OUEEN-REARING IN ENGLAND. 



Reating Queens in a Colony Containing an Ordinary 

 Fertile Q«een in a Compartment from which the 

 Queen is Excluded. — Queens may be reared from the 

 lar^'se in the cups by a colony containing an ordinary fertile 

 queen by placing them in a portion of the brood-nest from 

 which the queen is excluded by means of the perforated zinc 

 queen-excluder which is commonly used to exclude the queen 

 from the surplus honey chamber. 



This is a very good and convenient method, especially 

 when it is desired to rear successive batches, and it is my 

 favourite one. 



The queen-rearing compartment may either be in the 

 brood-chamber, or it may be in, a super taking brood-combs. 



I prefer the brood-chamber, because I find that, worked 

 in the manner that will now be described, it does not require 

 so large a force of bees or so much manipulation. 



The brcod-chamber should be large enough to take ten 

 or twelve standard frames, one that will take fourteen frames 

 is better still. 



To make the queen -excluding partition, an ordinary sheet 

 of queen-excluding zinc is cut into the shape of a division 

 board, with projections at the two top corners, by which it 

 hangs in the hive. It should fit close to the sides and floor. 

 To prevent it from twisting the top and sides may be 

 strengthened with strips of thin wood or metal. The colony 

 chosen for rearing the queens should be a ^■igorous one, and 

 the bees should be numerous enough to cover at least ten 

 combs. 



flONEY BRQOP 



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^aUEEN 

 ' EXCLUCER 



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Fig. .16. 

 Section of Queen-rearing Hive. 



The queen-rearing 

 compartment is pre- 

 pared the day before 

 the larvae are given, by 

 selecting two combs 

 containing chiefly sealed 

 and hatching brood 

 from this (or another) 

 hive, and by placing 

 them at one end of the 

 brood-chamber, together 

 with a comb containing 

 honey and pollen, 



