42 OUEEN-REARING IN ENGLAND. 



within a day or two, is given to the nucleus in the queen- 

 cell protector, shown in Fig. 4 and described on page 7, 

 the date she is due to emerge and her parentage being noted 

 on the card. I do not find it satisfactory to introduce 

 hatched virgins to established nuclei . too many are killed. 



A convenient way to mark hives that want attention is 

 to place stones on them. In Ripple Court Apiary one stone 

 signifies that the hive should be examined again in two or 

 three days, while two stories indicates queenlessness. 



At the end of the season the three nuclei in each hi^■e 

 are united to form one strong colony. I have, however, 

 found no difficulty in wintering a nucleus on three full-sized 

 combs in the mild climate of Dover, provided it is strong 

 and the combs are full of stores. But only two nuclei 

 should be wintered under one roof, for they keep one another 

 warm better than three. 



When uniting nuclei at the end of the season it is very 

 important — in the case of hybrids at least — to see that the 

 combs are fairly full of stores. If they are not, the queen 

 is very likely to be killed. This catastrophe can, however, 

 be prevented by caging her for three days and feeding the 

 colony heavily. I always cage the queen when uniting, not 

 liberating her for three days, and then the uniting can be 

 done as soon as the surplus queens are removed. 



Baby Nuclei. — Of late years diminutive nuclei on 

 combs less than full size have come into vogue, and if a 

 few simple details in their management are understood and 

 followed, it is possible to get a larger number of queens 

 fertilised in an apiary of given strength and comb area 

 by the use of such nuclei than by the use of nuclei on full- 

 sized combs. It is true that small nuclei can be also kept 

 on full-sized combs, but with miniature hives and frames 

 the cluster is somewhat more compact. As the baby hives 

 are quite small they are "\'ery handy for transportation to 

 out apiaries, and especially to isolated mating stations in 

 making attempts to get queens mated by special drones. 

 Indeed, properly packed to prevent the escape of bees, they 

 may even be sent by parcel post. 



The chief disadvantage of these baby nuclei is that 

 only a small quantity of brood can be reared in them, and, 

 therefore, they are almost useless for building up into 



