Comb Honey

by Geo. S. Demuth

(2) Use two hive bodies as a brood chamber before the honey flow, uniting if necessary to secure strong colonies. At the beginning of the honey flow divide each colony, leaving the field bees and most of the brood on the old stand in one hive body, placing the queen, remaining brood, and enough bees to care for it in the other hive body which is set beside the first. The supers are of course given to the queenless colony on the old stand, which after the proper interval of queenlessness is allowed to requeen itself or is requeened by the beekeeper as in (1) above. The colony containing the old queen may be used to strengthen the storing colony by shifting its position from one side of it to the other ([p. 31]), or used for increase.

(3) Ten days before the honey flow is expected to begin, put most of the brood into a single hive body, on this a queen excluder, and over this a second hive body with a frame of brood and the queen, the other combs of this set being empty except perhaps a little brood and honey. Nine or ten days later remove the upper story, supply it with a bottom board, and place it close beside the original hive. Destroy queen cells if any are present in the queenless portion which remains on the old stand, give a ripe queen cell, virgin queen, or a young laying queen, and put on the supers. The brood chamber containing the old queen may be used to make increase or its flying bees may be united with the storing colony ([p. 31]).

By any of these methods there is a break of 10 to 15 days in the continuity of brood emergence in the brood chamber left on the old stand and the colonies are requeened with young queens—each a strong factor in swarm control and when combined should with rare exceptions result in no swarming.

REMOVING THE BROOD FROM THE HIVE.

Since removing the brood brings about conditions quite similar to that of natural swarming ([p. 28]), such a management of the colonies is practically identical with that of natural swarming. The use of the brood that is removed ([p. 29]), the question of what should be used in the brood chamber instead of the removed brood ([p. 32]), the contraction of the brood chamber ([p. 33]), etc., have been discussed under natural swarming and need not be repeated here. While some of the plans using this principle may be applied to all the colonies in the apiary before swarming actually begins, the usual practice is to apply them only to such colonies as are making preparations to swarm. It should not be used on weak colonies, on colonies having a small percentage of sealed and emerging brood and few young bees, on colonies in which the queen is failing, or on any colonies during a very poor season. Under any of these conditions it is usually better to discourage swarming by destroying queen cells ([p. 27]), by removing one or two frames of brood, or, if some control measure is finally necessary, by requeening such colonies after an interval of queenlessness. On the other hand, for strong colonies having a high percentage of sealed and emerging brood and a good queen the method usually gives excellent results, since by its use the workers, queen, and supers are kept together during the flow. The following are some of the various plans employing this principle of swarm control:

(1) Find the queen and put the comb on which she is found to one side, then shake the bees from most of the other combs into or in front of their hive. As the combs of brood are removed put frames containing either narrow strips or full sheets of foundation or combs into the hive and replace the supers. When most of the shaken bees are in the hive, place the queen among them. Put all the brood and the few bees remaining thereon into another hive close beside the shaken colony ([fig. 17]). Enough bees should be left on the combs of brood to care for it; usually two combs are not shaken at all, but placed in the other hive with all the adhering bees. For further disposition of the brood see [page 29].

(2) In order to avoid the trouble of finding the queen, the above plan may be varied by shaking and brushing all the bees from the combs so as to be sure that the queen is among them. In this case the brood may be utilized by one of the following plans: (a) Use it to build up weaker colonies ([p. 31]) or (b) place it in a hive body over a queen excluder on top of the forced swarm or some colony not being used for comb-honey production that can spare enough bees to care for it. In a short time bees will pass through the excluder and cover the brood, after which the hive body containing it is removed, supplied with a cover and bottom board, and placed at one side of the forced swarm so that the emerging bees may later be added to the swarm. Or (c) after the shaking is complete, remove the forced swarm and put the hive body containing the brood temporarily back on the original stand to induce field bees to enter it. Then in the evening set it aside and restore the swarm to its position on the old stand. These field bees will be able to prevent the brood being chilled during the night but in returning from the fields the next day will enter the hive on the old stand. In the meantime enough young bees will have emerged to care for the brood.

(3) Removing all the brood and substituting frames containing narrow strips or full sheets of foundation sometimes results in the colony swarming out the next day. This may be avoided by removing the brood in two installments with an interval of a few days between the two operations. When the brood is not all removed, full sheets of foundation or empty combs should be used or an excessive amount of drone comb will be built.

With sectional hives, stand the brood chamber on end, smoke the bees out of the lower section, and remove it. Destroy queen cells in the upper hive section. These will almost universally be found projecting into the space between the two sections of the brood chamber. Substitute a new hive section containing empty combs or foundation for the removed section. After, a few days remove the supers, smoke the bees out of the upper section, remove it, and add it to the section that was removed before, which at the time of its removal was given the usual position beside the colony ([fig. 17]).

(4) Use two hive bodies as a brood chamber throughout the year except during the honey flow. Have both as well filled with brood as possible previous to the flow. About 10 days before the honey flow is expected to begin, insert a queen-excluding honey board ([fig. 2]) between the two hive bodies. The queen is now confined to a single one of the hive bodies. After 10 days transfer the queen[7] to the other hive body placed on the old stand and put on the supers. Remove the hive body in which the queen has been confined to one side of the colony on the old stand and supply it with a ripe queen cell (in a protector) or a virgin queen. When the young queen begins to lay, exchange places with the two hive bodies so that the one containing the young queen now becomes the storing colony, giving it the supers and field bees. Shift the hive containing the old queen from one side to the other of the colony on the old stand about once a week, so that the entire flying force of both are at work in the hive with the supers ([p. 31]). At the close of the honey flow the old queen may be killed unless she is especially valuable and the two divisions may be reunited. The period of 10 days during which no eggs are laid in the hive body used by the storing colony at the beginning of the honey flow should delay swarming at least until the young queen begins to lay. When the other hive body with the young queen is substituted, it has had a similar period of no egg laying in addition to having a young laying queen, making a desirable combination.