118 THE I'KAU-i'ICAL BEE GUIDE. 



CHAPTER XX. 

 SWARMING. 



205. Natural Swarming Natural swarming may occur upon 



any fine day from the middle of spring to the middle of 

 autumn, as the condition of the colony may demand. As a 

 general rule, swarms may be looked for from the end of May, 

 or in a very favourable season, from the closing days of April, 

 up to the termination of the honey flow. For profit during the 

 season, early swarms are, of course, most in demand (152), 

 because, if they come off in April or early in May, they have 

 time to build combs and to rear brood before the opening of 

 the honey flow; whereas if they issue in June or July, the 

 honey flow, except in heather districts, will have ended before 

 a sufficient number of young bees can be produced to take 

 advantage of it (204) ; in which case neither the swarm nor the 

 parent stock can store much surplus honey that season, and 

 the former will probably require feeding and careful attention, 

 to enable it to survive the autumn and winter. Hence the 

 well-known adage : — 



A swarm of bees in May 

 Is worth a load of hay ; 

 A swarm of bees in June 

 Is worth a silver spoon ; 

 A swarm of bees in July 

 Is worth a butterfly. 



206. Signs Of Swarming — With the use of modern hives, the 

 bee-keeper is able to calculate, with some degree of accuracy, 

 the date upon which any particular stock is likely to swarm ; 

 and, by a little observation, he can avoid being taken com- 

 pletely by surprise. This is one distinct advantage of modern 

 bee-keeping over the old methods ; for, if any circumstance of 

 bee-life demands more prompt attention than another it is the 

 issue of a swarm, which must be dealt with at once, and which 

 may be said, like " time and tide," to wait for no man. When 

 a colony has increased in numbers to such an extent as to 

 become cramped for room ; when nectar is being carried in 

 rapidly ; and when drones are on the wing, preparations are 



