Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1889-09-13
THE APIARY.
Moving Bees.

Referring to an article on the above
subject by Mr.. Miller, o. O. Poppleton
in q recent number of Gleamings IN Bee
Culture, says: 1t seems to me that he
has overlooked one of the most import
ant factors in the problem of how to
move bees to different location with
the least loss of returning bees. refer
to the fact, that the more thoroughly
bees, while being moved are shaken up,
Gated" as the darkey calls it, the more
inclined they will be to mark their new
location. The more thoroughly they
can be impressed with the knowledge
that something terrible is happening
with their home, the more thoroughly
will they examine the question of new
home when allowed to fly. Bees that
have been carried two miles in buggy
or wagon have of course been jolted
more than if carried only one mile, and
more of them will mark their new loca-
ton. This whole thing can be tested
by removing some colonies during the
honey season half mile or mile from
home, then carrying others several miles
away and returning them to the same
location the first ones were taken to,
without having allowed them to fly;
then observe whether those that have
been jolted the most and furthest will
make their new location the best or not.
All such experiences should be made
during honey flow, as bees are much
more apt to pitch headlong out of their
hives at such time than at other times.
1t am correct in these views, then it
follows that you and friend Miller's de-
duction Chat the fact that bees that
have been moved two miles rarely go
back, shows that bees rarely fly so far
,Lo,, ~ Sc Of f,,11 x,
you seem to think it is. My own obser-
vations have caused me to have quite
decided opinion that bees, especially
Italians, frequently range freely at least
four or five miles away from their home.
There is another practical application
to this idea when making nuclei. In
stead of carefully lifting the combs
with adhering bees into the nucleus
hive, practice shaking the bees off the
combs into the new hive, while placing
the combs in the hive, closing the hive
up quickly before many take wing, and
find that nuclei thus made retain many
more of their bees than if the operation
of shaking bees off the combs were
making many nuclei this season, and
you can easily have him thoroughly test
the value of this method, and report.
Commenting on this, Editor Root
says: Your suggestion is good one,
friend P; and I confess it never oc-
cured to me before, that the further
they are moved the more likely they
would be to take their points before
sallying out. We have already tried
pretty thoroughly this matter of shaking
bees up and pounding on the hive to
make them fill themselves with honey,
and in order to make them hold to their
location after their hive was moved.
But with some colonies, especially full
blooded Italians, it did not seem to
make very much difference. They would
go back to their old home, and cluster
on q bush, even after they had been car
ried back to their hive repeatedly. We
have always taken combs, bees and all, !
quietly from the hive, when we wanted |
to form nuclei. Ii unsealed brood is
carried with them, great part of them
will be pretty sure to stay; in fact, al
most every bee will go home unless I'M
sealed brood, OF, better still, queen, is
carried with them. BY taking the old |
queen from the hive, and leaving her |
couple Of days, most of the bees will
usually stay with her. Friend Doolittlo
described this plan IL little time ago.