to a full-sized colony by easy stages, one never has quite the same 

 dread of going to it later on. In the mind it is still " that little 

 nucleus." 



An excellent method of examining a nasty-tempered colony, 

 especially if it is necessary to find the queen for replacement at the 

 end of the season, is to move it bodily to a fresh site shortly before- 

 hand. This manoeuvre is carried out quite simply in the following 

 manner. 



On a day when the weather conditions are favourable, go to 

 Ihe stock to be dealt with, some two or three hours beforehand, and 

 place near it a floor-board with an empty brood box on it, containing 

 a frame or two of drawn comb, or if neither are available, a plain 

 flat board large enough to stand the supers on. Next remove the 

 supers to one side, and then covering the brood chamber over with a 

 temporary quilt, carry it bodily on its floor-board to some secluded 

 corner at the far end of the apiary. See that this quilt is secure with 

 weights, sacking or a spare roof. Now replace the supers on the 

 prepared brood box or the flat board at the original site, so that the 

 flying bees have somewhere to alight in the absence of the brood nest 

 and queen. This first step should be completed some two or three 

 hours before the second stage is undertaken. 



During the subsequent interval, most of the flying bees from 

 the original brood chamber will return to the old site, leaving the 

 former occupied only by the queen and the young bees . In due course, 

 when the brood chamber comes to be examined, the task of finding 

 the queen is greatly facilitated, not only because there are few of 

 the elder bees present, who 4efinitely resent interference with their 

 home, but there are considerably less bees on the combs, and so the 

 queen is more visible. This plan can, of course, be adopted for any 

 operation entailing work in the brood chamber, and on completion 

 it is then returned to the original site. It is by far the most pleasant 

 method of examining the brood, especially if the bees tend to be of 

 an unfriendly variety. While the interval of an hour or more is 

 recommended before beginning the main task, the same procedure 

 can still be used with advantage if it is not possible to aUow this 

 preliminary period. 



Moving the hive back three or four inches has been recommended 

 by some as an effective means of reducing the habihty to attack 

 owing to the displacement of the entrance, thus creating a diversion. 

 The ultimate gain, however, is small when the whole brood nest 

 is being disturbed, and in any case it is heavy work, and may involve 

 moving the hive off" it stand. It is hardly worth attempting. 



And lastly, one important caution. Bees, hke ourselves, are 

 variable in temper and feeling for the several reasons already given. 

 If, when opening up a stock, it is found that the bees are displaying 

 a certain amount of viciousness — don't go on. If the hive has 

 been dismantled as far as the brood box, and it is observed that the 

 bees are flying for one good and hard, despite the smoker being in 

 constant use to keep them down, it is only begging for trouble to 

 go on. If persisted in, not only will the operation, whatever it is. 



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