134 THE PKAOTICAL BEE GUIUE. 



239. Hiving by Caging If the bee-keeper is on the alert 



and sees the swaim as it issues, he may often save himself a 

 great deal of trouble if he watches the queen as she comes out 

 on the alighting board, and slips a pipe-cover cage (297) over 

 her. He then places the prepared hive on the stand of the parent 

 stock ; sets the queen, in her cage, on the alighting board of 

 the former ; and waits for the swarm to return, when the absence 

 of the queen has been discovered (209). He then releases the 

 queen, allowing her to go in with the swarm, and either leaves 

 tlie swarm on the old stand, or removes it to a new position, as 

 his requirements may suggest. If left upon the old stand, it 

 will receive a large accession of strength from the flying bees 

 of the parent stock, and will work with surprising vigour. 



240. Hiving a Swarm on the Old Stand. — If you are working 

 for honey rather than for an increase of j-our stocks, place the 

 swarm upon the stand of the parent stock, removing the latter 

 to a new position, and transfer the supers, if any, from the 

 stock to the swarm. Thus, casts will be prevented ; the swarm 

 will be strengthened by the flying bees of the stock, and new 

 energy will be tiirown into its work. An excluder under the 

 supers will be useful. If, at the close of the honey flow, you 

 unite the two stocks, removing the old ciueen, in the following 

 year you will have a strong stock, with a queen in her prime. 



241. The Heddon IWethod — The Heddon method is to move the 

 parent hive to one side, beside, and at right angles with its for- 

 mer position, the hive with the swarm being placed on the old 

 stand. Two days later, the parent hive is turned round so that 

 its entrance points in the same direction as the entrance of the 

 hive containing the swarm ; and, seven or eight days after the 

 issue of the swarm, i.e., a day or two before a cast might be 

 expected (214), in the middle of the day, when bees are flying 

 freely, the parent hive is changed to a new position, thus giving 

 all its flying bees to the swarm, and effectually preventing 

 casts. (221). 



242. Returning Swarms — Another method consists in taking 

 away all brood from the swarmed stock, filling the vacancies 

 with frames of wired foundation, and transferring the brood at 

 once to other hives; after which the swarm is run into the 

 parent hive as directed (233). Thus the swarming impulse is 

 usually satisfied, the bees are kept together, and the foraging 

 propensity receives a new stimulus. It is to be noted that the 

 brood combs, before being given to other stocks, should have 

 their queen cells removed. 



243. Retracing Swarms.— Should there be any difficulty in 

 locating the hive from which a swarm has issued, take from the 

 cluster a handful of bees : put them into a small box, and 



