BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
Make as many dipping-sticks as you think you will need, out of wood that will finish up smooth; then round them up so that they will be about as large as a pencil, or just a little larger, and round them off at the dipping ends so that they will be as near the shape of natural queen-cells as possible; then tack them on a small thin strip of soft lumber by driving the nails through the strip into the dipping-stick. The apparatus now resembles a very small close tooth-rake. Clean the dipping-sticks up well so they will be as smooth as possible; then place them in water, before using, long enough for them to be thoroughly soaked, and the hot wax will not adhere to them.
The wax for cell-cups should be thoroughly clean, and just hot enough to run freely; then insert the prepared sticks into it about % or % inch, and continue to insert them in it until they are thick enough to stand handling; then remove them. The kink of forming cell-cups is soon learned by a little practice.
GIVING THE CELLS TO THE BEES IN THE CELL-BUILDING APARTMENT.
Select two of the best frames of unscaled brood from the queen's apartment, or any other colony in the apiary that may have choice combs of unscaled brood (always leaving the queen in her room), and insert two other frames in their places.
Now stick as many of the prepared cells as you desire on one side of these combs, and press them in the comb so that the mouth of the cell-cups will extend downward, and just a little out beyond the surface of the comb, so that they can be easily grafted. If you have a large batch of cells, place them in rows on the comb about 1% inches apart, and about one inch between them. When all the cell-cups have been carefully placed in the face of this side of this comb, move all the combs except two back from the division-board in the cell;building aprtsment, and put in the two frames of unsealed brood, one of which contains the prepared cell-cups inserted in one side of it, close up to the two frames left next to the division-board, so that the cells will be between the two frames of unsealed brood. In about two hours the bees will have the cells polished, trimmed round and even, and attached well to the comb; and they are warm, being of the same temperature as the interior of the hive, and in the best possible condition for grafting.
THE GRAFTING-STICK.
A piece of green hickory or white oak, or any kind of wood that will bend and not break, will make a good grafting-stick. Make it about three or four inches long, and about the size of a toothpick made out of a feather, and shave one end down to a feather edge, and trim it until it is about $s wide as the point of a pen; then curve the end so it will dip out tiny larvae.
GRAFTING CELLS.
Select a comb containing very small or tiny larvae from the colony containing our breeding-queen, and remove the comb from the cell-building colony which contains the prepared cell-cups, and place it in position so that the mouth of the cells will extend upward, and the bottoms be clearly and easily seen. Now take the selected comb of tiny larvae in hand, and, with the grafting-stick, proceed to dip out the larvae carefully, and place them gently in the bottoms of the cells by giving the stick a side move.
When all the cells have been thus grafted, set the comb back in its place in the cell-building colony. The other frame of unsealed larvae should not be so close to the side of the comb containing the grafted cell-cups that the bees will attach them to it while building them out. Make the date of grafting on the top-bar so you can tell when the cells are ripe. Place the cover on, and in 24 hours examine the cells and remove those that the bees have not accepted, and they will do for the next grafting, which can be done six days later.
Grafting should be done during the warm part of the day, and the larvae should never be exposed to the direct rays of the sun.
In nine or ten days the cells will be ready to be removed and placed in cell-protectors, and distributed out in nuclei or queenless colonies prepared for them.
If it is desired to raise queens in a wholesale way, have the cells started in three or four frame nuclei which have been made queenless for 24 hours previous to the time the prepared cell-cups are given them to be polished, trimmed, and cleaned up. Of course, the cells should be inserted on the side of the comb containing most unsealed brood, and grafted as previously explained. and given back to the nuclei for z4 hours, then removed to the cell-building colony and placed between two frames of unsealed brood as previously explained.
This process of cell-building can be carried on throughout the season, but a honey-flow or feeding is absolutely necessary. Thus you see the cells are between two solid walls of unsealed brood, and right in the comb; and it is the nearest method to nature's way of building cells of which I have any knowledge. No royal jelly is necessary, and no cell-holders or cell-bars are to be bothered with. Large queens are not always developed in large cells; but large cells are most likely to contain large queens.
T. S. Hall,
## Finding and Introducing Queens.
The queen is the only perfectly developed female in the hive, and her size is between that of a worker and a drone; but her abdomen is about a third longer than that of a worker and about a third larger; is richer in color than the worker, and can easily be distinguished from a drone because she is more in the shape of a worker. Usually there is only one queen in a hive; and sometimes, but not often, two, for the bees discover that their mother is failing, and raise them another one to take her place, when she will be permitted to remain in the hive with her daughter for a while.
The queen is the mother of all bees in the hive, which are from 30,000 to gc,coo strong; and, of course, to find her in this mightry army of bees is often no small task. Remove the cover from the colony you wish to find the queen in, and use no more smoke than just enough to keep the bees subdued; for if you use too much smoke it will cause them to leave their quiet position on the comb and go to crawling about over the interior parts of the hive, and boiling out of it on the alighting-board and over the top of the hive; and the queen will, of course, join them and be much more difficult to find than if you had used only enough smoke to keep them subdued.
Remove the division-board and lift out the frame next to it and look over it well and set it beside the hive on the outside, and lift out the next frame; look it over, and set it back in the hive; then lift out the next one and look over it well, and so on until all the frames have been carefully lifted out and looked over for the queen. If the queen has not been found during this search, look the frames over again carefully; then, if she is not found, set them all back in the hive and put the cover on; and after an hour or more repeat the search until she is found. Usually the queen is found on the first or second search; and during the search keep a close watch on the bottom and sides of the hive, for often she will be found there.
Of course, queens are more easily found in a nucleus, or small swarm of bees. If the frames or comb in a patent or similarly constructed hive are not movable, disturb the bees and let them fill themselves with honey; then send the smoke down between the frames until the bees set up a march to go out on the alighting-board to escape from the smoke. Continue the search by sending a little smoke down on them, and at the same time watch the marching bees closely until the queen marches out; then you can pick her up. If it is desired to remove a queen from an old box hive, remove the top and send in the smoke at the entrance, and soon the queen will be seen crawling around on 'op of the comb or the sides of the hive; then she can be caught. A queen should never be handled roughly, nor mashed, for it will greatly injure them, unless it is desired to kill them. It is not a good idea to catch or handle queens at all unless it is necessary.
## 111 Introducing Queens
Bees have a very great sense of smell and in this way they seem to know each other, and, of course, they know when a strange bee or queen is among them; and as they allow no intruding bees except drones among them they will kill them. It matters not how much they need a queen, if a strange one is given them they will soon ball her to death.
Queens are sent through the mails in small wood and wire cages, with directions on each cage how to introduce them to a colony; and if these directions are carried out there will not be many lost in introducing them. And if queens are to be introduced from one hive to another in the same apiary, or carried from one apiary to another, they must be put in similar cages with plenty of candy (a very stiff dough made of strained or extracted honey and pulverized sugar), and then introduced in the same manner you would queens sent through the mails. Queens sent through the mails should be examined as soon as they arrive, to see that they are alive and in good condition, for sometimes they will die in the mails or be badly daubed or smeared with the candy. The cause of this is that the mail has in some way been exposed to the direct heat of the sun, which, of course, would soften the candy, and the queen and her escorts would be daubed or smeared with it, and be in poor condition to introduce.
If the queens arrive very badly daubed or dead they should be mailed back to the sender, who will make the loss good by sending more queens in their place. But the queens in good condition should be introduced as soon as possible according to the directions found on the under side of the pasteboard which is tacked over the wire cloth and which contains your address. It will be seen that there is a very small strip of pasteboard tacked over hole filled with candy on one end of the cage. This should not be removed. The object of it is to delay the releasing of the queen, for they would soon eat the candy out of the cage and release the queen before the bees can get acquainted with her, and, of course, they would kill her. It usually takes bees and queen more than 24 hours to form an acquaintance.
After the \(
u\)...eboard has been removed from over the wire cloth, introduce 'e queen as follows:
'he undesired queens and kill them, and give the bees the caged 'g the cages between two top-bars of the brood-frames con or to keep for home use, but put it up in small jars, 25 or 30 cents' worth in each one; for after the comb gets torn up, stirring through it to find 'ice chunks, its beautiful appearance is spoiled, and it will not bring a fancy price. See "Chunk Honey."
The first large swarms that are hired can be robbed as soon as the honey-flow is over; but if they are small swarms, or are hired late, they should not be robbed the first year, for they '_'_' need what surplus honey they have; and, besides, small swarms rarely built' their comb very far down the first season; and if the tops are removed the combs are apt to break loose and fall; and the result is the colonies are lost. Hundreds of colonies are destroyed in this way each season. Bee-keepers should know about how much honey there is in hives when they are robbing them, so as not to rob them unmercfully. Sometimes bees store all their honey in the top of the live; and if it is removed they are soon starved. If a colony has not plenty of stores it should not be robbed at all, for they need what little they have. Also, a more prolific variety of bees can be introduced--see "Finding and Introducing Queens." After the old queens have been removed, place the caged queens down in the comb just in the edge of the cluster of bees or the brood-nest.
The care that bees can receive in old-style gums or box hives is very limited, and I have mentioned only these few things that you may keep the bees along until better hives and appliances can be obtained for them.
SOUTERN Honey Flora.
The South is rich in honey resources, and many sections and locations are a paradise for bees, and there are many of them that have not one colony of bees in them, to save any of the vast amount of honey that is wasted each season. Truly, if honey-saving were given its due attention the South would flow with honey, and a vast amount of the wholesome sweet would be saved and consumed in place of other inferior sweets. Our natural appetite calls for it from childhood up; and our weak bodies need it to nourish them. There are thousands of farmers scattered over the South who are tied fast to the post of constant toil for the necessities of life, and the children of many of them are deprived of educational advantages to help stay the "wolf" from the door, when there is enough honey going to waste in the fields, along the Gitches, and the fence-corners, and over the waste land and around in the forest to help or make them independent if they would only turn a little of their attention toward saving it.
The field for hustling bee-keepers is extensive and rich, and transportation, health, and climate are all that could be expected; and there are located here and there all over the South progressive '_'_'_'_'-keepers who are reliable, and ready to give information to those who desire and ask jer it.
There are many kinds of blooming plants which yield some necq- and pollen, and are of some value to bee-keepers; but to go into full details on
these various plants would take up too much space; and as the contributors to this book give much information on the Southern honey flora I will not list the honey and pollen plants.
## 12 Bee-Keepering in the South.
I am proud of the South as a bee and honey country, and of the possibilities there are here for the bee and honey industry, and the wonderful progress it is making. Until late years but little has been known of modern hives and bee-keeping appliances which were invented and first manufactured in the North. Now the Northern bee-keepers' supply manufacturers have branch offices in many sections of the South from which bee-keepers are supplied, saving heavy transportation charges. The majority of these agents were reared in the South, are progressive bee-keepers, and are doing all in their power to promote the industry here. We have also Southern beekeepers' supply manufacturing plants, one in Alabama and one or two in Texas, which are manufacturing bee-keeper's supplies and distributing them all over the South. With this large amount of available bee supplies, which are sold at a reasonable price, it assures a rapid progress for the industry. Thousands of bee-keepers have already adopted modern appliances for their bees, and the number is greatly increased each year.
Then literature, to enlighten the people's mind along the lines of bee-keeping or bee culture has been slowly penetrating the South; and bee-keepers have been backward in expressing themselves or giving their views or experiences in the culture of bees. But these conditions have changed, and it is hoped that the honey-bee and its culture will soon be better known.
The Southern climate seems to be ideal for bees and bee-keeping; there is no heavy loss sustained from cold, even if they are wintered on their summer stands; and there are but few days during the winter when bees are confined to their hives; and the constant flights assure good health for them. Spring brings with it many blossoms laden with rich pollen upon which bees build up rapidly; and with just a little attention they will be in splendid condition for the spring honey-flow.
The bees' working season is long, and sometimes it seems rather lcng to us bee-keepers; but great progress can be made with our bees during this time; and there are honey-flows heavy or light at intervals along during the season, assuring that great progress can be made in bee-keeping.
Spring usually brings with it a long and heavy honey-flow, and during summer there is a long and heavy honey-flow in many locations; and fall also brings a he'- honey-flow which furnishes some surplus honey and winter stor. 'r bees.
'''
1:\(i\):g seasons with honey-flows at intervals assure a crop of honey at some \(\ldots\)e during them; and in but very few sections has there ever been a total honey failure.
cool, a colony can be formed in the same way over a strong colony with wire cloth between them, so that they can get the benefit of the heat of the colony below. In five or six days it can be removed and set on its desired stand, and a small entrance made for only one bee to pass at a time.
Queens will be accepted better when there is a honey-flow on than when there is a honey-dearth; and during summer and autumn is perhaps the best time to requeen.
Caged queens should never be allowed to remain in a cool pace, for they are likely to be chilled and injured; and they should remain in a cage but a short time before being introduced.
## 110 Old-Fashioned Bee-Keepering.
There are thousands of bee-keepers who keep their bees in box hives and log gums just as bees were kept many years ago, and they will never put a swarm of bees in a modern or up-to-date hive, but continue on the old-fashioned way of keeping bees.
There is not much culture we can give bees in such hives; but they can receive much more than they usually do, and should be examined a few times during the year to see that they have plenty of stores and the proper room to store honey in. In the fall of the year the light hives should be fed by removing the tops and setting small pans, 1% or a inches deep, in on the comb in the top of the hives; then fill them with straw or hay, and fill them with feed (see "Feeding Bees"), until they have been fed enough. The tops must fit down well on the hives or the robbers will get in and eat up the feed. In early spring they should be closely examined again; and if they need feeding, feed them again. Then just before the first heavy honey-flow clean out the tops of the hives, removing all the comb down eight or ten inches below the tops, so that the bees will build new comb to store their honey in. If there is any honey in this old dark removed comb, stretch a burlap sack over a tub and bind it well with a strong cord or small rope so it will not sag down much, and then pour the honey on it; then work it up thoroughly with your hands, mashing up all chunks of comb well and let it stand and drip for twelve or fifteen hours; then the comb and honey will be separated, and you can render the comb into wax, and the strained honey can be put in the feeder and fed back to the bees as you would feed, filling the pans well with straw to keep the bees from drowning in the strained honey. The bees will carry the honey down and store it in the old comb around the brood-nest; and as soon as new honey comes in they will start comb-building in the top, and *store their new honey there. Of course, the most of this honey should be led to the lighter colonies. As soon as the first honey-flow is over,":ob the bees and you will have all nice new honey in white comb. Th:n do not remove it and put it in lard-cans or large vessels to carry it to market taining most brcod, with the side of the cages covered with wire down, so that the queen and the bees in the hive have access to each other, and thus form an acquaintance. The frames must be pressed up firmly against the cages so that the cages will not drop down between the combs on the bottom of the hive.
Do not molest the bees any more for three or four days. During this time the bees and queens will form acquaintance, the queens will be liberated, and all be quite at home together; and if any queens should not be received they have queen-cells, and soon have a laying qusem anyway; then she can be killed, and another one introduced. If the bees have not accepted the first queen introduced to them it is not likely that they will accept another one; but just let them raise them one; and as soon as she begins to lay, give them another one.
Usually bees will start queen-cells with a queen caged in the hive; and if she is not accepted they will be safe any way. But if queenless bees are supplied with frames of brood in all stages of development from time to time, they will be much more likely to accept queens than if they have been broodless and queenless for some time. Queensland bees should always be supplied with brood or young bees to feed, because it will keep them from becoming hopeless, and at the same time will keep them built up, and likely they will accept a queen at any time. But when queens are given to such colonies, all queen-cells should be torn down at the time the queens are placed in the hives, for the bees will not be so apt to accept queens with ripe queen-cells in the hive at the time the queens are placed in the hives.
Sometimes bee-keepers have or buy a choice queen they want to introduce in a sure way. Prepare an empty hive body, bottom, and cover, and set it on a stand, and look over an apiary and select the choicest frames of sealed hatching brood, and fill the empty hive with them, and close up the entrance so no bees can escape. Then with the small blade of a knife remove the candy through the small hole at the end of the cage so the queen and her escorting bees can easily pass out; but keep your finger over the hole, for the queen may fly out and be lost; and place the cage firmly between two frames; remove your finger, and quickly slip the cover on. In five or six days make an opening so only one bee can pass out. By this time there is a good-sized cluster of bees hatched out, the queen is safe among them, and they are strong enough to defend themselves if the entrance to their hive is very small. In seven or eight days from the time the colony is formed, look over the comb; and if the young bees have nearly all emerged, give the frames of comb back to the colonies you took them from except the three which have the most young bees in them. Let those remain, and from time to time add to this small colony frames of sealed brood until it is a full colony. When you first remove the frames of hatching brood to make the colony, be sure there is not even one old bee on them, for it might kill or injure the queen; and do not add any old bees at any time while building the colony up. The hives where these frames are removed from can at once be supplied with extra frames of comb which may be about the apiary, or frames "inine full sheets of foundation can be used for this purpose. If it'Now let us look over the statistics and see what is being done in the bee and honey industry here in the South at present.
egin{tabular}{l c c c c} Number & & & & & \ Collaoles & & & & & \ per annum & & & & \ North Carolina & & & & & \ South Carolina & & & & & \ Coorgia & & & & & \ Alabama & & & & & \ Mississippi & & & & & \ Louisiana & & & & & \ Texas & & & & & \ Arkansas & & & & & \ \end{tabular}
These figures are interesting, and show that our industry is a paying one, and by no means a small one; yet it is nothing compared to what it should be and will be. The great amount of honey saved by the bees is not much more than a drop compared to what is wasted for lack of bees to save it,
The outlook for the bee and honey industry at present in the South is certainly a bright one. There are progressive apiaries in operation here and there all over the South, and men are devoting their entire time to the industrious bees, and wondering why a greater number of people are not more interested.
I have asked a few of these progressive bee-keepers located in different sections of the South to send me a write-up of bee-keeping, and the prospects of it in their location; and they responded, giving some names of other progressive bee-keepers located in the same section.
I thank them, one and all, for their kindness, and I am sure that their enthusiastic write-ups will be interesting to you.
## 11 Bees in Texas.
NEW BRANNFELS, TEXAS.
The Past, Present, and Future of the Be-Keeping Industry in The Great Lone Star State.
Not only is Texas the greatest honey-producing State of the South, but of the United States; for in its large annual output of honey products it surpasses all other States, producing crops of honey much more regularly than any other in the Union.
bee-keeping of the Past.