66 BEES FOR PLEASURE AND PROFIT. 



candy — it should be stirred into the syrup while it is still qiiite 

 hot in the saucepan, and the stirring must be continued briskly 

 till the flour-cake candy begins to cool, otherwise it will be 

 lumpy. When flour is mixed with it, the candy does not 

 require to be so thick — it can be made with a little more water 

 and a little less sugar. 



In the middle of February the entrances of all hives must 

 be narrowed to 1 inch wide in order to conserve the heat : weak 

 stocks may have their entrances reduced to ^ inch. There is 

 no need to make the entrances wider again before the begin- 

 ning of April. 



Robbing. 



Beware of robbing ; and remember that prevention is better 

 than cure. When syrup is spilt about the hives or on the 

 ground near to them in spring or autumn, it is very likely to 

 induce robbing. It is quite easy to tell when one hive is rob- 

 bing another ; in fact, there cannot possibly be any mistaking 

 the signs of it. The weakest hive is the one generally attacked ; 

 and if the bees from two or three other hives attack it all at 

 once, it will have a hard time of it unless the apiarist comes to 

 its aid. 



When the bees are seen around the entrance of a hive in 

 large numbers, and when they are constantly engaging in fights 

 with other bees, robbing is either being attempted or is actually 

 taking place. The hive which is attacked should have its 

 entrance narrowed so that not more than two bees can pass at a 

 time (in very bad cases of robbing it should be made so narrow 

 that only one bee can pass through it at a time). Towards 

 the evening, when all is quiet, the entrance should be widened 

 again to enable the bees to carry out their dead, otherwise it 

 may get blocked up. 



Hive Roofs Blowing Off. 



A heavy stone or a couple of bricks should be placed on the 

 roofs of the hives in spring, to prevent them from blowing off 

 in the gales which so often occur at this time of year. When 

 the roof gets blown ofi^, very serious consequences often follow ; 

 the quilts are often disarranged, and if it happens to be rain- 

 ing, the hive will get a thorough soaking. Any hives and 

 appliances needed for the summer should be ordered in spring, 



