PlFTY YEARS AMONG 'iHE BEES 253 



have kept closely in touch with what improvements have been 

 made in the way of queen-rearing, and have reared queens by 

 the hundred in the latest style; and I do not hesitate to say 

 that the simple method I have given produces queens that can 

 not be surpassed by any other method. 



BEGINNER IMPROVING STOCK. 



I have been asked whether I would advise a beginner with 

 only half a dozen colonies, one of them having a superior 

 queen, to use the plans I have given to rear queens from his 

 best queen. I certainly should, if he intends to give much at- 

 tention to the business and increase the number of his colonies. 

 The essential steps to be taken are simple enough ; and even a 

 beginner can easily follow them. But in a few words, here is 

 what I would advise him : 



Take from the colony having your best queen one of its 

 frames, and put in the center of the hive a frame half filled or 

 entirely filled with foundation. If small starters are used in a 

 full colony the bees are likely to fill out with drone-eomb. A 

 week later take out this comb, and trim away the edge that 

 contains only eggs. Put this prepared fram« in the center of 

 any strong colony after taking away its queen and one of its 

 frames. Ten days later cut out these cells, to be used wherever 

 desired, giving the colony its queen or some other queen. 



Now there's nothing very complicated about that, is there 1 



ITALIANIZING WITH NATURAL SWARMING. 



Yet stiU there are some who don't want to take even that 

 much trouble. A man says: "All I care to do with the bees is 

 to hive the swarms that come out, and to put on the surplus 

 boxes and take them off when filled. I never take a frame out 

 of a hive any more than if they were all box hives. But I have 

 Italians in one hive, and if I could I'd like to have more of that 

 stock." 



For such a one I would advise after this manner : Suppose 

 we call your Italian colony A, the strongest of the other colo- 

 nies B, the next strongest C, the next D, and so on. When A 

 swarms, hive the swarm and set it on the old stand, put A in 

 place of B, and put B on a new stand. All the field-bees of B 



