The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1898-06-22
The Bee Keeper.

AhkANGEMENTS FOR SURPLUS HONEY.
Bees will store surplus honey in al
most any receptacle, il the honey is
very plentiful and the colony stong,
from an inverted earthern crock to
fancy star-shaped section. But the
standard section 44x44 inches, seven to
the foot, is used more than anything
else, and no doubt gives about the best
satisfaction. To have honey in fine
shape for shipping we must use separ-
ators between the sections to secure
straight combs and avoid bulges; but
for home use, or home market, use no
separators, as l can secure more honey
without them than with them. The
bees will enter the sections more read
lily where there are no separators, no
doubt because the cluster is not divid-
ed into such small groups and they can
keep up the temperature more easily.
A new fad has struck us this season
in the shape of "plain" sections and
"fences." but they have absolutely no
advantage over the regular old sty le-
except for the pocketbook of the man
ufacturers-but they have some disad-
vantages that the old ones don't have.
So 1 can see no earthly reason why
any one should want TO change, except
for the purpose of being ''in style"
In very few years the "plain" Sec
ton and "fence" will be "thrown to
the dogs" or at least on the rubbish
pile, to feed the future bonfire of cast
off "great inventions"
swARMINa MANAGED.
Swarming is the natural method of
increase with bees. In the spring,
when the food supply is abundant, and
the hive becomes crowded with young
bees, and the queen is we'll fed so that
she can lay many thousand eggs per
day, the combs soon become clogged
with brood and honey, and the space
between the combs with bees. This
condition brings about the "swarming
impulse" The old queen with the
majority of bees will leave the hive
with rush, and if allowed to proceed
in natures own way they will find for
themselves a new home in hollow
tree or other cavity. But we don't
propose to allow nature to crop out too
much in our domestic plants, animals
etc., and for obvious reasons we desire
to manage and control swarming.
First, all the queens should have one
wing clipped 30 they cannot fly with
the swarm, and cluster on the highest
tree in the vicinity, and for other rea-
sons.
When a swarm issues, pick up the
queen and cage her, and as soon as the
swarm is out in the air remove the old
hive TO some other location, and put in
its stead an empty hive ready for the
SWAIN. In short time the bees will
discover that their queen is missing,
and will come back to hunt her up.
They will enter the new hive; you al
low the queen to run in with them,
and to their surprise they will discover
that they are in the new home they 80
much desired when they left the old
one! At once they will begin to work
building comb for the queen to lay eggs
and bees to store honey. This is posi-
lively the simplest, easiest, and best
way to manage swarms probably.
To prevent second swarm from is
suing from the old hive, it is we'll to
shake some of the remaining bees to
the new swarm. Of course all the field
workers will enter the new hive, and
it will be rousing colony from the
start, and if sufficient room is given
them, and there is honey in the field,
you can be sure of lot of surplus from
such swarm.
never discourage swarming, that is,
l like to see each colony swarm once,
as it infuses energy into the new
swarm, and can secure more honey
by this method. But excessive swarm
ing is to be deplored, for the reason
that the swarms are small and cannot
store surplus, and often disaster over
takes them the following winter.
Again l will repeat a good rousing
strong swarm is worth more than a
dozen weaklings.-L. W. Lightly.