By the aid of my hives, this process may be most expeditiously
performed. An empty hive, with its frames furnished with guide combs,
must be in readiness. The cover of the full hive should be removed, and
the bees gently sprinkled with sugar-water from a watering pot that
discharges a fine stream. In about two minutes, the frames may be taken
out, and the bees, by a quick motion, shaken on a sheet directly in
front of their hive. As fast as a comb is deprived of its bees, it
should be set in a proper position in the new hive, and an empty frame
put in its place. Two or three of the combs containing brood, eggs, &c.,
should be left in the old hive, as well to give them greater
encouragement, as to prevent them from being dissatisfied if their queen
should, by any possibility, be taken from them. In removing the frames
with the bees, I always look for the queen, and if I see her, as I
generally do, I return to the hive the frame which contains her, without
shaking off the bees. In that case, I put several of the necessary combs
into the new hive, with all the bees upon them.
In dislodging the bees upon the sheet, I do not shake them all off from
the frames; but leave about one quarter of them on, and put them with
the combs into the new hive. I never knew the queen to be left on a
frame after it was shaken so that the larger portion of the bees would
fall off. As soon as the operation is completed, and the necessary
number of bees have been transferred with their comb to the new hive, it
should be managed according to the directions previously given, in the
case of the old hive from which a swarm was drummed out.
If in the operation the Apiarian does not see the queen, he must, in the
course of the third day, examine the hive having the larger portion of
bees, and if they have commenced building royal cells among the combs
given to them, he may be certain that she is in the other hive. The comb
containing the royal cells may then be transferred to that hive, and the
queen searched for, and returned with the combs on which she is found,
to her proper place. A little experience, however, will enable the
operator to be sure from the first, that the queen is with the right
division.
To most persons, it would seem to be of little consequence, in which
hive the queen is placed: but if the bees which have only a few frames
of comb, are compelled to rear another, they will be sure to fill their
hive with comb unfit for breeding purposes, and will also be so long
before they can have additions to their number, as to be of but little
value.
If many swarms are to be created in this manner, and the operation is
delayed until near swarming time, in some of them, numerous royal cells
will be found, so that each stock which has no queen, may have one
nearly mature, given to it, and thus much valuable time may be saved.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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