. The American bee keeper. Bee culture; Honey. VOL. VI. OCTOBER, 1896. NO. lO. What to do with Weak Colon- ies Late in the Season. BY REV. STEPHEN BOESE. On this question bee keepers have had line upon line and precept upon precept at least for the last quarter of a century, and everybody knows that Septeniber is the roonth in which all colonies should undergo a thorough examination and while the bees are flying the weak colonies should be united, the poorest queens removed and the best queens returned to the united colonies. But if for some reason the apiarist has neglected this duty or has b
. The American bee keeper. Bee culture; Honey. VOL. VI. OCTOBER, 1896. NO. lO. What to do with Weak Colon- ies Late in the Season. BY REV. STEPHEN BOESE. On this question bee keepers have had line upon line and precept upon precept at least for the last quarter of a century, and everybody knows that Septeniber is the roonth in which all colonies should undergo a thorough examination and while the bees are flying the weak colonies should be united, the poorest queens removed and the best queens returned to the united colonies. But if for some reason the apiarist has neglected this duty or has been unable to see to it and the cold October days have made their appearance and he has a lot of weak colonies on hand unfit and un- prepared for the long winter's repose, and the bee keeper sees when taking off the hive cover two-thirds of the space between the frames empty, the question forces itself upon the apiarist, what can be done with them ? To win- ter safely is a matter of importance, and to have the honey consumed and the combs perhaps spoiled and then have the bees die ere spring comes around the bee keeper cannot well af- ford, especially in the present critical times and low prices for honey. Bee keepers cannot afford to run risks but must make every stroke count some- thing. The writer now for over a year hav- ing been in poor health has conse- quently not been able to care for his bees as in former days, so when a year ago October came with its chilling winds and nightly frosts about fifteen colonies proved to be just in the con- dition described above and something had to be done. So the first mild morning, when the temperature was up to 60° or 65°, three or four of the weakest colonies were taken to a spot sheltered from the wind and one hive after another opened, the frames taken out and the bees shaken or swept ofE the combs on to a wide board on the ground on which an empty box was placed, just the same as an empty hive in the swarming season, and all of
Size: 2395px × 1044px
Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectbeeculture, bookyear1
