298 miner's AMERICAN 



TIME OP YEAR TO MAKE ARTIFICIAL SWARMS. 



Artificial swarms may be made as soon as the 15th 

 of May, and as late as the 15th of June, with safety. 

 Later than this period, would be attended with some 

 risk of success ; not only an account of the lateness of 

 the season for gathering honey ; but also for the reason, 

 that there would be no certainty of a sufficient number 

 of drones existing when the queens mature, to efiect her 

 impregnation as speedily; as the case demands. 



ARTIFICIAL SWARMS MADE WHOLLY BY DRIVING OUT. 



In certain cases it may be best to drive beeS enough 

 out at once, to form the swarm desired ; and if the 

 queen of the old family be driven out, there is no neces- 

 sity for attaching a piece of brood-comb in the empty 

 hive. The best method of performing the operation in 

 this way is, to drive out about two-thirds of the bees of 

 the stock, and the queen is almost sure to go out with 

 them, before so large a portion of the family departs. 

 When this is effected, place the empty hive now con- 

 taining the queen and two-thirds of the family, in a new 

 situation ; and the old hive where it has always rested. 

 The bees in the new hive, with the queen, will be con- 

 tent, of course, and they will commence comb-building 

 in a few hours. A small portion of them will return to 

 the old stand, enough to equalize the families, which is 

 just what is desired. The bees in the old hive will miss 

 their queen, and make a great uproar about it for a few 

 hours, but will finally go to work and rear a new queen 



