WORK WITH THE QUEEN. 
CHAPTER XX. 
Having secured his bees and equipment, and having learned some- 
thing of the individuals in the hive and its contents, as well as how to 
avoid being stung, and how to handle the frames, the beginner is ready 
for actua] work with the bees. Naturally he asks himself how often and 
for what purpose are the hive and the bees to be examined. 
Most beginners overdo the first work. Pulling the hives all to pieces 
and redistributing the combs promiscuously is an expensive kind of pleas- 
ure, but there are several real necessities for opening the hives. Among these 
are: To learn that the queen and conditions of brood-rearing are all 
right; to make sure that the bees have sufficient food in store; to learn 
if the colony as a whole is healthy and normal; occasionally to deter- 
mine special exigencies arising in the hive; after the honey flow, to take 
off supers filled with honey; and to prepare the colony for winter. But 
the condition of the queen and resulting conditions in the hive may de- 
mand an examination of the colony at the very beginning of the beginner’s 
experience with bees. 
The beekeeper should know that a queen is present in the hive and 
conditions normal, if he is to expect success. So he should examine the 
hive whenever he has reason to suspect that anything may have gone wrong 
with the queen. 
How to Find the Queen. 
If the beekeeper needs to find the queen for any good reason, let him 
first take out one or two of the outside combs from the side of the hive 
next to the operator. If the queen is not on these combs, set them aside 
in order that the remaining combs may be more readily examined. If rob- 
bers are troublesome these combs must be put into an ‘empty hive or a light 
box that will hold two or three frames, and kept covered while they are out 
of the hive. As each of the remaining combs is removed from the hive, 
glance quickly over the exposed side of the next comb in the hive to see 
if the queen is there. If she is not there, turn the comb just removed to 
examine the other side and proceed in this way until the queen is found. As 
the combs are examined they are placed back into the hive on the side 
nearest the operator in order to maintain an open space between the combs 
already examined and those yet to be examined. This work should be done 
rapidly and no more smoke should be used than is necessary for rapid 
work. If the bees are inclined to be nervous and run on the combs it is 
necessary to watch for the queen in the spaces between the lower edge of 
the comb and the bottom-bar of the frames, and also on the bottom and 
sides of the hive, for if the queen becomes frightened she may run off 
of the combs into these spaces. (For directions for clipping the queen, see 
page 114.) 
56 
