294 THB beb-kbepbr's guide ; 



recommend the practice of clipping the queen's wing. Now, 

 if several swarms cluster together, we have not to separate 

 them ; they will usually separate of themselves and return to 

 their old homes. To migrate without the queen means death, 

 and life is sweet even to bees, and is not willingly to be given 

 up except for home and kindred. Even if they all enter 

 one hive, the queens are not with them, and it is very easy to 

 divide them as desired. Neither has the apiarist to climb 

 trees, to secure his bees from bushy trunks, from off the lattice- 

 work or pickets of his fence, from the very top of a tall, slen- 

 der, fragile fruit-tree, or other most inconvenient places. Nor 

 will he even be tempted to pay his money for patent non- 

 swarming hivers or patent swarm-catchers. He knows his 

 bees will return to their old quarters, so he is not perturbed by 

 the fear of loss or plans to capture the unapproachable. It 

 requires no effort " to possess his soul in patience." If he 

 wishes to increase, he steps out, takes the queen by the 

 remaining wings, as she emerges from the hive, soon after the 

 bees commence their hilarious leave-taking, puts her in a 

 cage, opens the hive, destroys, or, if he wishes to use them, 

 cuts out the queen-cells as already described, gives more room 

 • — either by adding a super of sections or taking out some of 

 the frames of brood, as they may well be spared — places the 

 cage enclosing the queen under the quilt, and leaves the bees 

 to return at their pleasure. At nightfall the queen is liber- 

 ated, the hive may be removed to another place, and very 

 likely the swarming-fever is subdued for the season. 



If it is desired to unite the swarm with a nucleus, exchange 

 the places of the old hive with the caged queen, as soon as the 

 swarm is out, and the nucleus hive, to which, of course, the 

 swarm will now come. The queen-cells should be removed at 

 once from the old hive, and the queen liberated. The nucleus 

 colony, now strongly enforced, should have empty frames, but 

 always with starters, added, making five in all ; and a super of 

 sections with thin foundation added at once. The five frames 

 Langstroth size, more if smaller — are put on one side and the 

 rest of the space filled by division-boards. Here the nucleus is 

 at once transformed into a large, strong colony. 



If it is desired to hive the swarm separately — and usually 



