QUEEN REARING 3 



thousands of Jjees of all ages and nearly two thousand young ones emerge 

 from their cells every twenty-four hours. There are, then, vast numbers of 

 nurse bees to care for queen cells. As a consequence, if honey, pollen, and 

 water are available they can easily supply the queen larvae with a great 

 abundance of food. Third, the necessary foods just mentioned are always 

 available at swarming time, for bees swarm only when honey and pollen 

 and water are each day coming in at the entrance. 



It may be objected, that swarms sometimes do come forth outside the 

 honey flow, even in early spring, and that therefore the three conditions just 

 named are n,ot always present when swarms issue. Quite true. But such 

 Swarms are not natural swarms. They do not represent attempts of the 

 bees to multiply and reproduce colonies in the normal way. Frequently 

 bees build queen cells for the purpose of superseding their queen, she dies, 

 and the bees grow excited when the first virgin takes a trial flight and 

 rush out with her. All the swarms that issue during a honey dearth, many 

 of those issuing during a honey flow, are of this nature. Furthermore, 

 many queens thus reared outside the regular swarming season are poor 

 ones. Therefore the statement that the best cells can be reared only when 

 the temperature is high, when the hives are crowded with bees, and when 

 honey and pollen are coming in, still holds good. 



WHEN NOT TO REAR CELLS 



The first work of the apiarist when attempting to rear queen cells by 

 artificial methods is to provide these three essential conditions. Of course 

 he can not provide a high temperature. He must wait for that. There- 

 fore, he can not rear good cells in spring. If he would have his colonies 

 headed only by the best queens he must forego his desire to requeen before 

 the weather becomes warm (about May 20). Too many try to rear good 

 queens in April or early May. It can not be done. Those who rear such 

 queens are the ones who so frequently wonder how the great beekeepers of 

 the country get queens which lay ten, twelve, or even fourteen combs full of 

 eggs in twenty-one days. 



CONTROLLED CONDITIONS 



But the apiarist can control the second condition. He can make a few- 

 colonies strong enough for cell building at any time when the weather is 

 warm enough. It is an easy matter to get brood and young bees from other 

 colonies and add. to the few cell builders till they become rousing colonies. 

 One must be careful, however, to get plenty of young bees, for only young 

 bees build queen cells and feed the larvae. A colony may be very, very 

 strong in old bees and still construct poor queen cells. Of course old 

 bees are needed too. They must carry in the supplies. But young bees 

 build the queen cells, so a strong cell-building colony means a colony 

 strong in young nurse bees. 



The third condition is also controllable. One can create an artificial 

 honey flow at any time when bees can fly. He can also provide pollen, if 

 necessary, stored by the bees the previous year. However, during the months 

 when the temperature is sufficiently high to warrant the rearing of queens, 

 pollen is ordinarily available in the field, so only honey or sirup need be 

 provided. Such food must consist of honey thinned with water or sugar 



