BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
A neighbor purchased thirteen stock-hives; six were old ones, the others swarms of the last season. As the old hives were heavy, he of course thought them good; either he knew nothing of the disease, or took no trouble to examine; five of the six old ones were badly affected. Four were lost outright, except the
**noney ;**: the fifth lasted through the winter, and then had to be transferred. He had flattered himself that they were obtained very cheaply, but when he made out what his good ones cost, he found no great reason, in this respect, for congratulation.
**sizes of hives important.**
**Another point is worthy of consideration : endeavor to get hives as near the right size as possible,** _viz._**, 2,000 cubio inches ; better too large than too small. If too large, they may be cut off, leaving them the proper size. But yet, it often makes an ungainly shape, being too large square for the height. As the shape probably makes no difference in the prosperity of the bees, the appearance is the principal objection, after being cut off.**
**An acquaintance had purchased a lot of bees in very large hives, and called on me to know what to do with them, as he feared such would not swarm well in consequence ; I told him it would be doubtful, unless he cut them off to the right size.**
**"Cut 'em off! how can that be done? there is bees in 'em."**
**"So I expected, but it can be done nearly as well as if empty."**
**"But don't you get stung dreadfully?"**
**"Not often :**: if it is to be done in warm weather, I smoke them well before I begin ; _in very cold weather is the best time, then it is unnecessary ; simply turn the hive bottom up, mark off the proper size, and with a sharp saw take it off without trouble."" Some are filled with combs ; you don't cut off such, do you?"
" Certainly ; I consider all the room for combs in a hive over 2000 inches as worse than lost."
" What will you ask to cut mine off? If I could see it done once, I might do it next time."
" The charge will be light ; but if you intend to keep bees, you should learn to do everything pertaining to them, and not be dependent on any one ; I did it before I ever saw or heard of its being done." I then gave him full directions how to manage, but could not persuade him to undertake.
How large hives can be made smaller.
A short time after, I attended, on a cold day, with a sharp saw, square, &c. I found his hives fourteen inches square inside, and eighteen deep, holding about 8500 inches. Of this square, a little more than ten inches in height, would make just the right size. To work convenient, I inverted the hive on a barrel, set on end, marked the length, and sawed it off, without a bee leaving. It was very cold, (mereury at 6 deg.) The bees came to the edges of the combs, but the cold drove them back. In a short time I had taken off six ; four when done were just about full ; the other two were so when I began, but they were marked and sawed like the rest ; when the combs were attached, they were severed with a knife, and the piece of the hive thus loose, was raised off, leaving several inches of the combs projecting out of the hive. I now cut off the first comb, even with the bottom of the hive. On the next comb there were a few bees; with a quill these were brushed down into the hive; this piece was then removed, and the bees on the other side of it were brushed down also. In this way all others were removed, and left the hive just full. The other full hive, after it was saved on each side, a small wire was drawn through, parallel with the sheets, and severed all the combs at once; each piece was taken out, and the bees that were clustered on them brushed back; removing the loose part of the hive, was the last thing to be done. This last method was preferred to the other by my employer; yet it was all performed to his satisfaction, no sting or other difficulty about it, except the trouble of warming fingers rather frequently. Tobacco smoke would have kept them quiet during the operation, nearly as well. If preferred, a hive may stand right side up while sawing it.
moderate weather best to remove bees.
In transporting your bees, avoid if possible the two extremes of very cold, or very warm weather. In the latter the combs are so nearly melted, that the weight of the honey will bend them, bursting the cells, spilling the honey,'and besmearung the bees. In very cold weather, the combs are brittle, and easily detached from the sides of the hive. When necessitated to move them in very cold weather, they should be put up an hour or so before starting. The agitation of the bees after being disturbed will create considerable 16*
870 transportingbees.
heat; a portion of this will be imparted to the combs, and add to their strength
PROPARATIONS FOR TRANSPORTING BEES.
To prepare for moving them, pieces of thin muslin about half a yard square is as good as anything, secured by carpet tacks.
SEQUING BEES IN THE INVE.
The hive is inverted, and the cloth put over, neatly folded, and fastened with a tack at the corners, and another in the middle. The tack is crowed in about two-thirds of its length, it then presents the head convenient to pull out. If the bees are to go a great distance, and require to be shut up several days, the muslin will be hardly sufficient, as they would probably bite their way out. Something more substantial would then be required. Take a board the size of the bottom, cut out a place in the middle, and cover with wire cloth, (like the one recommended for hiving,) and fasten it with tacks. This board is to be nailed on the hive. After the nails are driven, with the hammer start it off about the eighth of an inch; it will admit a little air around the sides as well as the middle, quite necessary for heavy stocks. But very small families might be safe without the wire cloth; air enough would pass between the hive and board, except in warm weather. New combs break easier than old.
BET CONVEDANCE.
Probably the best conveyance is a wagon with
## Chapter 7 Transporting Bees.
### 7.1 Elliptic springs
But a way without springs is bad, especially for young stocks. Yet I have known them moved safely in this way, but it required some care in packing with hay, or straw, under and around them, and careful driving. Good sleighing will answer very well, and by some thought to be the best time.
HIVE TO BE INVERTED.
Whatever conveyance is employed, the hive should be inverted. The combs will then all rest closely on the top, and are less liable to break than when right end up, because then the whole weight of the combs must depend upon the fastenings at the top and sides for support, and are easily detached and fall. When moving bees, so reversed, they will creep upward; in stocks part full, they will often nearly all leave the combs, and get upon the covering. In a short time after being set up, they will return, except in very cold weather, when a few will sometimes freeze; consequently a warm room is required to put them in for a short time.
After carrying them a few miles, the disposition to sting is generally gone, yet there are a few exceptions. In moderate weather, when bees are confined, they manifest a persevering determination to find their way out, particularly after being moved, and somewhat disturbed. I have known them to bite holes through muslin in three days. The same difficulty is often attendant on attempting to confine them to the hive by muslin when in the house in the winter, except when kept in a cold situation. Should any
**372**: _CONCLUSION._
combs become broken, or detached from their fastenings, in hives not full, by moving or other accident, rendering them liable to fall when set up, the hive may remain inverted on the stand till warm weather, if necessary, and the bees have again fastened them, which they do soon after commencing work in the spring. If they are so badly broken that they bend over, rolls of paper may be put between them to preserve the proper distance till secured. When they commence making new combs, or before, it is time to turn the right end up. While the hive is inverted, it is essential that a hole is in the side, through which the bees may work. A board should fit close over the bottom, and covered, to effectually prevent any water from getting among the bees, &c.
In conclusion I would say, that the apiarian who has followed me attentively, and has added nothing of value to his stock of information, possesses an enviable experience that all should strive to obtain.
It has been said that "' three out of five who commence an apiary must fail ;" but let us suppose it is through ignorance or inattention, and not inherent with the bees. To the beginner then I would say,--if you expect to succeed in obtaining one of the most detectable of sweets for your own consumption, or the profit in dollars and cents, you will find something more requisite than merely holding the dish to obtain the porridge. "See your bees often," and know at all times their actual condition. This one recipe isConclusion. 878
worth more than all others that can be given ; it is at the head of the class of duties ; _all others begin here_. Even the grand secret of successfully combating the worms,--keep your bees strong, must take its rise at this point. With the above motto acted upon, carried out fully, and with perseverance, you cannot well fail to realize all reasonable expectations. Avoid over-anxiety for a rapid increase in stocks ; try and be satisfied with one good swarm from a stock annually, your chances are better than with more ; do not anticipate the golden harvest too soon. You will probably be necessitated 'to discard some of the _extrawagant_ reports of profits from the apiary. Yet you will find one stock trebling, perhaps quadrupling its price or value in products, while the one beside it does nothing. In some seasons particularly favorable your stocks collectively will yield a return of one or two hundred per cent.--in others, hardly make a return for trouble. The proper estimate can be made only after a number of years, when, if they have been judiciously managed, and your ideas have not been too extravagant, you will be fully satisfied. I have known a single stock in one season to produce more than twenty dollars in swarms and honey, and ninety stocks to produce over nine hundred dollars, when a few of the number added not a farthing to the amount. I do not wish to hold out inducements for any one to commence bee-keeping, and end it in disgust and disappointment. But I would encourage all.suitable persons to try their skill in bee management. I say suitable persons, because there are many, very many,not qualified for the charge. The careless, inattentive man, who leaves his bees unnoticed from October till May, will be likely to complain of ill success.
Whoever cannot find time to give his bees the needed care, but can spend an hour each day obtaining gossip at the neighborhood tavern, is unfit for this business. But he who has a home, and finds his affections beginning to be divided between that and his companions of the bar-room, and wishes to withdraw his interest from unprofitable associates, and yet has nothing of sufficient power to break the bond, to what can he apply with a better prospect of success, than to engage in keeping bees? They make ample returns for each little care. Pecuniary advantages are not all that may be gained--a great many points concerning their natural history are yet in the dark, and many are disputed. Would it not be a source of satisfaction to be able to contribute a few more facts to this interesting subject, adding to the science, and holding a share in the general fund? Supposing all the mysteries pertaining to their economy discovered and elucidated, precluding all 'chance of further additions, would the study be dry and monotonous? On the contrary, the verification witnessed by our, selves would be so fascinating and instructive, that we cannot avoid pitying the condition of that man who finds gratification only in the gross and sensual. It has been remarked, that "'he who cannot find in this and other branches of natural history a salutary exercise for his mental faculties, inducing a habit of observation and reflection, a pleasure so easily obtained,
of nature's exhauseless storehouse, any one science more inviting than this? What more exalting and refining, and at the same time making a return in profits as a pecuA P P E N D I X.
At the time of writing the chapter on Hives in this work, I really supposed that no important improvement had ever been made over the simple box for a bee-hive--an improvement that, on the whole, was an advantage--that did not destroy in one part all that was gained in another.
I continued to use the one described on pages 46, 47, and 48, with much satisfaction ; but very few, perhaps not any one, kept begs with more profit than myself; because, when I had obtained fifty pounds of surplus honey from a swarm, I was not necessitated to take the whole to pay for the hive. Through the papers, I challenged the patent vendors to produce better results with any of their hives : not by interested statements of isolated cases, but by a simple, hir test, where everything would be equal by the side of mine. After a trial two years, if their hive proved superior to mine, to the amount of only twenty-five eents per hive, I was to pay a handsome premium; besides, I promised to make this superiority public, which would probably have been the greater advantage. I did not really expect any one to furnish a hive, not because there was anything unfair in my offer, asking more than I was willing to give, but because I did not expect any of them were willing to risk the result contrasted, notwithstanding all their boasting. Yet, unexpectedly, I think I have found a hive superior, in many respects, to the simple box. It is not pretended that a swarm of bees located in it will store a greater amount of honey in a given time, but the advantages are in the control of their operations, and knowing their _exexallation_ at all time.
Year than last, where no combs were used as guides. Whether it is owing to the rapidity of collecting money, or some other cause, I cannot tell with my present experience. But notwithstanding this, this hive has many advantages yet unnoticed, which I will proceed to mention.
First : The bees are allowed to work in their natural order, and make each comb in a separate frame, capable of being lifted out at pleasure, making it what it is called : "_monokle-comb hive_." It gives control of all the combs ; and all necessary operations may be performed without injury to a single bee! This principle of getting at the interior of a bee-hive admits of a great many minor advantages. For instance, my first experiment : When one of the stocks that I had transferred (in 1856) was supposed about ready to cast a swarm, I decided on making one artifically. I had ready an empty hive, and operated in the middle of the day, when the fewest bees were at home, and lifted out but a frame or two before I found the queen. The comb which she was on was transferred to the empty hive, and then placed immediately upon the stand; the old hive with the rest of the combs and bees were set upon a new one, several feet distant. I depended on the returning bees to the old stand to make the swarm, the old queen being there, and one comb was deemed sufficient to keep them. Mr. Langstottn considers this method of making artificial swarms of much risk to the old stock, as too many bees would be likely to join the old queen on the old stand, and leave the old stock with too few bees to manage it. Yet, on this occasion, and in many subsequent operations of this kind, there has not been an instance where the parent stock was short of bees. I think, therefore, that I may safely recommend this method of making such swarms. I would add a caution about making them at any other time than the proper season--that is, in a yield of honey. It would hardly do to remove the old stock when the swarm had been driven out of the common hive, because, in such a case, nearly all the young bees recently matured would be driven out with the queen." By the use of the frames, there is another advantage in this way : I can ascertain whether any queen-cells are in process of construction ; and, in case none are far advanced, I give one to the old stock (from some other hive, of course,) that will mature almost immediately--an important item, because every day that a fertile queen is absent from an old stock, full of combs ready for brood, makes a difference of some fifteen hundred to two thousand bees, amounting in a fortnight to a pretty good swarm.
With the common hive, and all others with which I am acquatlated, there is no way to prevent _son-smearing_ ; they will frequently continue to throw out two, three, and even four, the last being small, thereby reducing the old stock very much, if it does not entirely ruin it ; but with the help of the frames, it may be prevented. Any time within a week after the first-regular swarm, take out all the frames and look them over carefully, and with a knife cut out all the queen-cella but one. Of coarse, but one queen can mature, and a second swarm need not be expected.
All stocks that swarm are liable to lose their queens at This season. Unless this, loss is ascertained by their peculiar manifestations, within two or three days of its occurrence, it will be too late, for the indications of it will then cease, and I know of no other means of ascertaining it for some weeks afterwards. By this time, it often happens that such stocks are past recovery. This to-me is a source of considerable loss, and unavoidable with the common hive, as I have a great many away from home. But with the frames I can ascertain this point at any time, by lifting out one or more after the young queen should have commenced her maternal duties, as eaps or brood indicate her presence without looking for her.
In two or three weeks, this same old stock will increase sufficiently to spare another swarm. One thriftly stock that keeps its queen will, in this way, spare three large swarms, and still be stronger in the fall than if it had cast only two in the natural way, and one of them quite small ; or, it will be full as strong the next spring as one that has cast no swarm. It would appear, then, that when a stock is sufficiently obstinate to cast no swarm, we gain three by taking the matter into our own hands! would here repeat a caution given by Mr. Langstrom : "Not to have a large swarm building combs a week or ten days before they have a mature queen," because they make too many drone-cells for profit. Mr. L. recommends starting what he terms a "nucleus" Let a few bees rear a queen from workers' eggs, and when mature and depositing eggs, add the swarm." This is attended with considerable trouble more than the other way, as the bees have to be confined for a time, and you are necessitated to have them under particular care for several days. It is a much quicker process, and less trouble, to give the small company of bocs a royal cell nearly mature ; you can then put in the bees, and speedly have the particular care of your hands. One beautiful feature about it is, you can make your new swarms just as strong as desired. If you do not get quite bees enough at the first trial, additions can be made till right ; or, if too many, they may be taken out again. Bees from different hives, after being taken from their own queen and carried to a strange place, can be united, and they will accept with apparent thankfulness almost any condition, if they have a queen, or have the means to rear one. Even oil stocks may be strengthened readily in this way. I had some half-dozen last June, reduced beyond any prospect of recovery, and two quarts of bees obtained from some strong stocks in another galaxy were compiled out at the entrance of each hive ; those entered quietly, and labored as freely and perseveringly as if they had always belonged there.
When the bees are all in one apary, there is a plan furnished by Mr. L. of strengthening weak colonies, quite effectual, but not as speedily done. It consists of taking one or more combs filled with brood from a strong stock, and giving them to this weak one, which, as they mature, add strength.
There are many advantages in having bees in two localities, besides those enumerate-l here, and whenever there is a possibility of giving the necessary attention it is to be recommend, In connection with this subject, I would not a caution strongly insisted upon by Mr. L., and that is, "Beware of increasing your stocks too fast." Although the plan just given, of preventing the old queen from leaving the hive, will produce about one-third more bees in the course of a season, there is great danger, if there is not a full yield of honey, that you will have more bees in the fall than your honey stores will winter. Remember that great haste is attended with peril.
## Appendix.
Most of our swarms, in constructing combs, will make altogether too many cells for the reading of drones. There is really no necessity for twenty colonies of bees standing together, to rear more drones than are naturally produced by one standing alone. Nature hid to provide drones for isolated colonies ; and, when a great number of stocks are brought together, each one follows its instincts, and rears thousands of these useless consumers. It not only requires a great many points of honey to rear this brood, but requires the labor of a great many working-bees afterwards to support them. A great many traps have been contrived to catch and destroy them, and several patents obtained for devices for that purpose. We are told that colonies deprived of their drones, store quantities incredibly large of surplus, over others not disturbed. We take these statements, however, coming from interested parties, with due allowance ; but we must admit that a large brood of drones cannot be maintained from May till perhaps the end of summer without consuming much honey uselessly. Now, if there is a great saving in destroying the drones after they are reared, how much more might be saved if they were not _reuded at all_, and in their stead there were produced five workers for every three of the drones? With these frames we can do it, and go beyond any chance or caprice of the bees, and _present_ their rearing drones : When ascertaining the condition of the new stocks in spring, any frame containing drone-cells, or more than a very few, should be taken away, and replaced with worker-cells. When a third or half are drone-cells, that part may be cut out, and a piece of the same size (worker-cells) fitted in the place ; such pieces can be held in place with a little melted bores- wax and resin poured round the edge. We thus take the matter in our hands, because the bees, without the cells in which to rear the drones, could not, if they would, waste so much material worse than uselessly. I would remark here-with-out going into full explanations to prove \(t\)-that I consider the eggs of an impegmented queen all one thing ; that if deposited in drone-cells, they produce drones ; that if in worker-cells, workers, \(\delta\)c, I have not, as yet, in any one instance, taken all the drone-cells from a stock, but have left a few square inches, because it is not ascertained what effect a total deprivation might have. In several instances, I have taken three hundred square inches, which would have afforded cells enough to extend the number of drones to thousands. Whenever it is necessary to change combs, for the sake of adding to the winter stores of a colony, I would recommend taking those containing the drone-cells if possible, so as to be sure that they will be emptied before the bees will be likely to use them for brood. They should be taken away and carefully saved, to put in the surplus boxes--at least all that are not much colored. The more combs you can put into a box the sooner it will be filled, and having these large cells filled with honey, is the best use to which they can be applied.