and its Economic Management.. 137 



Why the Brood Nest should not be Mxtended 



at this time ? As a matter of fact, having already a complete 

 brood nest, every day passing without an extension adds a 

 balance of power to the future working force of the hive. Extend 

 the brood nest and you not only- require a greater proportion 

 of the stores to feed the young, but a larger number of the 

 population is needed to attend to the enlarged nursery instead 

 of adding to the stores. 



It should be distinctly understood that it is not always the 

 larger population which gives the heaviest surplus, as it is 

 possible for the hive of medium strength to send out a much 

 larger gathering force. These are delicate points which require 

 careful consideration but which are too often overlooked. 



An Exception 



will be made where the plan of uniting is carried out prior to 

 the honey flow, when for such doubled colonies two or more 

 brood chambers must be allowed for the excess of numbers. 



In this connection it may be mentioned that more often 

 than not valuable queens of any prolific race are inserted 

 at a time it is desirable an excess of brood should not be 

 produced. A black queen, or any one that has bred heavily 

 during the early part of the season, is removed from a stock 

 that is gathering- abundantly and even crowding her out. The 

 young queen is inserted, and this being her first chance to 

 enjoy her occupation, the stores rapidly give place to brood. 

 The owner soon comes to the decision that the queen is too 

 prolific and that her bees do nothing ; and yet the fault is 

 simply his own. . ■ That the same bees wilL gather honey as 

 well or better than his original stock, he can at once prove for 

 himself by simply removing the brood and giving empty combs, 

 when he will in a short space of time see these combs as heavy 

 with honey 'as the others were with brood {see page 50, on 

 proper times for Queens to breed heavily). Well, the 



