ARTIFICIAL SWARMING. 207 



most in building new comb, as well as in rearing brood. 

 For these purposes, they must consume the supply of honey 

 which, under other circumstances, they would have stored 

 up, a part for their own use in the main hive, and the bal- 

 ance for their owner, in the spare honey-boxes. 



To make this matter perfectly plain, let us suppose a 

 colony to swarm. If the new hive, into which the swarm 

 is put, holds, as it ought, about a bushel, it will require 

 about two pounds of wax to fill it with comb, and at least 

 forty pounds of honey will be used in its manufacture ! If 

 the season is favorable, and the swarm was large and early, 

 they may gather, not only enough to build this comb and to 

 store it with honey sufficient for their own use, but a num- 

 ber of pounds in addition, for the benefit of their owner. 

 If the old stock does not swarm again, it will rapidly re- 

 plenish its numbers, and as it has no new comb to build in 

 the main hive which already contains much honey, it will 

 be able to store up a generous allowance in the upper boxes. 

 These favorable results are all on the supposition that the 

 season was ordinarily productive in honey, and that the hive 

 was so powerful in numbers as to be able to swarm early. 

 If the season should prove to be very unfavorable, the first 

 swarm cannot be expected to gather more than enough 

 for its own use, while the parent stock will yield only a 

 small return. The profits of the bee-keeper, in such an 

 unfortunate season, will be mainly in the increase of his 

 stocks. If the swarm was late, in consequence of the stock 

 being weak in Spring, the early part of the honey-harvest 

 will pass away, and the bees will be able to obtain from it, 

 but a small share of honey. During all this time of com- 

 parative inactivity, the orchards may present 



" One boundless blush, one white empurpled shower 

 Of mingled blossoms," 



