HOW TO KEEP BEES. 35 



INCREASE. 



If increase is not desired, the brood and remaining bees left by a 

 swarm are united with some other colony after removing its queen 

 or after destroying the queen cells in the hive the swarm left. If 

 increase is desired, the old hive, now much reduced in numbers and 

 without a queen, is placed on a new stand and looked at in about a 

 fortnight to three weeks to see if the yoimg queen is laj-ing. With a 

 good young queen it will soon become strong. 



ARTIFICIAL INCREASE. 



Colonies of bees may be divided into two or more parts, the old 

 queen left with the part on the old stand and a new queen given to 

 the other part. The hives are filled out with combs or frames con- 

 taining full sheets of foundation and the bees allowed to build up. 

 This form of increase is excellent, but needs to be done with caution. 

 It is best done during a good honey flow, but done then it puts an 

 end to hope of surplus from the colonies treated. Indiscriminate 

 division is unwise, and if a colony is divided into many parts, each 

 may be too small to thrive, and the whole colony be lost. 



Another excellent way to increase, but a little more laborious is to 

 take a frame of brood with adhering bees from each of five or six 

 colonies, put them together in one hive, fill out the emptj^ space with 

 combs or frames of foundation, and introduce a queen. If seven 

 or eight frames of brood are taken this method may be used as late 

 as the middle of September, but as a rule it is not wise to divide 

 colonies after the middle of August. An expert may safely do it later 

 but the beginner had better not try it. 



MARKETING HONEY. 



There are a few rules which should never be forgotten and should 

 always be followed if one wishes to succeed in the honey business: 

 First : Never sell or give away any unripe or ill-flavored honey. 



