36 STATE BOARD OF AGHICULTUBE. 



THE HONEY CROP. 



With strong colonies the securing of the honey crop is a relatively 

 simple proposition. It may be tersely stated as putting on the 

 supers and letting the bees alone. Put on the queen-excluding 

 honey board and the super on top of that. If the bee-keeper is away 

 much, or cannot see the bees for a week or more at a time, put on 

 at the start all the super room thought necessary. Do not be afraid 

 to give "too much." If the colony is properly strong it will use the 

 space as it needs it. If it is convenient, give the supers when the 

 first flowers open of the kind from which the surplus is gathered, as 

 at the time of apple bloom, etc. If not convenient to be on hand 

 then, give them earher. Rather more satisfactory results are secured 

 with extracting supers where eight frames are used in a ten-frame, 

 super spacing them equidistant. The resulting combs are plump 

 and easier to uncap. 



Do not give supers to colonies which have not bees enough to fully 

 cover the combs of the brood nest. Better unite two such colonies, 

 making one strong one, and give that the supers. 



In producing honey in sections it is desirable to remove them as 

 soon as the bees have capped the combs in order to retain the white- 

 ness of the cappings. As part of the combs are often finished some- 

 time ahead of the rest, it is often deemed wise to remove the supers, 

 take out the finished sections, refill the supers with partly filled sec- 

 tions and return them to the bees. The bee escape board is excellent 

 for removing comb honey as the bees leave the combs quietly without 

 cutting the cappings. Put on the escape boards near night and 

 remove the honey in the morning. Usually only one super is removed 

 from a hive at a time. If two or more are to be taken from one hive 

 or if the weather is hot and close, it is often wise to slip nails or chips 

 under the hive cover, just enough to let the air circulate, but not 

 enough to let bees pass. Better still have the escape board ventilated. 

 (See page 17.) 



In removing combs for extracting, the escape board may be used 

 and is especially helpful to beginners. If it is not used, the combs 



