A YEAR'S WORK IN AN OUT-APIARY 23 



■was the case, as the liability of such colonies swarming at unexpected 

 times must always be counted upon. But such Is not the case when the 

 apiary is worked on the plan here given, for nearly all of the colonies; 

 treated in this way give better results than any colony which does not 

 swarm, worked In the usual way. Therefore this way of working, as 

 here given, does away with all the labor required in trying to find out 

 whether colonies are going to swarm or not, by way of looking for queen- 

 cells once a week in using the different plans that have been published, 

 such as tipping up the hives and smoking the bees so the bottom of the 

 combs may be inspected for cells, clamps for holding the sections from 

 falling off while this inspection is going on, the prying-apart of divisible 

 brood-chambers to see if queen-cells are being built between, or even 

 having a "cell-detector hole" cut and fixed in the back of the hive, which 

 can be opened once a day or often er to discover if cells are started on a 

 comb, cut and fixed in such a way that, if queen-cells are started in any 

 part of the hive, they will be started so they can be seen from this hole; 

 and, also, all the labor of requeenlng, caging queens, etc., used in trying 

 to prevent swarming. In fact, it supersedes any and all the plans here- 

 tofore used by hundreds and thousands of apiarists when working on the 

 shook-swarming plans or prevention of swarming. And as it not only 

 does away with all but a minimum amount of work, and also gives the 

 greatest possible yield of section honey, I claim that what is here given 

 stands "head and shoulders" above any thing else in sight during the 

 past or at the present time, especially in working an out-apiary for comb 

 honey. 



Hive No. 3, on row 2, contained what I considered my best breeder 

 for comb honey, and I had left it strong in bees and brood on the last 

 visit, hoping it might make some preparation for swarming by the time 

 I came again, and when shaking it I found just what I wanted, which 

 was queen-cells with one or two day old larvae in them, the larvse literally 

 swimming in royal jelly. 



The shaking of these combs was done more carefully than with the 

 others, for fear of dislodging the swimming larviB, although there is 

 little danger along this line, until the royal larvse attain an age of four 

 or five days. This hive of beeless brood and queen-cells was placed on 

 top of the strongest colony not tiered on my third visit, and only this 

 one hive of brood was put on it, while the others had two and three hives 

 each, as I had 13 hives of brOod to go on six colonies, hence taking only 

 one for this hive left twelve to go on the other five not tiered before. 

 Why I put no other brood on this colony with these cells was because I 

 wished these royal larvse given every possible advantage looking toward 

 the best of queens. I do not generally depend on queens or queen-cells 

 from the out-apiary for work therein, as I generally have more time and 

 conveniences for rearing them in the home yard, taking whatever I wish 

 along this line with me at each visit. But if we have a good breeding 

 queen at the out-apiary, and wish to use cells or queens from her brood, 

 as was the case above, this tells the reader how it can be done. By the 

 way, here is an excellent plan for the amateur to raise queens for use in 



