ARTIFICIAL SWARMING. 225 



force from it a swarm at the desired time. Even if it is moved 

 not more than half a mile off, the operation will be almost 

 sure to succeed. Of all modes of forming the nuclei, this I 

 believe will be found to be the neatest, simplest and best. 



Having thus described the various ways in which I have 

 successfully formed my nuclei, I shall now show how they 

 may be all built up into powerful stocks. It will be very 

 obvious that on the ordinary plan of management, they 

 would be absolutely worthless, even if it were possible to 

 form them with the common hives. If they were not fed, 

 they would be unable to collect the means of building new 

 comb, and would gradually dwindle away, just as third or 

 fourth swarms which issue late in the season ; nor could 

 they be saved even by the mosi generous feeding, as they 

 would only use their supplies to fill up the little comb they 

 had ; so that when the queen was ready to lay, there would 

 be no empty cells to receive her eggs, and too few bees to 

 build any, even if they had all the honey that they required. 

 Such small colonies must gradually waste away, unless they 

 can be speedily and effectually supplied with the requisite 

 number of bees, and this can be done only by hives which 

 give the control of all the combs. With such hives, I can 

 speedily build up my nuclei, (provided I have not formed 

 too many,) to the strength necessary to make them power- 

 ful stocks. The hives containing them, ought if possible, to 

 stand at some distance from other hives, say two or three 

 feet : and if this cannot conveniently be done, they should 

 in some way, be so distinguished from the adjoining hives, 

 that the young queens when they are hatched and go out to 

 seek the drones, will not be liable to lose their lives by en- 

 tering a wrong hive on their return. A small leafy twig 

 fastened on the alighting board of such hives, when they 

 stand near to others, will be almost sure to prevent such a 



