ILLINOIS STATE BEE-KEEPERS' ASSOCIATION 



165 



thing I have ever found that puts en- 

 ergy into bees is transferring entire- 

 ly, that is, taking them from one hive 

 or one location off their comb and. put- 

 ting them in an entirely new location 

 on new comb, or make them build 

 their own. If you watch them and 

 manipulate them properly you will 

 get the results. 



Mr. Huffman — I have been listening 

 quite a bit to this shaking business. 

 I will admit you can shake bees, but 

 I don't believe you can shake any en- 

 ergy into them, but they can shake it 

 into you. I am with Brother Dadant 

 on this. Keep your colony right and 

 have the right kind' of bees, good 

 strong bees, and you will get more 

 honey than from any other kind. It 

 depends on the bees more than any- 

 thing else. I have shaken several; I 

 have shaken them on empty combs 

 and put the brood on top, but I could- 

 n't see there was any more energy in 

 them than any others. If you shake 

 them and move them it may help 

 some, but if they go into a new field 

 they have got to work to find some- 

 thing new, and they get out, when the 

 honey seasdn comes on they are ready 

 to go to work at it. If you .manipu- 

 late your swarms and manipulate them 

 at the right time, and get ready for 

 the honey flow when it comes, and 

 give them plenty of room, I don't be- 

 lieve they will need any shaking; and 

 when they are fit to extract, put on 

 your combs. 



Dr. Jones — ^I think that those gen- 

 tlemen who have spoken last have hit 

 the nail on the head. It is not the 

 shaking, but it is giving them plenty of 

 room at all times, and they will get 

 the honey if there is any. As to get- 

 ting honey in the top stories, I think 

 one bee-k'Seper said by raising up a 

 oomb or two with honey or brood in it 

 from below and putting it above that, 

 wiU start your bftes to work every 

 time, I have noticed that at different 

 times, in different seasons. Mr. Facey 

 claims that dividing bees will put 

 more energy into them than anything 

 else you can do. We haven't any 

 trouble up in our country getting the 

 'bees to work, but wihen they get 

 crowded, they are not going to do any- 

 thing. When bees loaf, it is because 

 they haven't room to work. If you 

 give them plenty of room, and keep 

 aihead of .thetni, they are going to work 

 all the time. Mr. Ramer is acquainted 



with our system of manag^ing bees 

 up there. 



Mr. Huffman — I wish they would de- 

 vise some means this year to put the 

 energy into the bees - in our locality. 

 We have the bees, but we don't have 

 tiie honey. 



Mr. Snyder — The last two gentle- 

 men's experience coincides with mine. 

 It is my experience that to gfive 

 plenty of room when the bees need it 

 is what gets the 'honey. Last year I 

 undertook to experiment with dividing 

 my bees and establishing an out- 

 apiary, thinking my home apiary was 

 a little overstocked, or was in dan- 

 ger of being so, and the results were 

 not satisfactory to me. The bees I 

 had movedl w^ere hauled some four 

 miles to a location that seemed to be 

 unusually good for gathering honey; 

 It wajs a splendid location for clover, 

 etc.; and, in "hauling these bees, if 

 shaking was any advantage to them, I 

 think they undoubtedly had it, as I 

 (had to go down two very stony hills 

 on the way; and they got some smok- 

 ing when we arrived at the. place, in 

 taking them off to quiet them for 

 handling; and I am positive had I kept 

 those bees all at home, in the home 

 apiary, I would ihave had much more 

 honey, as my heaviest yields were 

 froimi the colonies at home that were 

 given plenty of room. 



Mr. Bernsdheim — My experience Is 

 not shaking bees for the purpose of 

 putting energy into them, but watch- 

 ing them closely that they do not hang 

 out. Whenever I see a cluster of bees 

 as big as my hand hanging out, I ex- 

 arnine the upper story, and quite like- 

 ly I add another story betv/een. This 

 last summer I took 37 swarms on 

 sihares. The man that owned them 

 went out West on account of his 

 health. The lady that was left at 

 home wanted me to take care of them 

 in her own yard. I said I couldn't do 

 that, because, I said, when your bees 

 need your attention, my bees need my 

 attention at home. So I took theni to 

 my own place. When I got to harvest- 

 ing the Ihoney she apparently thought 

 she got more honey by getting half 

 the honey fromi me than sihe did when, 

 her husband ran them at home. I 

 don't average more than one swarm 

 out of three colonies per year, so It 

 shows I keep therti doing something 

 else than swarming. 



At this point the President resumed 



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