36 



MANUAL OF APICULTURE. 



or so, but a weak stock compared tlien with a strong one whose young 

 bees are not flying might be regarded as very populous. The young bees 

 sporting in front of the hive may be known by their light, fuzzy appear- 

 ance, and by the fact that as they take wing to leave the hive they turn 

 their heads toward the entrance and sail about it in semicircles, fre- 

 quently alighting on the flight board and taking wing again. They are 

 thus marking the location of the hive so as to be able to return to it, 

 for an attempt to enter another hive might result fatally to them. They 

 finally fly away in constantly widening circles. Field workers used to 

 the location fly in a direct line away from the hive. When the young 

 bees return they do not alight at once as do the field workers laden 

 with honey, but generally hover about the entrance until certain they 

 have reached the right hive. Having noted by their flight which stocks 

 seem to have the most bees, a closer examination can be made by blow- 

 ing a little smoke of any sort into the entrances and tipping the hives 

 back, if they stand on loose bottom boards. When not so constructed 

 the examination must, of course, be made by removing the top covering, 

 or if the combs are built in frames, some of these. 



In addition to the strength of the colony, the number of combs con- 

 taining brood, straightness, kind and age of combs, amount of honey 

 on hand, the cleanliness and healthfulness of the colony are points 

 upon which full information is desirable. In April a good colony 

 located in a central latitude ought to have brood in five or six combs; 

 yet as ordinarily wintered it will be difficult to find colonies having 

 at this time more than three or four combs containing brood. The 

 combs should be straight, so that if in an old-fashioned box hive they 

 can be cut out and fitted without great waste into frames, and if the 

 hive is a frame one it is absolutely necessary to have combs straight 

 and built wholly within the frames in order that the latter may be read- 

 ily removed and returned to the hive. The less drone comb the better. 

 There will always be enough, an area half the size of a man's hand 

 being quite sufficient for each hive. The larger size of the drone cells 

 and greater thickness of the combs (1^ inches) will make it readily recog- 

 nizable. If over one-eighth of the surface is drone comb the colony 

 should be rejected. If the combs are so old as to be nearly black and 

 to show cell walls much thickened they are very objectionable. There 

 should be several pounds of sealed honey in each hive in early spring. 

 Other things being equal, those stocks which come through the winter 

 with 20 pounds or so of sealed honey in the combs will develop much 

 faster than those having just enough to last them until they gather 

 fresh honey rapidly enough to supply their daily needs. The presence 

 of an abundance gives the bees courage. They do not fear to draw upou 

 their stores to supply the young that are fast developing. The combs 

 filled with honey part with their heat only slowly when the outside tem- 

 l^erature falls, and there is thus less danger of a check in the develop- 

 ment of the brood through too low temperature in the hive. 



