316 THE ITALIAN OB LIGIJEIAN BEE. 



hive had again become full of bees, and a third swarm is- 

 sued. The first swarm, hived May 20th, sent out a swarm 

 June 30th, and a second July 9th; while the second 

 swarm, hived May 30th, swamied July 19th, making 

 six swarms from one in a season. The other Italians 

 did not swarm so excessively. The last three swarms got 

 mixed with others and further trace of them was lost. 

 The old hive and the first one from it, contained at the end 

 of the season, strong colonies with ample stores for winter. 

 The season for honey was one of the poorest that I ever 

 knew. So little was obtained that but few of the natives 

 could afford to swarm, and many that did so, failed to se- 

 cure stores for winter, as did also some of the swarms. 

 Some of the Italians did but little better in gathering 

 honey. When it is not to be had, all must do without. 

 But they gathered pollen, and reared brood, with thrice 

 the energy of the natives. Swarms came out as late as 

 22nd of August, when scarcely any honey was to be col- 

 lected. This propensity to swarm in such a season — I will 

 not call it oyer-swarming, because in all cases, bees enough 

 were left — was of no particulai advantage. I mention it 

 to show their perseverance in improving all possible 

 conditions. It will be supposed that if they swarm thus in 

 seasons of scarcity, a season of plenty would cause them 

 to issue still more extravagantly. I have not found it so 

 thus far ; for this reason, as I suppose. The combs are 

 quickly fiUed with honey, and brood is excluded. In 

 spring, there are empty combs of course, and they fill up 

 with brood, while the flowers yield little else than pollen. 

 As soon as the first swarm leaves, which is usually in a 

 season of honey, every bee that hatches leaves a cell that 

 cannot be again occupied with an egg, within two or three 

 weeks, which will allow the bees to fill it with honey ; 

 and by the time the young queen is ready to commence 

 laying, her field of operations is limited to a very few 



