§ IV. DRIVING.
Driving is an operation by which bees are induced to vacate an, old settled hive and to enter an empty one. Many apiarians prefer this mode of effecting an exchange of hives to the plan of fumigating the bees. The greatest success attending such a transfer will be in the case of hives well filled with combs that are worked nearly to the floor-board; and it may be remarked that bees are generally so far provident that they leave an open space in which to pass underneath their combs over all the floor of the hive. When the old hive is inverted the bees crawl up the combs, and thus more easily pass up into the new hive, which the operator places over the old one with the intent that they should enter it.
The best time for performing this operation is about the middle of the day, and when the weather is warm: It is essential that the operator be protected with a bee dress and gloves, as before described; and previous to commencing his task he must provide all necessary implements. These are—a couple of hives, both of which should correspond in shape and size with the hive from which the bees are to be driven; a cloth to tie round at the juncture when the new hive is placed on the old one; some string to keep the cloth in its place; an empty pail to receive the top of the old hive, if one of the old conical shape, but if the stock of bees is in a square box-hive with a flat top, a firm stool will be the best; and a tube fumigator with some fungus, which will complete the material of war. The bucket or stool must be placed securely on the ground, about a yard from the place where the full hive stands; then a few puffs of smoke, blown in amongst the bees, will cause them to retreat up amongst the combs. The bee-master must now turn the hive[25] upside down very gently, letting it rest in the pail or on the stool; he then quickly places the empty hive over the full one, and ties the cloth round it, to prevent any escape of the bees. If the cloth be damped it will cling the closer to the hives. The third hive, which should resemble the old one even in colour, is intended to be placed on the stand formerly occupied by the stock, so as to retain the few returning bees which had been absent in the fields. Care must be taken that all crevices through which it is possible for the bees to escape from the united hives should be effectually closed. When the two are fairly united, the operator will proceed by rapping the full hive gently with the hands or a couple of sticks, more particularly on that side where the combs are the most thickly placed—that is, if the hive be not equally filled on all sides. A stock is in the best condition for driving twenty-one days, or thereabouts, after a first swarm has issued; the brood will then have hatched out, the bees will quit more readily, and there will be no loss of larvæ in the cells.
[25] Care should be exercised in turning the hive over to keep the combs vertical by turning it in the direction in which they hang, and not crossways, or they are likely to break from their foundations.
It generally happens that in ten or fifteen minutes the bees regularly commence the ascent; their exodus will be known by the distinct rushing sound which is always noticed when a colony of bees is on the move. The first thing bees do when disturbed is to fill their honey-bags, as they invariably do at swarming time; consequently, after the first rush into the new hive is over, as in the case of a swarm, the "flitting" bees are not much disposed to take wing. When the noise made by the ascending bees has been heard, and has in a great degree subsided, the cloth may be removed, and the old hive, now deserted, may be taken indoors; and if a few bees yet remain they may be brushed off with a feather. An experienced apiarian, on first hearing the rushing noise before mentioned, will not hesitate to tilt the top hive over a little on one side, so that he may watch the bees during the ascent; the queen maybe seen passing up, and if the operator desires to take her away he can secure her by gently taking her between thumb and finger. Those who have become experienced in this operation find that it can safely be performed with the hives fixed open from the first. This is called "open driving," and can be effected with increased facility by sticking two skewers through the ruin of the lower hive in such manner that they shall act as props to keep the upper in a fixed position. Mr. Hunter has, however, devised an improvement upon this, consisting in a wire hinge to connect the two hives, and wire rods to prop them open. The operator thus has both his hands at liberty for other parts of the work.
If the taking of the honey be, the object of the bee-master, then "driving" is manifestly a better plan than resorting to the fumes of sulphur for the purpose; for the bees from whom the store is taken can be joined to stocks that are weak in numbers, with considerable advantage to the future prosperity of the apiary (see next section).
§ V. UNITING COLONIES.
A weak colony may frequently with advantage be added to another, or three may be made into two. And not only may this be done with new swarms, but in autumn, when there is no brood in the combs, it may be carried out also with stocks, the combs that are extracted being taken care of for use when required. After working hours is the best time for this operation. It is not, however, altogether a simple one, as strange bees will not intermix unless measures are taken to overcome their natural hostility to each other. Whatever be the number of hives in an apiary, the bees of each know the smell of their own companions. A single bee that enters the wrong hive will be stung to death, unless possessed of a good booty wherewith to disarm animosity. Similarly on the admixture of entire colonies, if one has some distinct ground of advantage over the other, there must be a method hit upon to deprive it of this or else to purchase its goodwill, for otherwise there will ensue a ferocious and disastrous slaughter. If both are alike frightened all will go well, and the same if both are upon the wing in search of a home; but quite otherwise if one is self-possessed and active in its own abode, while the others are frightened strangers and gorged, and it may be still further demoralised by having lived under an unfertile queen, or with none at all. But if both are cowed alike by a good drumming on the hives, they may be sprinkled so as to possess the same scent, and then taken to a third position and shaken out on to a sheet together, when they will enter the offered hive in harmony. If each colony has a queen, one of them may be searched for and removed.
A slight variation upon this method consists in driving the bees of the one hive (see last section) straightway into the other, having first terrified the bees of the latter by drumming until by their changed note they may be concluded to be thoroughly subdued, and as a consequence gorged with honey; then, before their equanimity is recovered, the others must be joined to them. A third plan is the one usually practised with the Stewarton hive ([page 151]), and which can be imitated with other hives, by means of ekes or nadirs; this is usually carried out in the evening, when the quietude appears efficacious in settling all differences without the necessity of any other precautions. A fourth is as follows: At dusk, dislodge the bees on to a cloth, sprinkle them with sweet syrup scented with essence of peppermint (as a means of bribing their new hosts to receive them), and place the hive to which it is intended to join them over the mass; they will gradually ascend into the hive placed for them, and early next morning the hive, with its slender stock thus augmented, may be removed to its stand. Should the operator not have been successful in gaining possession of the queen, he may leave it to the bees themselves to decide which queen they will have.
Many persons feel more secure from stinging if they first stupefy the bees by fumigation. These should proceed as follows: Having used the fumigator upon the bees in one hive, as described under that article ([page 207]), place a sheet on the ground and spread the bees on it; then, with a feather, sort them over, in order to pick out the queen. As soon as she is found, pour the rest of the lethargic swarm from off the sheet back into the inverted hive again. The stupefied bees must now be sprinkled freely with a syrup made of honey and water, or sugar and ale boiled together. Some apiarians recommend a few drops of peppermint to be mixed with the syrup, in order to drown the peculiar odour which is special to each hive of bees; this is more necessary when both hives are fumigated, and whilst under the influence of smoke are well mixed together upon the sheet or board. Such course can be adopted if preferred, and no further instructions will be needed than what are here given; but we will suppose as before that only one is thus operated upon. The hive containing the non-stupefied bees must now be placed on the top of the inverted one, just as the hive was from which the bees in the latter have come. A wet cloth must be fastened round the two hives, so as to prevent any of the bees from escaping. The hives in this position must be placed where they are not likely to be knocked down or meddled with. The fresh bees in the upper hive, attracted by the scent of the bees besmeared with honey, go down and commence licking off the sweets from the sleepy ones. The latter gradually revive, when all get mingled together and ascend in company to the upper hive, where they live as if they had not been separate families. The two hives should be left undisturbed for twenty-four hours, when the upper hive may be removed and placed immediately on the spot from whence it was brought.