314 
Beekeeping 
to do as much as is possible without such a division. On 
the other hand, the manipulations of the beekeeper may 
prevent swarming, but still the bees may be put in such a 
condition that they do not work well. It is necessary not 
only that the bees be kept from swarming but that the 
gathering instinct shall overpower all other activities. In¬ 
crease in the number of colonies during the honey-flow or 
just before it is therefore expensive and should be avoided. 
Swarming is a far more serious problem in comb-honey 
production than in any other type of beekeeping. The 
beekeeper is therefore called upon to exercise all his skill 
in preventing and controlling this tendency. The manipu¬ 
lations used to prevent swarming are discussed in an earlier 
chapter. In comb-honey production the tendency to swarm 
is so marked that an examination of each colony once in 
seven to ten days is usually necessary to do the things that 
conditions may call for. In case swarms issue in spite of 
the precautionary measures, various methods are available 
for handling the swarm and for the disposal of the brood 
to best advantage, which have been previously discussed 
(p. 275). 
Manipulation of supers. 
One of the most important factors in success with comb- 
honey is putting the supers on in the right order and at the 
right time. This may not only do much toward preventing 
swarming, but is an important stimulus to storing the maxi¬ 
mum amount of honey. No general rule can be laid down 
for the number of supers that should be put on a colony; 
they are simply units in the part of the hive devoted to 
storing which must be given to the colony as needed and 
not before or after. By proper management supers may be 
put on slightly before they are needed but they should 
usually not all be put on at once. Many beekeepers make 
their greatest mistake in this feature and wait until one 
super is filled and then remove it, substituting an empty 
one if needed. This not only cramps the colony more 
