BEEKEEPING IN ARKANSAS 21 



Any manipulations in progress should be stopped if possible. 



Another method to stop robbing is to contract the entrance 

 of the attacked colony to about a half an inch and wipe the front 

 of the hive with a cloth dipped in kerosene or carbolic acid. 



Colonies that have been weakened by disease, improper 

 protection in winter, or queenlessness are likely to be robbed. 

 This type of robbing is usually slow and done by one colony. 

 The preventive here is not to maintain weak colonies. 



Honey Production. For the beginner in beekeeping it is 

 necessary to decide at the outset what kind of honey he wanLF 

 to produce. The advantages and disadvantages of the two 

 types, extracted and comb honey, deserve full consideration 

 before the decision is made. To save the expense of an extractor 

 which is needed in producing extracted honey, the beginner often 

 decides in favor of comb honey. He overlooks the fact that to 

 produce comb honey one must know bee behavior and must hav« 

 jnore than a beginner's knowledge of beekeeping. Furthermore, 

 comb honey can be produced with good results only in certain 

 localities. In Arkansas the best localities for comb honey pro- 

 duction are in the northeastern portion where there is an abun- 

 dant growth of sweet and white clover; and in the southeastern 

 and south central part of the state in the holly region. Besiaes 

 these, certain localities in river bottoms are quite favorable for 

 cojnb honey production. 



This leaves a large portion of Arkansas which is not con- 

 sidered favorable for comb honey, because there is no honey flow 

 that is exceedingly heavy. In most parts of the state therj are 

 several flows, as for instance in the northwestern portion, there 

 is first the fruit bloom, then the sweet clover, and later in Sep- 

 tember the Bidens (Spanish needle). Taking these together they 

 make possible a handsome profit for the beekeeper, but none of 

 them is suitable for comb honey production. After the combs 

 in extracting frames are once drawn by the bees they can be used 

 again and again for a great many years, thus saving the bees 

 the time and trouble of building combs. 



These are decided advantages in favor of extracted honey. 

 Furthermore, bees instinctively are disinclined to enter comb 

 honey supers to build up combs and deposit honey in the sec- 

 tions. They must be forced in part by a very heavy honey flow 

 and in part by clever manipulations by the beekeeper. The 

 beginner will find it much easier to produce extracted honey than 

 comb honey. A colony will yield about twice as much extracted 

 honey as comb honey. This, however, is partly balanced by the 

 fact that comb honey often brings a price considerably above 

 that of extracted honey. 



Extracted honey can be marketed at all seasons of the year, 

 it is readily shipped, and will keep for many years. Comb 



