BEE-FARMING. 



MANAGEMENT OF BEE-FARMER'S HIVE. 



This chapter will be very short, for it is intended 

 chieily for those who have hitherto only used the straw 

 hives. The chief thing to be attended to is care at the 

 ovitset. When the hive is newly stocked by a swarm 

 they should be fed for a few days with syrup by means of 

 the Lancashire feeder from the top of the hive. A great 

 gain is thereby effected ; a pound of syrup, costing about 

 twopence, will make as much comb as a pound of honey 

 worth eighteen-pence ; but, should a succession of rainy 

 days follow the hiving of the swarm, the gain is ten-fold. 

 Many a good colony h?-S been lost or dwindled down to 

 almost nothing by the forgetfulness of the owner, when a 

 little food at the outset would have saved all the loss. 



Before stocking the hive be sure to run a little melted 

 bees-wax along the upper part of the bar-frame. We use 

 an old iron spoon, and melt the wax over a slow fire ; 

 then, holding the frame in the left hand, run the wax along 

 it in a very thin stream ; this will cause the bees to build 

 tlieir comb from a straight foundation. 



Everything depends upon the even, straight combs. 

 Every third day, therefore, pufF a little smoke into the 

 entrance, then remove the top board and gently take out 

 each bar on which the bees have commenced building comb, 

 and press the wax as straight as possible. Ne^er allffw 

 au uneven comb ; it wastes much space in the hive which 

 could be profitably used either by the queen for rearing- 

 broods or for honey-storing by the workers. A very small 

 amount of patience will conquer this difficulty ; we need 

 only say, it will cause you untold regret afterwards if this 

 is not attended to in time, but, if the foundation of every 

 comb is laid evenly and in a straight line at first, you may 



