16 



Farmers' Bulletin 1198 



afterswarmlng. Usually, however, this 

 method can be depended upon without 

 opening the hives to note the advance- 

 ment of the queen cells or to shake 

 out any of the bees. 



If no increase is desired the parent 

 colony may be moved to the opposite 

 side of the swarm instead of to a 

 more distant location, and it can be 

 united with the swarm at the close of 

 the honey flow. In doing this it may 

 be necessary to place the parent colony 

 some distance beyond the swarm and 

 turn its entrance away from that of 

 the swarm, temporarily to keep the 

 returning young bees from finding 

 their hive, as they may do if it is 

 placed on the opposite side with its 

 entrance close to that of the swarm. 



Fio. 7. — A day or two later the hive of the 

 parent colony is placed close to that of 

 the swarm. Seven days later it is re- 

 moved 



INTERRUPTION OF WORK IN SUPERS 

 UNDESIRABLE 



When swarms are hived during the 

 honey flow in the manner described 

 above, it is important that conditions 

 within the new hive be such that the 

 energy of the newly hived swarm is 

 directed from the beginning chiefly to 

 the work in the supers Instead of to 

 work in the new brood chamber. This 

 is especially important during a short 

 honey flow, for the season may close 

 before profitable work in the supers 

 is resumed if the colony first fills the 

 brood chamber. Furthermore, a tem- 

 porary cessation of work in the supers 

 while the new brood chamber is being 

 filled may result later in a stagnation 

 of the work of the colony, brought 

 about by a concentration of work in 

 the brood chamber. This applies 

 particularly to comb-honey produc- 

 tion, since in extracted-honey produc- 

 tion there should be little if any in- 

 terruption of the work in the supers 

 after the swarm has been hived, unless 

 the swarm is unusually small or unless 

 the new brood chamber is unusually 



large. The furniture used In the new 

 brood chamber, the size of the new 

 brood chamber, the number of bees 

 in the swarm, the attractiveness of 

 the supers (p. 7), and the character 

 of the honey flow all affect the con- 

 tinuity of the work in the supers 

 when a swarm is hived. 



INFLUENCE OF FUBNITUBE USED IN THE 

 NEW HIVE 



The brood chamber in which a 

 swarm is to be hived may be furnished 

 with (1) frames that are empty ex- 

 cept a narrow strip of foundation about 

 an inch in width to guide the bees in 

 comb building, (2) frames containing 

 full sheets of foundation, (3) frames 

 containing full sheets of foundation, 

 together with one or more frames 

 filled with comb, (4) combs of un- 

 sealed or mostly unsealed honey, (5) 

 combs of emerging brood in which no 

 eggs have been laid for at least 10 

 days (usually taken from a parent 

 colony 10 days after the swarm issued, 

 first having all queen cells destroyed) , 

 and (6) empty combs. There is a 

 great difference in the work in the 

 supers after the swarm is hived, de- 

 pending upon whichi of these is used. 

 The' least interruption in the work in 

 the supers usually occurs when only 

 narrow strips of,fOundation are used in 

 the frames in the new brood chamber, 

 and the greatest interruption in the 

 work in the supers usually occurs 

 when a full set of empty combs is 

 used. As to the degree of interruption 

 of the work in the supers, the other 

 combinations of furniture occupy an 

 intermediate position between these 

 two extremes, usually in the order 

 named. When either narrow strips of 

 foundation or full sheets of founda- 

 tion are used in the frames In the new 

 brood chamber and the supers are 

 transferred to the swarm at the time 

 of hiving, there being no vacant cells 

 in the new brood chamber and comb 

 building being in progress in the 

 supers, the incoming nectar is taken to 

 the supers. Under these conditions 

 there is practically no interruption in 

 the work in the supers, the work in 

 the brood chamber usually being car- 

 ried on slowly for some time, especial- 

 ly if only narrow strips of foundation 

 are used. In sharp contrast with this, 

 if a full set of empty combs is used in 

 the new brood chamber when the 

 swarm is hived, the work in the supers 

 is usually neglected, the energy of tke 

 colony being directed chiefly to filling 

 the brood chamber with honey and 

 brood, but after th^se combs have been 

 filled such colonies usually work in- 

 differently in comb-honey supers. 



