Changing Stand Attended With Loss
Categories: THE APIARY.Bee Keeping: Mysteries Of Bee-keeping Explained
After a few excursions, when surrounding objects have become familiar,
this precaution is not taken, and they leave in a direct line for their
destination, and return by their way-marks without difficulty. Man with
his reason is guided on the same principles. There are a great many
people who suppose the bee knows its hive by a kind of instinct, or is
attracted towards it, like the steel to the magnet. At least, they act
after the location is thus marked, and what is the consequence? The
stocks are materially injured by loss of bees, and sometimes entirely
ruined. Let us trace the cause. As I remarked, the bees have marked the
location. They leave the hive without any precaution, as surrounding
objects are familiar. They return to their old stand and find no home.
If there is more than one stock, and the removal has been from four to
twenty feet, some of the bees may find a hive, but just as liable to
enter the wrong one as the right. Probably they would not go over
twenty feet, and very likely not that, unless the new situation was
very conspicuous. If a person had but one stock, very likely the loss
would be less, as every bee finding a hive, would be sure to be home,
and none killed, as is generally the case when a few enter a strange
hive.
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Best To Use Old Combs As Long As They Will Answer
I am satisfied of this much, from actual experience, that every time the bees have to renew their brood-combs in a hive, they would make from ten to twenty-five lbs. in boxes, hence I infer that their time can be more profitably employed than in con... Both Old And Young Leave With Swarms
It is probable that no rule governs the issue of workers. Old and young come out promiscuously. That old bees come out may be known sometimes, by so many leaving, that not a quarter as many will be left, as commenced work in the spring. That young b... Bottom-boards For Hiving
You will want also a number of bottom-boards, expressly for hiving; get a board a little larger than the bottom of the hive, nail strips across the ends on the under side to prevent warping; in the middle cut out a space five or six inches square, a... Box For Wren
If you would take the trouble to put up a cage or two for the wren to nest in, he would be a valuable assistant in this department of your labor. He would be on the lookout when you were away, and many worms, while looking up a hiding-place in some ... Boxes For Double Swarms Immediately
It should then be taken out, and boxes immediately put on, which should be changed for empty ones, as fast as they are filled. Yet, this extra honey is not quite as much advantage as increase of stocks; when that is an object, I will recommend anoth... Burying Bees
Burying bees in the earth below the frost, has been recommended as a superior method of wintering, for small families. I have known it confidently asserted, that they would lose nothing in weight, and no bees would die. I found, in testing it, that ... But Little Risk With Good Stocks
All _good stocks_ may be wintered in this way, with but little risk in most situations. Whether in the bleak north-wind, buried in a snow-bank, or situated warm and pleasant, it will make no great difference. The mice cannot enter; the holes give th... By Gaining One Point Produce Another Evil
I think it will be an easy matter to show that every departure from simplicity to gain _one_ point, is attended in another by a correspondent evil, that often exceeds the advantage gained. That we have made vast improvements in art and science, and ... Can Be Taken Some Distance
When bees are taken beyond their knowledge of country, some two miles or more, the case seems to be somewhat different, but not always without loss, especially if many hives are set too close. They leave the hive of course without knowing that the s... Can Often Be Prevented
"Prevention is better than cure." We can, if we keep a good lookout, often prevent more than one issuing at a time. This depends on our knowledge of indications, in a great measure. I have said that before starting to fly off, they were about the en... Canal Bottom-board Discarded
I used what is termed a canal bottom-board, until I found out it did not pay expense, and have now discarded it, and succeed just as well. It is generally recommended as a preventive of robberies, and keeping out the moth. It may prevent one hive in... Care In Selecting Stock Hives For Winter
Again, after the breeding season is over, in the fall, _every stock should be thoroughly inspected, and all diseased ones condemned for stock hives_. It is better to do it, even if it should take the last one. It would pay much better to procure oth... Care In Turning Over Hives
When a hive is full of combs, the edges are usually attached sufficient to steady them, and it is of less consequence which way it is turned, yet in very warm weather the honey will run out of drone cells if perpendicular. In _very_ small swarms,... Care Needed
Considerable care is requisite, and but few know how to manage it properly. Honey fed to bees, is almost certain to get up quarrels among them. Sometimes strong stocks scent the honey given to weak ones, and carry it off as fast as supplied. ... Cat-bird Acquitted
The cat-bird also comes in for a share of censure. It is said "they will get right down by the hive, and pick up bees by the hundred." Yet, right in the face of this charge, I am disposed to acquit him. With the closest observation, I find him about... Catnip Mother-wort And Hoarhound Are Sought After
Catnip, (_Nepeta Cataria_,) Mother-wort, (_Leonurus Cardiaca_,) and Hoarhound, (_Marrubium Vulgare_,) about the middle of June, put forth their flowers, rich in sweetness, and like the Raspberry, the bees visit them at all hours and in nearly all ki... Cause Of Its Spreading
Suppose one stock has caught the infection, but a small portion of the brood is dead. In the heat of the hive, it soon becomes putrid; other cells adjoining with larvae of the right age are soon in the same condition. All the breeding combs in the h... Cause Of Starving In Such Hives
I said one apartment would be filled with brood-combs; this will be occupied, at least partially, with brood as long as the yield of honey lasts; consequently, there will be but little room for storing here, but the other side may be full throughout... Cause Of The Queen's Inability To Fly Suggested
The old queen often gets down in the same way; but I would assign another cause for her inability to fly; that is, I would suggest it to be her burden of eggs. ... Cause Of Their Superior Thrift
One cause of superior thrift may be found in the circumstance, that all moth eggs and worms are frozen to death, and the bees are not troubled with a single worm before June. No young bees have to be removed to work them out. Nearly every young bee ... Caution
Whenever we make additions in this manner, it would be well first to ascertain what was the cause of a scarcity of bees; if it was over-swarming or loss of queen, it is well enough--but if from disease, reject them, unless the bees are to be transfe... Caution Respecting Diseased Brood
When no apiary from which to purchase can be found, but where the disease _has made_ its appearance, and you are necessitated to purchase from such, or not at all, you cannot be too cautious about it. It would be safest in this case to take none but... Cells Larger Than Necessary At First
The bees seem to make a provision for this emergency, the sheets of comb are farther apart than actually necessary at first, the diameter of the cell is also a little larger than the size of the young bee requires. _Of this we are certain_--great ma... Chamber Hive
The chamber hive is made with two apartments; the lower and largest is for the permanent residence of the bees, the upper or chamber for the boxes. Its merits are these: the chamber affords all the protection necessary for glass boxes; considered as... Changing Stand Attended With Loss
After a few excursions, when surrounding objects have become familiar, this precaution is not taken, and they leave in a direct line for their destination, and return by their way-marks without difficulty. Man with his reason is guided on the same p... Clustering Bushes
If there are no large trees in the vicinity of your apiary, all the better, as there will then be no danger of your swarms lighting on them; but all bee-keepers are not so fortunate, myself being one of the number. In such a place it is necessary to... Clustering Outside Not Always To Be Depended Upon
The clustering out of the bees I find but a poor criterion to judge from, further than full hives do swarm--many such do not. EXAMINATIONS--THE RESULT. I will detail a few circumstances, that have led to these conclusions. Some years ago the ... Common Cause Of Commencing
After all, bees being robbed is like being destroyed by worms; a kind of secondary matter; that is, not one strong stock in a hundred will ever be attacked and plundered on the first onset. Bees must be first tempted, and rendered furious by a weak ... Common Hive Recommended
I would not exchange the hive I have used for the last ten years for any patent I ever saw, if furnished gratis. I will guarantee that it affords means to obtain surplus honey, as much in quantity and in any way which fancy may dictate, whether in w... Common Opinion
There is an opinion prevalent that robbers often go to a neighboring stock, kill off the bees first, and then take possession of the treasures. To corroborate this matter, I have never yet discovered one fact, although I have watched very closely. W... Condition Of Stocks In 1851
The latter part of the summer of 1851 was very dry and cold; the yield of buckwheat honey was not a tenth of the usual quantity; the consequence was, that none but early swarms had sufficient honey for winter; twenty-five pounds is required to make ... Conflicting Theories
I find many theories conflicting with these views, which appear to call for some remarks. It is generally supposed that a young queen must be matured to issue with the swarms, and the old one with the old bees are permanent residents of the old hive... Contrast Of Profit
The swarming hive, we suppose, will throw off one swarm annually, and make us one dollar's worth of surplus honey, (we will not reckon that yielded by the first swarm, which is often more than that from the old stocks,) about one third of the averag... Correct Size Between Two Extremes
Between the two extremes, like most other cases, is found the correct place. A hive twelve inches square, each way, inside, has been recommended as the correct size. Here are 1,728 cubic inches. This, I think, is sufficient for many places, as the q... Cover For Hives
I have termed the cap or box a cover; but this should also be covered with a board laid on, if nothing else. A good roof for each hive can be made by fastening two boards together like the roof of a building; let it be about 18 by 24 inches; it bein... Crooked Combs A Disadvantage
These few irregular cells have been considered a great disadvantage. It is thought, or pretended, that there is a vast difference between the prosperity of a stock with straight combs and one with crooked ones. To avoid them, or cause the bees to ma... Danger Of Setting Stocks Too Close
A case in point occurred in the spring of '49. I sold over twenty stocks to one person. He had constructed a bee-house, and his arrangement brought the hives within four inches of each other. The result was, he entirely lost several stocks; some of ... Decide Early
Whatever location is chosen, it should be decided upon as early in the spring as possible; because, when the chilling winds of winter have ceased for a day, and the sun, unobstructed, is sending his first warm rays to a frozen earth, the bees that h... Description And Duty Of Workers
As all labor devolves on the workers, they are provided with a sack, or bag, for honey. Basket-like cavities are on their legs, where they pack the pollen of flowers into little pellets, convenient to bring home. They are also provided with a sting,... Description Of Cutting's Changeable Hive
"The size of the changeable hive most used in this section, has an outside shell, made of inch boards, about two feet high and sixteen and a half inches square, with a door hung in the rear. On the inside are three boxes or drawers, which will hold ... Description Of Disease
A "_post mortem_" examination revealed the following circumstances: Nine-tenths of the breeding-cells were found to contain young bees in the larva state, stretched out at full length, sealed over, dead, black, putrid, and emitting a disagreeable st... Description Of Drones
When the family is large and honey abundant, a brood of drones is reared; the number, probably, depends on the yield of honey, and size of the swarm, more than anything else. As honey becomes scarce, they are destroyed. Their bodies are large and ra... Description Of Swarm Issuing
When the day is fair and not too much wind, first swarms generally issue from ten o'clock till three; if you are on the lookout, the first outside indication of a swarm, will be an unusual number of bees around the entrance, from one to sixty minute... Destruction Of Worms
I shall not give a full history of the moth in this chapter, as spring is not the time they are most destructive. It will be further noticed under the head of Enemies of Bees. But as this is a duty belonging to spring, a partial history seems necess... Different Methods Have Been Adopted
One will tell you to keep them warm, another to keep them cold; to keep them in the sun, out of the sun, bury them in the ground, put them in the cellar, the chamber, wood-house, and other places, and no places at all; that is, to let them remain as... Different Methods Of Straining Honey
Such combs as are taken from the middle or vicinity of brood-cells, are generally unfit for the table; such should be strained. There are several methods of doing it. One is, to mash the comb and put it in a bag, and hang it over some vessel to catc... Different Opinions About Them
One is in favor of the old box, and the cruel practice of killing the bees to obtain the honey, as the only means to obtain "luck;" "they are sure to run out if they meddle with them." Another will rush to the opposite extreme, and advocate all the ... Different Opinions As To Time
The month of March has been recommended by several; others prefer April, August, or September. Here, as usual, I shall have to differ from them all, preferring still another period, for which I offer my reasons, supposing, of course, that the reader...