THK ArlMJY. 109 



bees can not run from one liive to the other to gossip. 

 The distance between the hives can be easily regulated; it 

 should be from one to four feet, according to circumstances. 



HIVES SHOULD BE OF DIFFERENT COLORS. 



The hives should be of different, but not glaring colors. 

 As a bee is guide(ii*o the entrance of its home by outside 

 appearances, it is ■well to alternate the colors when arrang- 

 ing the hives. After the first few days in spring, the 

 workers have but little difficulty. The first day they issue, 

 they seem to settle indiscriminately on the hives to rest, 

 and are often worried and killed. The young bees as they 

 hatch and come out, during the season, either know their 

 own home better, or if thciy make any such mistakes, are 

 noticed less in the hurry of .labor. But the young queen 

 often enters the wrong hive on her return from her excur- 

 sion, and this uniformly involves the loss of her colony. 

 This is the chief objection to the bee-house. 



BEPLACmG QUEENS. 



By using the movable comb hive, and rearing queens ar- 

 tificially, (as the Italian queens are usually raised,) and 

 furnishing laying queens, — thus obviating the necessity of 

 the young queens leaving the hive-7this difficulty is avoid- 

 ed. If you think proper, you may allow the bees to swarm, 

 and at the end of a week, look over the combs of the old 

 hive, cut out all queen cells, and introduce a laying queen. 

 The after swarm s ar e thus prevented, and the colony is matur- 

 ing brood nearly two weeks sooner than if they had reared 

 a queen, which is equivalent to a small swarm. Likewise, 

 they will probably be in condition to store surplus, or to 

 jpart with another good swarm, when they might not have 

 done either, if let alone. This wUl do much towards bal- 

 ancing the disadvantage of a bee-house. Should you 

 choose to divide — making artificial swarms — the hives 



