120 BEGINNER'S BEE BOOK 



beekeeper to breed from the most prolific 

 queens. While this is of first importance, since 

 it largely determines the size of the crop, there 

 are other important characteristics which must 

 not be overlooked. 



Desirable Traits. — No matter how good 

 a record a colony may have for production, if 

 the bees are cross and drive everybody out of 

 the yard, the queen will not do to use as a 

 breeder. Next to production, gentleness is the 

 most desirable trait. If it were not for the 

 fear of stings the number of beekeepers would 

 be multiplied many fold. There are strains of 

 bees which are ^-ery gentle under favorable con- 

 ditions, and can often be handled safely with- 

 out protection. Not long since the writer 

 visited queen-breeding apiaries which are 

 among the largest in the world. The propri- 

 etor stated that he never uses a queen as a 

 breeder when the colony cannot be handled 

 safely without smoke. Beekeepers generally 



