AUSTRALASIAN BEE MANUAL 



lOI 



spare frames of empty combs or foundation at hand. 

 A strong two-story colony will make five nucleus 

 colonies, and leave sufficient bees with the old queen to 

 make another. When the embryo queens are 13 days 

 old from the egg the cells are ready to be given to 

 nuclei. 



With the cells and some cell protectors (Fig. 57) 

 ready, select a colony to break up and find the queen,, 

 placing her with the frame she is in in an empty hive 

 or comb holder for the time being. Now, put one frame 

 of brood (as much sealed brood as possible) with the 

 adhering bees into a nucleus hive, and another also with 

 adhering bees containing honey and some pollen if pos- 

 sible, and also an empty comb or frame of foundation. 



Place a queen cell in 

 protector (Fig. 57) 

 and fasten it on to the 

 centre comb bv push- 

 ing its projecting end 

 through the comb. 

 Sometimes the bees 

 will tear down the 

 cell, hence the need for 

 protection. All being 

 finished out on the 

 cover and do the rest 

 in same v/ay. 



The bees are now 

 fastened in bv the 

 wire cloth over the 



entrance, and the hives should at once be placed in a 

 cool, dark situation until sunset on the following day, 

 when they may be put in their permanent position and 

 the entrances be opened. Unless the bees are confined 

 for a time the majority would return, and the nucleus 

 hives be deserted. Nucleus hives are best set apart 

 from the main apiary, and from each other. 



Fig. 57. QUEEN CELL 



PROTECTOR. 



THE EMERGING AND MATING OF YOUNG QUEENS. 



The normal time for the young queen to ernerge from 

 her cell is on the sixteenth day from the laying of the 



