4 BEEKEEPING IN TASMANIA. 
(1) Full Colonies, that is, hives with finished combs and brood and bees to cover 
them, is the best way to start, if such can be obtained, and mostly they can if a little 
trouble is taken and inquiries made. A full hive, containing, say, eight frames, with 
bees and laying queen and a good supply of honey, ought to be purchasable at about 
25s. to 30s. per hive for black or hybrid bees, to about 40s. or a little more for 
Italians with a tested queen. A beginner should be careful as to buying any very 
cheap lots, as they often are in a diseased or neglected condition ; these kinds of 
colonies are for sale cheap, and it is mostly the neglected hives that are likely to be 
infected with disease or have very poor combs. 
(2) Natural Swarms.—Where starting with natural swarms and new, clean 
hives, the risk of introducing disease is avoided. Swarms can sometimes be obtained 
from about the middle of October to the middle of January, the price varying from 
5s. to 10s. per swarm, according to weight of bees; 2s. 6d. per pound is not too much 
to pay for swarms. If the swarms are procured from a distance, the boxes in which 
they are sent should be nearly the size of a kerosene case, with about one-third of 
each side cut out and covered with wire cloth, and securely fastened so that the bees 
cannot get out. Bees will travel a fair distance in boxes of this character. Hives 
and frame should be ready beforehand. When the swarms arrive they should be 
placed in a cool spot until the evening. About sundown a bag or cloth can be 
spread in front of the hive, and the bees dumped in front, where they will usually 
at once commence running into the hive. If, however, they cluster outside without 
entering, some should be brushed off as near to the hive entrance as possible with 
a small wing or large feather, and a little smoke used on them will generally start 
them running in. If the swarms are emptied out of the boxes in which they arrive . . 
early in the day, they may cluster in some very awkward place, or even rise up, or 
abscond altogether. For this reason the evening is best, and they will usually be 
quite settled down to housekeeping by morning. If comb-foundation be used for the 
newly-hived swarm, full combs not being available, the frames should have full-sized 
sheets of foundation in them, as much drone comb will likely be built if half-sheets 
or strips of foundations are used. Full sheets are much the cheapest in the end. 
To ensure combs being built fairly in the frames the hives must be placed quite 
level from side to side, but may have a little dip to the entrance, so that any water 
that may drift in would readily find its way out again. When the combs are almost 
built out and are being filled with eggs, brood, and honey, a second super or storey 
must be put on, fitted out with combs (if on hand), or full sheets of foundation, and 
to induce the bees to enter the top storey one comb from the bottom storey should 
be lifted up into the top one, the empty space below being filled with the extra one 
from the top. The super may be of the same depth as the lower storey, or it may be 
a shallow one. In case of a shallow one being used, there is not as a rule much trouble 
in getting the bees, if the colory is fairly strong, to ascend to the new addition. If 
further room is needed, a second super can be, and should be, placed on when the 
first one. is being fairly well occupied by the bees, a good plan being to put the 
seccnd one in between the hive body and the first super put on, leaving the first one 
still in the top position. If it is not the intention of the beekeeper to allow the queen 
to take possession of the supers, a queen-excluding honey board should be placed on 
the top of the brood chamber when the supers are put on. 
(3) Nuclei.—The beginner would not perhaps get on well in building up colonies 
from nuclei, though it is often done, but requires some little knowledge of what is 
required to ensure success in this way, and either of the firstnamed plans would be 
preferable until a little practice has been had in handling. Beekeeping may be 
started with nuclei as stated above, and for the beginners’ information Sethe 
little might here be said of that method. A nucleus is a small colony of nee : eA a 
queen, and two or three frames of comb with brood and some honey as food : Wh ; 
the purchaser of these small nuclei receive them, the combs, bees, brood “ane at. 
