72 
For further particulars about feeding, see Monthly 
Management. 
SUBSTITUTES FOR POLLEN, FARINA, OR BEE-BREAD. 
Young swarms frequently fail of storing a sufficient 
quantity of bee-bread the first season, as they usually 
swarm at a time when there is plenty of honey in the 
flowers, and they will always gather honey in prefer- 
ence to pollen, when the two exist in the same flower. 
The gathering of bee-bread is usually put off as long 
as honey can be gathered, excepting for immediate 
wants ; and frequently when the honey has been quite 
plenty a large portion of the combs is filled with it, 
leaving but a small portion of the combs empty for 
rearing young bees and storing bee-bread. Conse- 
quently, but little is stored in the fall ; and before it 
can be obtained the coming spring many of these 
swarms will suffer for the want of it ; and to supply 
this, rye meal, or buckwheat flour, placed in the cham- 
ber of the hive in small quantities, will answer as a 
substitute. When this is done, some water placed in a 
saucer with a handful of pebbles, to keep the bees 
from getting drowned, must also be placed in the 
chamber, a little at a time, some fresh being turned in 
every day or two, — this will assist them much in early 
breeding. 
Old swarms seldom need this attention, but if you 
have a movable comb hive you can readily ascertain 
any want of your bees ; and with a suitable chamber 
they can be fed at any time, and no other swarms will 
know anything about it. 
