle large, and is squeezed into place 

 and held there by the tight fit. After the bees 

 are done with fastening it in, you will hardly 

 notice any unevenness, and the comb will be 

 as good as if there had been no patching. The 

 dripping of honey would be easily cared for 

 by the bees, out this patching is usually done 

 at a time when little honey would be in the 

 way. 



3. Usually all supers are removed at the 

 close of the honey season, although some leave 

 on a super for winter, generally packing it full 

 of some light material, such a> chaff, leaves, or 

 planer shavings. 



Increase — Foulbrood — Apiary on 

 Shares 



1. Would it increase the population of the 

 hive to leave full supers on hive till late in 

 the fall? I should think that feeling rich, they 

 would be more lavish in brood-rearing. 



2. How could t unite the bees of an Ameri- 

 can foulbrood colony to a clean colony without 

 danger, in the fall? 



3. What kind of an agreement could I pro- 

 pose to a farmer regarding an outapiary? I 

 drew one up on a typewriter with the aid of 

 a young lawyer which so scared the farmer 

 that he turned me down flatly. ILLINOIS. 



Answers. — 1. I don't believe it would make 

 any difference. 



2. If you wait till there is no more unsealed 

 brood, I don't believe there would be any 

 danger. 



3. In most cases there is no agreement in 

 writing, and in most cases there is no trouble. 

 Indeed in most cases there is no agreement as 

 to anything the farmer is to do, only he gives 

 permission for the bees to be put on his 

 land, and then, if the beekeeper is wise, he 

 will give the farmer enough honey so that the 

 farmer will want the bees to continue. In 

 some cases, however, the farmer is to do 

 something in the way of taking care of the 

 bees, as hiving swarms, in which case a defi- 

 nite agreement in writing would be advisable. 



Bees on Shares 



G. has swarms in old box hives and has no 

 time to give them. . 



F would like to transfer them, introduce 

 Italian queens and run them for extracted 

 honey. 



