76 
THE AUSTRALIAN BEEKEEPERS’ JOURNAL. 
ance. In lad seasons it will be necessary to 
supply the bees with most of their winter pro- 
visions, and only in very good seasons can he 
expect to get any surplus honey. 
XIII. — How to Make an Artificial Swarm. 
1. If, during the month of May, honey being’ 
abundant, a stock hive is found crowded with 
bees containing drones, and is not inclined to 
swarm naturally, not having therefore com- 
menced queen-cells, it can be swarmed, arti- 
ficially. 
2. Prepare a hive in the same way as for 
natural swarms, that is, hang it in frames fur- 
nished with guides or comb foundation. If 
there are frames available containing empty 
combs, so much the better, as these can be 
used to advantage. 
3. If an artificial swarm is required from a 
straw skep, it may be obtained by driving the 
bees. Remove the skep containing the stock 
to some quiet spot, turn it bottom upwards, 
and stand it in a pail for convenience. On the 
old stand place an empty skep. On the in- 
verted stock put an empty skep, bringing the 
edges together at the point towards which the 
combs run. Push a skewer through the edge 
into the lower hive so as to form a sort of 
hinge, and support the upper hive by means 
of a couple of stout wires bent at right angles 
at either end. Stand in front of the opening 
with back to the strongest light and commence 
rapping on the sides of the lower hive with 
open hands hard enough to jar the combs, but 
not so hard as to run any risk of breaking 
them from their attachments. After a few 
raps, which must be kept up regularly, the 
bees will commence their ascent to the empty 
skep. 
4. As the driven bees ascend a shai'p look- 
out must be kept for the queen, and after she 
is seen stop the driving when about half the 
bees have left. Remove the swarm and the 
stock, and place them on the opposite sides of 
the old stand, with an interval of about 3 feet 
between them. The bees in the skep placed on 
the old stand can be shaken out in front of the 
swarm. If the stock or swarm appear too 
weak, either would be strengthened by bring- 
ing one nearer to the old stand, moving the 
other further away. 
5. If the queen be not found during driving, 
the bees should be returned and another at- 
tempt made. Care must be taken to leave suf- 
ficient bees in the stock to nurse the brood and 
build queen-cells. 
6. The driven swarm can be placed in a 
moveable comb-hive, if the beekeeper wishes 
to do so, prepared as recommended above (2). 
7. If the beekeeper has one colony in a 
frame-hive, and wishes to make two, he must 
take a comb of brood and bees on which the 
queen is found, and place it in a hive, filling 
this up with empty combs or frames with 
guides. Then put it on the stand where the 
stock stood, and remove this to a new position. 
Insert an empty comb at the side of old stock, 
bringing the other frames close together. The 
bees on the wing will return to the old stand, 
join the queen, and form the swarm. 
8. Artificial swarms should be made when 
the weather is fine, and many bees flying, and 
should always be fed. As most of the old bees 
will leave the old stock, this should also be 
fed, especially if it he short of stores or the 
weather bad. 
9. Care should be taken not to multiply 
colonies too fast, by making many swarms. 
Aim at having a few very strong colonies, rather 
than a large number of weak ones. 
WORKING FOR EXTRACTED HONEY. 
From the American Apiculturist for July, 1887. 
Just at the present time there seems to he a 
“craze ’’among beekeepers on the subject of 
comb-honey production, many who have hereto- 
fore worked almost exclusively for extracted 
honey changing their tactics and are now ad- 
vocating and talking comb-honey to the ex- 
clusion of that which they formerly endorsed, 
I fear this is not a wise policy, for it can only 
result in soon lowering the price of comb- 
honey and advancing the price of extracted, 
this causing an expensive changing of fixtures 
the second time. It seems to me that the well 
balanced apiarist should produce both comb 
and extracted honey, and as he sees the tide 
swaying toward the side of the one he should 
go a little heavier in the opposite direction, 
hut not enough as to throw aside all his fix- 
tures along the line the tide is moving. We 
have many farmers in this locality who when 
mutton and wool are low sell out their sheep 
for a song and go into the so-seeming more 
profitable business of beef and butter, paying 
a high price for cows in high tide, for every- 
thing in the cattle line. In a few years times 
change, and cattle are at low tide ; beef and 
butter are sold for a song, while mutton and 
wool are now bringing a good price again. 
These farmers now for a second time become 
discontented and change their cows for sheep, 
only at a great loss again. So they keep on 
doing in a sort of will-o’-the-wisp chase losing 
money at evex-y change. Others keep both 
sheep and cows, never running out of either, 
but in time of good prices with the flock raise 
a little more from the sheep, and these again 
increase the herd when high prices are paid 
for the production along that line. In this 
way a steady growth is maintained, while by 
the other plan a downward tendency is a sure 
result. 
As I have worked for years for both comb 
and extracted honey and believing that the 
present time is favorable for the production of 
more extracted honey and best comb, perhaps 
I cannot do better than to tell the readers of 
tho American Apiculturist how I proceed to 
accomplish what seems to me to be the best 
