44 



PKACTICAL BEE-KEEPING. 



for a moment to enable us to insert her. The frame, now held by its 

 ears, is sharply jerked in front of the step, when most of the bees fall> 

 and begin running in, when they at once cluster around their queen. This 

 frame is returned to its place, and the process continued with others, 

 until a sufficient number of bees have been obtained to form a swarm. 

 Closing the frame hive, the swarm is made, and the process so far complete 

 should not have occupied more than a quarter of an hour. Late in the even- 

 ing we pack our swarm (see " Natural Swarming ") and return the frame 

 hive to its old position. Or, commencing early in the day, when the bees 

 are flying strongly, we proceed as before, except that we shake off bees 

 from two combs only, the foragers returning from the fields making up 

 the necessary number, but in this case the stock should be removed if 

 convenient, eight, or ten yards, while the swarm must not be made close 



Fig, 32. Swaeming Board, 



to other hives like the one from which it was taken, or many bees will 

 enter the wrong ones. 



If the swarm is to tenant 'a movable comb hive, the mouth is opened 

 to the fullest extent, with the swarming board simply fitted under the 

 alighting board, when all proceeds as before ; or the frame hive may stand, 

 propped up, without its bottom board, where we find the skep in Fig. 32. 



If the swarm is to remain in our apiary, we may, in the morning, when 

 the bees are in fuU flight, remove from the hive to be swarmed a frame 

 containing brood, and upon which the queen is found or placed. Putting 

 this into a new hive stood in the place of the parent stock, the flying bees 

 will constitute the swarm, which wiU be strengthened by the hatching 

 brood, while the queen will from the first have cells in which to deposit 

 The old hive must go to a new station after we have drawn its 



