COMB HONEY, TO PRODUCE 
241 
ening. This extra super, having served as 
an evaporating chamber this season, can 
then be taken off before the combs and 
sections become soiled with propolis and 
be given as the first super next year. 
CAUTION. 
Colonies that are not strong enough to 
send a large force of comb-builders into 
the first supers should not have their super 
room expanded so rapidly. A good rule to 
follow is to place the new super under 
those in which work has been started, pro¬ 
vided the colony is strong enough, and the 
honey flow is good enough to cause the 
bees to draw out the foundation uniform¬ 
ly thruout the super. If they draw out 
only those in the middle of the super, the 
second super 
should be placed 
on top at first, 
and no super 
should be raised 
up and another 
put under it until 
the foundation has 
b e e n completely 
drawn in all of the 
sections. If the 
honey flow is slow 
or if the nectar is 
thicker when first 
gathered, the work 
of drawing out the 
foundation, comb-building, the ripening 
of nectar, and sealing the honey may all 
be done in a single super. In this case the 
newly added super should be placed on top. 
The thing to keep in mind when adding 
supers is to avoid, on the one hand, too 
many unfinished sections by giving addi¬ 
tional room too fast; and to avoid, on the 
other hand, the lack of stimulation which 
comes from newly added room for new 
work and an abundance of comb surface 
for ripening nectar. The surplus apart¬ 
ment, whether made up of one super or 
half a dozen supers, should have some 
fresh foundation being drawn until near 
the close of the honey flow. Rapid expan¬ 
sion of super work should take place dur¬ 
ing the early part of the honey flow, while 
during the latter part of the honey flow 
the super work should he concentrated. 
During hot weather added ventilation 
may be given by pushing the first super 
forward on the brood-chamber about an 
inch. This will form an opening at the 
back of the hive just above the ends of the 
top-bars of the brood-frames. Such open¬ 
ings should not be made between the 
supers, since the bees may fail to finish the 
sections nearest opening's. 
The beekeeper who by skillful supering 
is able to entice most of the rapidly on¬ 
coming younger 
bees into the su¬ 
pers early in their 
lives, and who 
keeps his colonies 
comfortable at all 
times, thereby in¬ 
creases his crop. 
With most of the 
younger bees in the 
supers and most of 
the older bees in 
the fields during 
the heat of the 
day, the colonies 
work w i t h the 
greatest energy 
and are much less 
inclined to swarm than when the supering 
is not properly managed. 
AS CLOSE OF HONEY SEASON APPROACHES. 
The first step in anticipation of the clos¬ 
ing of the season is the giving of additional 
super room more sparingly. After the 
beekeeper has been doing his utmost to in¬ 
duce the bees to occupy and begin work in 
more and more supers during the fore part 
of the honey flow, the tendency is to go 
ahead giving additional room at the same 
pace too long. At a certain stage in the 
honey (low the emphasis should change 
from the expansion of the surplus room to 
a concentration of the super work to the 
smallest number of supers possible and 
still give the bees sufficient room. 
Tt is sometimes a good thing if the bee¬ 
keeper runs out of supers during the latter 
part of the honey flow, for it is surprising- 
how much can be done in the way of fur¬ 
nishing enough room without giving addi¬ 
tional supers by shifting supers from one 
colony to another, thus giving a little more 
room to colonies that are beginning to he 
crowded and reducing the super room in 
p 
.-i 
z — 
/ 
3 ■= 
CD 
1 ’ 
Fig. 3.—Third super 
placed below and first 
just above it. 
p 
1 
3 — 
2 — 
/ — 
4 — 
Q 
J—-aa4 
Fig. 4. — First super left 
in same position until 
finished. 
