576 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



come up to requirements when thej- 

 ought to, to make the results, we 

 must make conditions ourselves. 



That natural swarming does not by 

 any means meet conditions to get best 

 results is a fact too commonly known 

 to admit of or need argument to es- 

 tablish; and since it is so we must 

 take the bull by the horns and force 

 conditions. Where but few bees are 

 kept, and it is convenient to watch for 

 swarms and hive them, good results 

 may be had by hiving the swarm on 

 the old stand and giving the super to 

 the swarm; but when we cannot, with- 

 out a sacrifice, watch for and care for 

 swarms, then it is best always to take 

 some other plan. The bees must be 

 controlled, and made to do that which 

 we wish— that is, when there is any 

 thing to do with. We cannot make 

 the honey flow, but we can do much 

 toward getting strong colonies; and, 

 having the bees, we can do much to- 

 ward getting them to do good work. 



It is a fact that the colony that is 

 in swarming strength is likely to 

 swarm just when it ought to bend 

 every energy toward honey-gathering, 

 and ordinarily it will swarm just at 

 such time. The master may and can 

 get as good results by managing to 

 suit himself, and here is what to do: 

 Give the bees plenty of room, or do 

 that which will keep them from all 

 rotion of swarming until tlie tlow is at 

 hand, then remove all brood and 

 combs, and allow them to start from 

 starters in a small brood-chamber. 

 Make them start just as a swarm 

 would have to do if hived on starters 

 If you take away part of the combs 

 and give starters you can get a fine 

 lot of drone comb. It will also do to 

 hive on dry combs in most locations 

 where the flow is short, or on full 

 sheets of foundation if wired suffi- 

 ciently to prevont breakage. Ordina- 

 rily I consider it unprofitable to use 

 foundation, perhaps nearly always ex- 



cept with very rapid flows; and if full 

 combs are used instead there ought 

 always to be a very strong swarm 

 hived on the combs so they will be 

 sure to enter the supers. Observe this 

 rule: Always have strong swarms, 

 and the more comb or foundation in 

 the brood-chamber, the more bees 

 should be piled into the hive. 



If the combs are to be built from 

 starters, each queen should be either 

 young or in her prime and vigor; if 

 not. there will be an undue amount of 

 drone-comb built. Swarms, whether 

 natural or forced, will build some 

 drone comb that must be culled out, 

 but usually not much drone comb is 

 built the first year, and such comb 

 can be removed the next spring before 

 being used. 



Some advocate making the swarm 

 when the colony is already preparing 

 to swarm, but I must surely say no to 

 that proposition. Do not let the 

 swarming fever come on at all if pos- 

 sible to prevent (and it is possible); 

 and when the season is ripe for the 

 work, do it and produce a condition 

 that is adverse to swarming. If any- 

 body will put down a carload of bees 

 in Loveland just in time for me to 

 make swarms, and hive them just as 

 my flow begins, I will guarantee that 

 49 out of 50 having vigorous queens 

 will go to work and give a good ac- 

 count of themselves if each has bees 

 of all ages and plenty of fielders. 



QUEEN CELLS. 



Their Presence may not Always Indicate 

 Queenlessness. 



It has long been considered the 

 orthodox thing to say that the build- 

 ing of queen cells, or the toleration of 

 their presence, was a sure indication 

 of queenlessness, but Dr. Miller, in 



