QUEEN REARING.
Suppose the queen is laying two thousand eggs a day, and that the full
number of bees is forty thousand, or even more--though the bees are
liable to so many accidents, and as the queen does not always lay to
her full capacity, it is quite probable that this is about an average
number--it will be seen that each day that a colony is without a queen
there is a loss equal to about one-twentieth of the working force of
the colony, and this is a compound loss, as the aggregate loss of
any day is its special loss, augmented by the several losses of the
previous days. Now, as queens are liable to die, to become impotent,
and as the act of increasing colonies demands the absence of queens,
unless the apiarist has extra ones at his command, it is imperative,
would we secure the best results, to ever have at hand extra queens. So
the young apiarist must early learn
HOW TO REAR QUEENS.
As queens may be needed by the last of May, preparations looking
to the early rearing of queens must commence early. When preparing
the colonies for winter the previous autumn, be sure to place some
drone-comb somewhere near the centre of the colony that has given the
best results the previous season. In March, and certainly by the first
of April, see that all colonies have plenty of bee-bread. If necessary,
place unbolted flour, that of rye or oats is best, in shallow troughs
near the hives. It may be well to give the whole apiary the benefit of
such feeding before the flowers yield pollen. Yet, I have found that
here in Central Michigan, bees can usually gather pollen by the first
week of April, which I think is as early as they should be allowed to
fly, and, in fact, as early as they will fly with sufficient regularity
to make it pay to feed the meal. I much question, after some years of
experiment, if it ever pays to give the bees a substitute for pollen.
The colony under consideration, should be given frames containing
bee-bread which was stored the previous year. At the same time, March
or April, commence stimulative feeding. If you have another colony
equally good with the first, also give that the pollen, and commence
giving it honey or syrup, but only worker-comb should be in the
brood-chamber. This will prevent the close in-breeding which would
of necessity occur if both queens and drones were reared in the same
colony; and which, though regarded as deleterious in the breeding of
all animals, should be practiced in case one single queen is of decided
superiority to all others of the apiary.
Very likely in April, drone-eggs will be laid in drone-comb. I have had
drones flying on the first of May. As soon as the drones commence to
hatch out, remove the queen and all eggs and uncapped brood from some
good, strong colony, and replace it with eggs or brood just hatched
from the colony that is being fed, or if two equally good colonies have
been stimulated, from the one in which no drone-comb was placed. The
queen which has been removed may be used in making a new colony, in
manner soon to be described under "dividing or increasing the number
of colonies." This queenless colony will immediately commence forming
queen-cells (Fig. 56). Sometimes these are formed to the number of
fifteen or twenty, and they are started, too, in a full, vigorous
colony, in fact, under the most favorable conditions. Cutting off
edges of the comb, or cutting holes in the same where there are eggs
or larvæ; just hatched, will almost always insure the starting of
queen-cells in such places. It will be noticed, too, that our queens
are started from eggs or from larvæ but just hatched, as we have given
the bees no other, and so are fed the royal pabulum from the first.
Thus, we have met every possible requisite to secure the most superior
queens. By removal of the queen we also secure a large number of cells,
while if we waited for the bees to start the cells preparatory to
natural swarming, in which case we secure the two desirable conditions
named above, we shall probably fail to secure so many cells, and may
have to wait longer than we can afford.
Even the apiarist who keeps black bees and desires no others, or
who has only pure Italians, will still find that it pays to practice
this selection, for, as with the poultry fancier, or the breeder of
our larger domestic animals, so, too, the apiarist is ever observing
some individuals of marked superiority, and he who carefully selects
such queens to breed from, will be the one whose profits will make him
rejoice, and whose apiary will be worthy of all commendation. As will
be patent to all, by the above process we exercise a care in breeding
which is not surpassed by the best breeders of horses and cattle, and
which no wise apiarist will ever neglect.
After we have removed all the queen-cells, in manner soon to be
described, we can again supply eggs, or newly-hatched larvæ--always
from those queens which close observation has shown to be the most
vigorous and prolific in the apiary--and thus keep the same queenless
colony or colonies, engaged in starting queen-cells till we have all we
desire. Yet we must not fail to keep this colony strong by the addition
of capped brood, which we may take from any hive as most convenient.
I have good reason to believe that queen-cells should not be started
after the first of September, as I have observed that late queens are
not only less prolific, but shorter lived. In nature, late queens are
rarely produced, and if it is true that they are inferior, it might
be explained in the fact, that the ovaries remain so long inactive.
As queens that are long unmated are utterly worthless, so, too, mated
queens long inactive are enfeebled.
In a week the cells are capped, and the apiarist is ready to form his
NUCLEI.
A nucleus is simply a miniature colony of bees--a hive and colony on
a small scale, for the purpose of rearing and keeping queens. We want
the queens, but can afford to each nucleus only a few bees. The nucleus
hive, if we use frames not more than one foot square, need be nothing
more than an ordinary hive, with chamber confined by a division-board
to the capacity of three frames. If our frames are large, then it may
be thought best to construct special nucleus hives. These are small
hives, need not be more than six inches each way, that is, in length,
breadth, and thickness, and made to contain from four to six frames
of corresponding size. These frames are filled with comb. I have for
the last two or three years used the first named style of nucleus hive,
and have found it advantageous to have a few long hives made, each to
contain five chambers, while each chamber is entirely separate from
the one next to it, is five inches wide, and is covered by a separate,
close-fitting board, and the whole by a common cover. The entrance for
the two end chambers is at the ends near the same side of the hive.
The middle chamber has its entrance at the middle of the side near
which are the end entrances, while the other two chambers open on
the opposite side, as far apart as is possible. The outside might be
painted different colors to correspond with the divisions, if thought
necessary, especially on the side with two openings. Yet I have never
taken this precaution, nor have I been troubled much by losing queens.
They have almost invariably entered their own apartments when returning
from their wedding tour. These hives I use to keep queens during the
summer. Except the apiarist engages in queen-rearing extensively as
a business, I doubt the propriety of building such special nucleus
hives. The usual hives are good property to have in the apiary, will
soon be needed, and may be economically used for all nuclei. In spring
I make use of my hives which are prepared for prospective summer use,
for my nuclei. Now go to different hives of the apiary, and take out
three frames for each nucleus, at least one of which has brood, and
so on, till there are as many nuclei prepared as you have queen-cells
to dispose of The bees should be left adhering to the frames of comb,
only _we must be certain that the queen is not among them_, as this
would take the queen from where she is most needed, and would lead to
the sure destruction of one queen-cell. To be sure of this, never take
such frames till _you have seen the queen_, that you may be sure she is
left behind. I usually shake off into the nucleus the bees from one or
two more frames, so that, even after the old bees have returned, there
will still be a sufficient number of young bees left in the nucleus to
keep the temperature at a proper height. If any desire the nuclei with
smaller frames, these frames must of course be filled with comb, and
then we can shake bees immediately into the nuclei, as given above,
till they shall have sufficient to preserve a proper temperature. In
this case the queen-cell should be inserted just before the bees are
added; in the other case, either before or after. Such special articles
about the apiary are costly and inconvenient. I believe that I should
use hives even with the largest frames for nuclei. In this case we
should need to give more bees. To insert the queen-cell--for we are
now to give one to each nucleus, so we can never form more nuclei than
we have capped queen-cells--we first cut them out, commencing to cut
on either side the base of the cell, at least one-half inch distant,
_we must not in the least compress the cell_, then cutting up and out
for two inches, then across opposite the cell. This leaves the cell
attached to a wedge-shaped piece of comb (Fig. 56), whose apes is next
the cell.
[Illustration: Fig. 56.]
A similar cut in the middle frame of the nucleus, which in case of the
regular frames is the one containing brood, will furnish an opening
to receive the wedge containing the cell. The comb should also be cut
away beneath (Fig. 56), so that the cell cannot be compressed. After
all the nuclei have received their cells and bees, they have only
to be set in a shady place and watched to see that sufficient bees
remain. Should too many leave, give them more by removing the cover
and shaking a frame loaded with bees over the nucleus; keep the opening
nearly closed, and cover the bees with a quilt. The main caution in
all this _is to be sure not to get any old queen in a nucleus_. In
two or three days the queens will hatch, and in a week longer will
have become fertilized, and that, too, in case of the first queens,
by selected drones, for as yet there are no other in the apiary, and
the apiarist will possess from ten to thirty-five queens, which will
prove his best stock in trade. I cannot over-estimate the advantage of
ever having extra queens. To secure pure mating later, we must cut all
drone-comb from inferior colonies, so that they shall rear no drones.
If drone larvæ are in uncapped cells, they may be killed by sprinkling
the comb with cold water. By giving the jet of water some force they
may be washed out, or we may throw them out with the extractor, then
use the comb for starters in our sections. By keeping empty frames, and
empty cells in the nuclei, the bees may be kept active; yet with so few
bees, one cannot expect very much from the nuclei. After cutting all
the queen-cells from our old hive, we can again insert eggs, as above
suggested, and obtain another lot of cells, or, if we have a sufficient
number, we can leave a single queen-cell, and this colony will soon be
the happy possessor of a queen, and just as flourishing as if the even
tenor of its ways had not been disturbed.
SHALL WE CLIP THE QUEEN'S WING?
In the above operation, as in many other manipulations of the hive,
we shall often gain sight of the queen, and can, if we desire, clip
her wing, if she has met the drone, that in no case she shall lead the
colony away to parts unknown. This does not injure the queen, as some
have claimed. General Adair once stated that such treatment injured the
queen, as it cut off some of the air-tubes, which view was approved by
so excellent a naturalist as Dr. Packard. Yet we are sure that this is
all a mistake. The air-tube and blood-vessel, as we have seen, go to
the wings to carry nourishment to these members. With the wing goes the
necessity of nourishment and the need of the tubes. As well say that
the amputation of the human leg or arm would enfeeble the constitution,
as it would cut off the supply of blood.
Many of our best apiarists have practiced this clipping of the queen's
wings for years. Yet, these queens show no diminution of vigor: we
should suppose they would be even more vigorous, as useless organs
are always nourished at the expense of the organism, and if entirely
useless, are seldom long continued by nature. The ants set us an
example in this matter, as they bite the wings off their queens, after
mating has transpired. They mean that the queen ant shall remain
at home _nolens volens_, and why shall not we require the same of
the queen bee? Were it not for the necessity of swarming in nature,
we should doubtless have been anticipated in this matter by nature
herself. Still, if the queen essays to go with a swarm, and if the
apiarist is not at hand, she will very likely be lost, never regaining
the hive; but in this case the bees will be saved, as _they will_
return without fail. I always mean to be so watchful, keeping my hives
shaded, giving ample room, and dividing or increasing, as to prevent
natural swarming. But in lieu of such caution I see no objection to
clipping the queen's wing, and would advise it.
Some apiarists clip one primary wing the first year, the secondary the
second year, the other primary the third, and if age of the queen
permits, the remaining wing the fourth year. Yet, such data, with other
matters of interest and importance, better be kept on a slate or card,
and firmly attached to the hive, or else kept in a record, opposite the
number of the hive. The time required to find the queen is sufficient
argument against the "queen-wing record.". It is not an argument
against the once clipping of the queen's wings, for, in the nucleus
hives, queens are readily found, and even in full colonies this is not
very difficult, especially if we heed the dictates of interest and keep
Italians. It will be best, even though we have to look up black queens,
in full colonies. The loss of one good colony, or the vexatious trouble
of separating two or three swarms which had clustered together, would
soon vanquish this argument of time.
To clip the queen's wing, take hold of her wings with the left thumb
and index finger--never grasp her body, _especially her abdomen_, as
this will be very apt to injure her--raise her off the comb, then
turn from the bees, place her gently on a board or any convenient
object--even the knee will do--she will thus stand on her feet, and
not trouble by constantly passing her legs up by her wings, where they,
too, would be in danger of being cut off. Now, take a small pair of
scissors, and with the right hand open them, carefully pass one blade
under one of the front wings, shut the blades, and all is over. Some
apiarists complain that queens thus handled often receive a foreign
scent, and are destroyed by the bees. I have clipped hundreds, and
never lost one. I believe that the above method will not be open to
this objection. Should the experience of any one prove to the contrary,
the drawing on of a kid glove, or even the fingers of one, might remove
the difficulty.
FERTILE WORKERS.
We have already referred to (pp. 77 and 90) and described fertile
workers. As these can only produce unimpregnated eggs, they are, of
course, valueless, and unless superseded by a queen, will soon cause
the destruction of the colony. As their presence often prevents the
acceptance of cells or a queen, by the common workers, they are a
serious pest.
The absence of worker brood, and the abundant and careless deposition
of eggs--some cells being skipped, while others have received several
eggs--are pretty sure indications of their presence.
To rid a colony of these, unite it with some colony with a good queen,
after which the colony may be divided if very strong. Simply exchanging
places of a colony with a fertile worker, and a good strong colony,
will often cause the destruction of the wrong-doer. In this case,
brood should be given to the colony which had the fertile worker,
that they may rear a queen; or better, a queen-cell or queen should
be given them. Caging a queen in a hive, with a fertile worker, for
thirty-six hours, will often cause the bees to accept her. Shaking the
bees off the frames two rods from the hive, will often rid them of the
counterfeit queen, after which they will receive a queen-cell or a
queen.