162 ■ THE PR^CTICAI, IIKE GUIDE. 



The swarm is then hived on the stand of the parent stock, 

 which latter is moved to a new stand, or is divided into 

 four or five nuclei, each provided with a ripe queen cell of its 

 own rearing". 



289. Using an Unswarmed Stock When the desired drones 



beg-in to hatch out in hive B (286) insert a frame of worker 

 comb, or of worker foundation in the centre of the brood nest 

 of hive A. On the third or fourth day, if eggs have been 

 deposited in that frame, transfer the queen and three frames, 

 one of brood and two of honey, with the adhering bees, to a 

 nucleus hive, pushing a little grass into the entrance to pre- 

 vent the bees from returning at once to their old home. Supply 

 syrup if necessary. Remove also from hive A all combs 

 having unsealed larvae, returning the adhering bees, and give 

 the combs to other stocks. Now take out the frame which 

 you inserted in the centre of the brood nest, and in which the 

 queen has deposited eggs, and with a penknife, cut " scollops," 

 or V-cuts, from the bottom of the comb up to where the eggs 

 are found, and with a pencil or a match, enlarge the cells at 

 the apex of each scollop, to encourage the bees to build a queen 

 cell there : or, cut holes through the comb immediately under 

 the eggs, returning the frame as quickly as possible, and cover- 

 ing up the brood nest warmly (338). ff honey and pollen are 

 not coming in plentifully, you must supply them artificially 

 (192) during the next few days. Nine or ten days after the 

 scolloping of the comb, there should be a quantity of queen 

 cells upon it; and you must then prepare nucleus colonies to 

 receive them. 



290. Forming Nuclei. — Take, from a strong stock, one frame 

 of honey and two frames of brood, with the adhering bees, 

 supplying their places with frames of comb or of foundation, 

 and insert the removed frames and bees in a nucleus hive 

 (285), taking care to leave the queen in the parent hive. Stop 

 the entrance of the nucleus hive with grass : arrange obstacles 

 about it as directed elsewhere (156) to cause the bees, when 

 they fly, to mark the new situation ; supply food : and, should 

 the colony become reduced too much by bees returning to the 

 old hive, shake some more, and preferably young bees, into it 

 from the parent stock, or from other stocks, using", in the latter 

 case, the precautions described under the head of "Uniting" 

 Bees " (244). Place the nucleus at some distance from the 

 other stocks, and continue the operation until a sufficient 

 number of nuclei have been formed. 



291. Inserting Queen Cells — Having, on the ninth or tenth 

 day, formed your nuclei, supply them with ripe queen cells on 



