ARTIFICIAL SWARMING AND DIVISION OF SWARMS. 115 



Why, to show you the state of the parent stock, and outside the 

 climatic conditions that are necessary hefore you attempt to in- 

 crease the number of your bees by the division of the old stocks, 

 or, as they are frequently termed, swarms. 



If all the foregoing conditions are at hand, then you can 

 commence work thus : — Take your strongest and best stocks, ones 

 that are noted for their traits of storing honey. This is the golden 

 rule of bee-keeping that every bee-keeper should paste on his veil, 

 so as to he constantly before his eyes. Weak and effete queens 

 produce weaklings that are content only to live through the summer 

 when it is all sunshine; in the winter they are content to die. 

 Operate on one hive at a time. Smoke them well from the en- 

 trance. Place an empty hive by the side of the one you are work- 

 ing on. It is as well to have near at hand some frames of empty 

 combs. Take out from three to five of the best frames of brood 

 (those containing the most sealed brood) having plenty of working 

 bees thereon, and be sure to note if the queen is amongst them 

 in the empty hive or empty combs. Place the brood combs m 

 the centre of each hive, the one wherein you place the queen, 

 and the one you leave queenless. If no empty combs be at hand, 

 use division boards, but in that case you had better keep the 

 brood on one side of the hive. Place the hive containing the 

 queen on the new site. It is well to remember that the most 

 bees should go with the queen, because at the time you 

 are dividing, a number of bees will be at work, and these will 

 return to the old site. It would be as well to put some obstacle 

 in front of the removed bees, say a piece of wood leaning against 

 the hive. This will cause the bees, when they come out, to take 

 a survey of their new location, and pre/vent them returning to 

 their old home. Indeed, both of the divisions may be removed 

 to fresh sites if the foregoing precaution is taken. Of course, the 

 brood comb in the old hive left on the stand must contain eggs 

 from which a new queen can be developed. To develop a queen 

 from an egg in a divided swarm is a round-about way of the divi- 

 sion of swarms, and a very great waste of time. No one should 

 keep bees unless he has a few fertile queens on hand, or the means 

 of procuring them at short notice. A colony kept long without 

 a queen is an unprofitable servant. If either of the divisions of a 

 colony do. not build up quickly, i.e., in about three weeks, add 

 a frame of brood from a strong colony. But be sure you do not 

 rob Peter to pay Paul. 



