BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
ed they would, and that they would go into
fome other hives, provided they did not fight.
Upon farther obfervation, I found, that fome
of them entered into one hive; and fome into
another, till at laid the original hives were totally deferred, except the Queen and about a
fcore of bees; and that almost all the bees entered into thofe hives that were moft happy,
as appeared by their making a moft harmonious found at the entry of their hives, by which
mufic they fenced to invite and welcome their
new friends. The deferred hives were well
fored with honey, and therefore I turned
them upfide down, and placed them below
fome of my other hives, in order that the bees
might collect the honey that was in them.
Such deferred hives I have often found ufeful
for putting a young fwarm into.
I have even feen young fwarms gradually
defert their hives in this manner, and go into
other hives. When they go into one of their
own mafler's hives, I never fee any lofs by it,
especially when they unite peaceably ; as one
good hive is worth four bad ones.
Its is worthy of obfervation, that the bees, on
this occasion, deferred the weak hives gradually, and not in a body, as they do when they
Q_2
fwarma
**124**: _Direction below to manage Bess_
**fwarm ; and alfo, that it may happen at particular times, that different men's bees, flending in the fame apiary, or near each other, may join together.** Therefore, to prevent fuch circumstances from taking place, to the prejudice of others, it is neceffary to allot a proper distance between one man's hives and thoie of another.**
**Thofe who live in places where vegetation is generally late, if they take the trouble to remove their hives to more early situations, especially if they have a great number of them, will foon find themselves doubly repaid for their trouble and expence, as their bees will thereby both breed and fwarm much earlier. I would indeed advife every bee-mafter, who conveniently can, to keep two apiaries, an early and a late one, in consequence of which, his bees will be confantly employed, when the weather is favourable, during the whole working feafon,**
**In fping I generally flut up the doors of my hives every evening, as foon as the bees are all got in, and open them again next morning ; and I even do this for whole days during that feafon, when the cold is fevere; as cold winds blowing in at their entries are extreme.**
**, ly**
**126**: _Directions bou to manage Bees_
he reinforced with fix pounds of honey comb, as directed in page 110. Three pounds of honey will be a sufficient fupply for fuch as weigh eighteen pounds. Some hives perhaps will not exceed fourteen pounds or fo; yet, if they have few bees, they will not need to be fupplied; for, befides that they fland in no need of it, a frefh flupply of honey would invite robbers, whom they would not be able, on account of the paucity of their numbers, to withstand. A' thinly inhabited hive ought, therefore, never to be reinforced with honey, unlefs the bees are ready to perifh for want of food, which, in fuch a hive, feldom if ever happens. But a hive that is well peopled ought to be abundantly fupplied, even although there may appear to be a fudificency of food, becaufe the fuerfluity will not be loth.' The bees are faithful fuerwards, and will not fail to repay their mafter's generofity with ufury. For
The fupplying of bees with food, in any fefon, but efpecially in fpring, is of great advantage to them, as it cheers their fprints, and roulefs them to breed earlier than they otherwise would. I would therefore recommend to every bee-mafter, to give a little additional food, even to hives that have abundance, in order to revive and exhilarate the bees, and encourage them toin March, April, and May. 127 For I am confident, that when they are fully fed, they will breed fat, even in bad weather ; whereas, if they have little provision of their own, and receive no extra fupply, they will breed very flowly. From this, as well as from other peculiarities in the nature of thefe infects, it appears pretty evident, that they are endued with a high degree of free or voluntary agency, as they can breed early or late, frequently or feldom, at. pleasure, and according to circumstances. All pofible attention, therefore, should be paid to the full feeding of bees in Spring, and alfo in the beginning of fummer, if the weather be unfavourable. A hive will fometimes lofe their Queen in fpring, and of courfe will go to ruin, as it will then be impoffible for the bees to raife another, if they have not an egg to raife one from. A hive may be known to be in this fad predicament, by the following fymptoms: The bees will to hatch their young families, early in the fefon. But fuch hives as weigh heavy in March or April, having plenty of honey, with bees in them carrying well, may be fately allowed to remain without any fresh fupply of food, as they will profer without it; although, if the owner has time and abundance of honey, he may reap additional profit by giving them a little.
**128**: _Direction bow. to manage Beer_
**will immediately give over working as foon as the young in the cells are fealed up; and one may wait an hour at the hive without feeing a loaded bee enter it. The bees then confume their own honey faft, and an uncommon number of them generally crowd about the entry: And if the hive has been long without a Queen, upon turning it up, and fearching for maggots in the cells, they will be found quite empty. As foon as thefe melancholy figns are obferved, the owner should directly take out all the bees, and unite them with thofe of fome other hive, that has few bees in it, the manner of doing which will be afterwards mentioned: and if the hive be young, it may be kept to put a young fwarm into, but if old, the honey should be laid aide for ufe. Sometimes, in fpring, I have found, in particular cells in hives, a confiderable number of young that, from fome caufe or other, had decayed and never come to perfection, as mentioned, page 64., I have fometimes obferved the number of thefe fo great, that in one comb, containing perhaps 600 young bees, the one half would have been in this fate in the cells. The effluvia proceeding from thefe abortive productions, gave the hive a favour by no meansin March, April, and May. 129
means agreeable to me, and which muff doubt
Jefs have been very disgutting to the bees. If
have often endeavoured to investigate the caufe
of thefe phenomena, but am as yet unable to
fatify myfelf, unlefs perhaps it be owing to
extreme cold. But againf this fuppofition the
objection naturally arifs, that fome eggs in the
fame hive, and in the fame degree of cold, produce bees which arrive at full maturity ; and,
therefore, in reply, it muff be taken for grant-
ed, that fome eggs are naturally more able to
bear cold than others ; and, indeed, it is muff
commonly in hives that are but thinly inhabit
ed, that fuch misfortunes take place.
To diftinguifh hives in this condition, therefore, the following criterion may ferve. In
fpring, when bees, which formerly carried well,
and ftill are in no want of food, give over car
rying, let the hive be directly turned up, and
infpected between the combs. Then, upon taking a final ftick, and putting it down among the
thickett of the bees, where the maggots lie feld up, and with it rubbing off the tops of two
or three of the fealed cells, if fresh whitifh
maggots appear, it may be concluded, that the
Brood is coming forward : but if the cells appear quite empty, or if only blanched maggots130
_Directions how to manage Bees_
appear in a number of them, then it is certain
that the brood is going backward.
If fuch a hive has but few bees, it will be proper to'unite them with another hive; but if it has a considerable number of bees, they should be allowed to continue to work on, in the belt way they can, till the beginning of June, when
the _?_ftrong hives begin to lay out; at which
time a great number of common bees should be taken from one or two of them, to re-inforce
that hive with, in. the manner that flall be afterwards pointed out. I have feen a hive, with
a vast number of fuch rotten eggs and decay-
ed maggots in it, in April, which, when allow-
ed to remain till June, and being re-inforced
with fresh bees, would have turned out a fine
thriving hive before autumn; although
my of the decayed eggs and maggots would
have full been in it: For I believe fone fuch a-
bortions may continue in a hive for-years, perhaps with little detriment to the bees; for they
in time dry up, and _?_wither away in the cells,
and their bad favour gradually goes off. Such
hives, however, should always be taken in autumn; and their bees united to more thriving hives. *
Formerly I wfed to cut out the combs containing the moft
rottenin March, April, and May. i31
In May, if cold, milty, or cloudy weather, continues for a few days, the bee-mafter should pay particular attention to his hives, left any of them should be in danger of famine ; for, at this period, the number of bees in each hive is greatly incresed, and of courfe they quickly confume the remains of their winter and fpring provision, fo that even the very beft of hives will be in danger. When fuch weather occurs, therefore, in May or e-ven in June, let every hive get fome addition-al food, in order to prevent all danger of famining, now that they are juff upon the brink of their honey harvest. For, as 'foon as the muffard blofoms, and the white clover appear on the lees, they will make the very air to fnell
R 2. of
rotten eggs, and the moft decayed maggots, whereby I cleared the hive of a great nuifance, which I thought it would be much the better of wanting. But, in doing this, I found that the removal of fuch maffes of combs occasioned a large vacancy in the'hive, and thereby made it colder. To remedy this defect, I have fome times put a piece of fresh comb in its place, in which I found the Queen foon laid eggs again. But fill, as in thefe combs, containing the decayed eggs and maggots, there could not be fewer than one third, or perhaps one half of live young, intermixed a-mong the aborfions, which thus inevitably perifhed, I began to re-get the lofs of fo many induftrous fervants thus defroyed, when juff emerging into exifence ; and have, therefore, now laid the practice almoft entirely aide.
132 _Directions how to manage Bets_
of honey, which will make the bees eager of work during the day, and fing for joy through the night. Now is the honey feafon, and farc-yell famine and robbers ; for, when there is honey in the flowers, they will not rob for it ; and, a single hour of a fine day will refresh them, and put a period to the labour of feeding them, as formerly hinted.
When the flowers begin to open, the bees will vift them, and carry off their yellow load, from them.. When a loaded bee is feen going into a hive, it is a fign that the flowers are beginning to fpring ; and, on every fine day, during fpring, fummer, and autumn, they continue to carry on the beloved labour, with the utmoff diligence and alacrity.
The firft day in fpring, that I obferve a bee carrying a load, I generally call my family together, to take a glafs, and rejoice with me and my faithful forants at the return of the faluiferous feafon. The firft day, perhaps, only three or four loaded bees are to be feen ; the next day, probably eight or ten ; the third, fifteen ; and fo on, the numbers fill gradually increasing, in proportion to the increafe of the flowers in the fields. The bees then grow nurderousin March, April, and May. 133 numerous in the hives ; and, about the beginning of May, when the furze and broom, and many other flowers, make the fields look yellow, a strong hive of bees will be all yellow loaded ; and, at fuch a period, in a fine day, I have counted too loaded bees go into one hive in a few minutes.
When the hives are all equally good, the bees carry much alike, but in proportion to their number. In an apiary, where there are four hives, one will perhaps have twenty entering into it, in five minutes ; another fifty, a third ninety, and the fourth a hundred and twenty, all within the fame fpace of time. But in the height of the honey feafon, the bees carry amazingly fat, running out and in to the hive with the moft furpring celerity and expedition. At this period, the number of loaded bees constantly flocking into the hive, as well as their rapidity, defies all power of calculation; for although they labour with great affinity and confancy before this feafon, yet they do not appear to work with fuch incredible quicknels, as after the honey feafon commences \(\lx@sectionsign\).
\(\lx@sectionsign\) In fpring, as the bees gradually increa* 134_Directions how to manage Beers, $?c._
If I were intending to purchafe a hive in May, and came'to an apiary where there were four hives, to make choice of one, I would define four men to fit down for ten minutes, one at each hive, and count the number of loaded bees that entered into their reflective hives in that fpace of time ; and according to their report, I would pitch upon the hive that was moft frequented during that interval, provided 'it had honey, and were not one of the oldest.
peded in their labours ; but this should_only be done in proportion to the number of bees in a hive. During March and April, they should be very little, as warmenfs is health to bees, and farmers their hatching greatly. A numerous hive should, in May, have an entry two inches wide, and half an inch deep, while a hive, that has not perhaps half the number of bees, should have its entry only one inch wide and farcely half an inch deep. But in the midft of fummer, when the weather is warm, and the bees numerous, the entries of all the hives should be widened, as the bees ought to have both sufficient room to go out and in, and as much air as pofible. In fuch hot weather, the entries might even be enlarged to three inches in widenfs, and one inch in height. The method of enlarging or fratiening the entries of hives is quite simple. Pieces of wood, all of one fize outwardly, but with holes cut in the under part of them, of the various dimenfions above defcribed, might be made and kept ready at all times, to be exchanged with each other, according as the fefon requires, or the Bee-mafter wihes to widen or, to fratien his hives ; but indeed a little plafter lime will fratien or widen an entry in fping and fummer, with very little trouble.
How to re-inforce Be-lives.
C H A P. XVIII.
How to UNITE OR RE-INFORCE BE-HIVES.
As the uniting or re-inforcing of bees is often inceffary to be performed during the fame fefon of the year, that they naturally fend off young fwarms, thefe two fubjects will often fall to be occasionally intermingled in fuch a manner, that the one cannot be particularly defcribed 'without taking notice of the other.' But as each article is of too much importance, not to require a feparate chapter, and of courfe a _precedence_ to one of them, I fhall firth defcribe the uniting or re-inforcing of bee-hives, as it is often neceffary in different fefons of the year, and fhall devote a fubfequent chapter or two to the fubject of Swarming.
In handling bees at all times, but efpecially when driving them, or managing a fwarm, gentlenefs and boldnefs are equally neceffary, Every
**136**: _How to re-inforce Bee-biver._
Every motion muft be made deliberately, and without hurry. The operator may take a glafs of good ale, and rub fome of it over his face and hands; but during the whole operation he
muft be particularly careful not to bruife any of the bees.
In uniting and re-inforcing bees,* upon the very
To re-inforce a hive, signifies to take part of the bees out of a fhong hive, and put them into a weak or deficient one, in or, der to frengthen it, and make it a thriving hive. But one thing to be obferved here, is, that no bees muft ever be taken from a flock hive to re-inforce another with, unlofs in fummer, when the hive is fo full of bees as to lay out, or nearly fo ; for no good hive ought at any time to be hurt to enrich a weak one. It is often a very neccflary and ufeful operation, when a hive has few bees in fummer, by re-inforcing her from a more numerous hive that can easily fpare them, the weak hive will foon become fhong. Or should a misfortune befal a hive at any feson of the year, the bees of the unfortunate hive fhould be put into another hive ; and in September,all the bees belonging to the hives which are taken, should be put into the flock hives, whereby they will preferve heat through the winter, and be able to accelerate their labours in the fpring.
In all cafes whatfever, where it is neccflary to remove the bees out of one hive into another, the new hive muft be placed in the fame fbot where the old hive flood, to prevent the bees from miffaking it. But when a hive is re-inforced by an additional number of bees, if thefe bees are taken from three or four different hives, fhuated in as many different places, the re-inforced hive fhould be removed about a mile difant from all of them, to prevent the new inhabitants from returning to their original hives again;_How to re-inforce Bee-bivest._ 137 very left plan that I know of, they will fometines fight a little ; but, although I cannot ab-folutely prevent this inconvenience, nor indeed have I ever met with any author, or feen any perfon, who could take in hand to do it, yet I can ufe fuch means, as will probably prevent any conflict from taking place in one of a dozen of thefe operations ; and, although a few battles may occur among fome individual bees, yet in general very few will be killed on either fide. I am, therefore, never afraid to unite them, when I have rafon to believe it will answer a good purpofe in other refpeets. But, in all cafes of uniting bees, particular care should be taken firft to try the deficient hive with a fpecimen of the bees that are intended to be introduced into it ; and if thefe _amba/fadors_ are gracoufully received, the reft of their brethren may be fafely offered : But, if otherwise, the whole of the bees should be kept back, till thofe of the receiving hive fhall be in S better again. But after flanding fix weeks, it may be returned back to its former fituation. The above general directions, I think ab-folutely neceffary to be obferved, in driving, re-inforcing, and fwarning of bees; and I am perfuaded they will anfiver in moft cafes, though particular circumstances may occur, wherein the practical bee-mafter's judgment muft direct him ; as it is improfible to anticipate every contingency, in a limited work of this nature._138 _How to re-inforce Bee-bives._
better humour ; for, it is to be remarked, that the fame bees will often fight at one time, who will unite in the moft kindly manner at another; on which account the receiving hive should always be previoully tried, with a fpecimen of their intended new affociates.
To drive all the bees out of a hive, at any feafon of the year, either to re-inforce another hive, or to raife an artificial fwarm, the hive must be gently turned up, and the top of it placed in an eek, or in a hole made in the ground on purpofe, to prevent it from being overturned. An empty hive of the fame fize, muff then be gently placed over it, mouth to mouth, and afheet, or largecloth, wrapped around the joinings of the hives, to prevent any of the bees from getting out. The undermoft hive muff then be raped with both hands in the manner a drum is beat; rapping chiefly on thofe parts of the hive to which the edges of the combs are fixed, and avoiding the parts opposite to the fides of the combs, left they flould be loofened, and, by falling together, crufh the bees between them, as well as the young in the cells. Even the Queen herfelf might be in danger of buffering. By not adverting to this, I have feen the loofe combs and bruifed bees _How to re-inforce Bee-bives._ 139
bees fall out upon turning up the hive, all of which are a confiderable lofs. The older any
hive is, there is the lefs danger of loofening
the combs; and the more bees there are in it,
the fooner they will run into the new hive;
for the concu
**140**: _How to re-inforce Bee-hives._
**fields.** This operation may be very easily performed at any hour of the day ; but the fafelt time is when they are motif buy at work, as they are not then fo ready to fing the operator. In this manner, I have taken off four artificial fwarms in one forenoon, and hardly received a single fing ; for the operation is quite eafily performed, efpecially in the middle of the day. \(\dagger\)
+ Indeed, there is hardly any thing that is requifite to be done about bees, that I would not take in hand to perform, with sufficient time and attention.
I could put TWENTY hives, for inflance, into ONE, if neceffary : I can caufe my bees to rear as many Queens as I pleafe : I can rob my bees of part of their honey, at any time : I could carry 100 bee hives to London or Russia : I could rear 5,000 beehives in a few years, if defired by any gentleman of property : I could travel through the frects of Edinburgh with three fwarms of bees about me, unhurt : I can take a fwarm out of any hive at any time : I can take 10,000 bees from ten different hives, and unite them into one hive ; and I can re-in-force a weak hive with bees from any number of other hives, and from being the worst, make it the BENT hive in the county ; I can unite the bees of forty hives into thirty, twenty, or ten hives ; and next Summer divide thefe ten hives again into forty fwarms : If I have a weak hive fuffering by robbers, I can fregothen it with more bees, and make them fit to rob any hive in the neighbourhood : If I have a hive of bees perifling with poverty or famine, I can make it the richeft hive in the place, or within many miles around : I can take a common bee egg, and cauleHow to re-inforce Bee-bives. 141
In fummer, a weak hive, that has few inhabitants, may be re-inforced with a number of bees from a strong one, in the following manner : Supposing there are two apiaries, a mile difant from each other ; and that, in one of them, there are a weak hive and a strong one, fituated within two feet or two yards of each other ; and no other hive near them : in fuch a cafe, let the strong hive be removed, about ten o'clock A. M. when the bees are buy at work, to twenty or thirty yards distance, and let the weak hive be placed where the strong one food. All the bees, belonging to the strong hive, that were abroad in the fields, will thus, on their return, go into the weak hive and unite peaceably with its inhabitants. Upon this plan, fcarce one of twenty will fight ; but if they should, which is feldom the cafe when they are buy at work, then the ftrong hive must be immediately brought back, and placed in its former fituation ; and the weak hive turned up and rapped hearily, upon which the
caufe the bees raife it to be either a Queen or a common bee as I pleafe : I can make my bees reft upon myfelf or any perfon near me, without offering us the fmaleft injury ; and I can make them fall upon us with the fury of as many dragons, fo that we would be glad to fly with as much precipitation, as a few rioters would do before a regiment of dragoons.
### How to re-inforce Bee-biver.
the bees will return to their own hive again ; and the weak hive may be placed in its former situation. But when a part of the bees of the strong hive unite peaceably with thofe of the weak one, the strong hive flould be carried to the other apiary : for flould it be placed too near the f_How to re-inforce Bee-bives._ **143**