172 DR. miller's 



Q. How soon in the spring are queen-breeders ready for 

 mailing tested queens? 



A. In the South I think they can ship in March tested queens 

 of the previous year. 



Q. How is it that most of the queen-breeders advertise 

 queens for sale and none can supply the beekeeper with queens 

 early, but only want their orders booked early, and maybe have 

 the queens forwarded the latter part of May or middle of June, 

 the time when every beekeeper has plenty of queen material to 

 supply himself? 



A. Don't be too hard on the queen-breeders ; you may some- 

 time be one yourself. It is all right to book orders to be filled as 

 fast as possible, provided it is an understood thing that they are 

 to be so filled. If, however, he advertises to send queens by re- 

 turn mail, and then delays, he's not giving you a square deal. It 

 looks a little as if your idea was that when you order a queen 

 you should always get it by return mail. It would be difficult for 

 a man to treat all of his customers in that way. He would be 

 obliged to have a stock of queens on hand before he made such 

 an agreement; he would have no way of knowing how many to 

 have in advance, and might be overstocked at a loss. You can, 

 however, say when ordering, "If you cannot send a queen at 

 such a time, return money,'' and then there could be no complaint 

 on either side. 



You say they send queens when every beekeeper has plenty of 

 material to supply himself. Pray tell me how a queen-breeder 

 can have material earlier than the beekeeper. You and I can have 

 material as early as any, and can rear queens as early; but we 

 may want to buy queens for other reasons. Moreover, I wouldn't 

 give 30 cents a dozen for queens reared too early, no matter 

 who rears them. 



Queens, Caging. — Q. How long is it safe to keep a queen 

 caged? Must she have attendants as in shipping? 



A. It is generally neither necessary nor desirable to have her 

 caged more than ten days ; but I have known a queen to be caged 

 double that time in her hive without appearing to be hurt by it. 

 No need of any attendants in the cage; they are likely to die in 

 the cage and thus be a damage. 



Q. How long may I keep queens caged (after they have com- 

 menced to lay) without danger of injuring them? 



A. No doubt something depends upon circumstances. If a 

 queen should be caged in a hive among her own bees, so that they 



