Transcriber Note
Text emphasis denoted as _Italics_.
THE
BEE PRESERVER.
THE
BEE PRESERVER;
OR
PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT
AND PRESERVATION OF HIVES.
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH OF
JONAS DE GELIEU,
LATE MINISTER OF LIGNIERES, AT PRESENT MINISTER OF THE CHURCHES OF
COLOMBIER AND AUVERNIER, IN THE PRINCIPALITY OF NEUCHATEL; MEMBER OF
THE SOCIETÉ ECONOMIQUE DE BERNE, &c., &c., &c.
PUBLISHED AT MULHAUSEN.
JOHN ANDERSON JUN. EDINBURGH,
55, NORTH BRIDGE STREET;
AND SIMPKIN AND MARSHALL, LONDON.
MDCCCXXIX.
P. NEILL, PRINTER.
TO
THE HIGHLAND SOCIETY OF SCOTLAND.
In respectfully dedicating this little Work to the Highland Society
of Scotland, the Translator hopes, that, under their efficient and
enlightened patronage, it may be made generally known in Scotland,
where the system which it explains is calculated to be as extensively
applicable, and as highly profitable, as it has proved in the native
mountains of its amiable and venerable Author. It seems, indeed, both
from the plain practical directions which it contains, and the valuable
discoveries which it communicates relative to the history and economy
of bees, to be singularly adapted to forward the views of the Society,
who have this year turned their attention to the encouragement of
Apiaries among the peasantry of our own country; and it is no small
advantage, that the rules laid down are applicable to hives of every
form.
The Translator has no fear of its being objected, that plans which
are very suitable in Switzerland, may be less successful as applied
to Scotland. Switzerland and Scotland present so many points of
resemblance--in their mountains--in their valleys--and in their
climate--that which is beneficial in the one, can scarcely fail to be
so in the other. And as the Swiss honey is known to be not only very
abundant, but of a very superior flavour, especially in those districts
where De Gelieu's or some similar plan is adopted, the Translator is
desirous to see the simple and successful methods of that country
transferred to our own, that the Scottish peasantry may derive from
their practice the same advantages. To the Swiss peasantry, bees are
a great source of wealth; a stranger is attracted by the appearance
of substantial comfort, conveyed by well appointed apiaries, where
the hives are ranged in double and triple rows along the sunny side,
and under the shelter of the projecting roofs of the cottages; and in
Scotland there is little doubt that, if similar care were bestowed on
the cultivation of bees, they would be equally profitable.
Edinburgh, }
_19th April, 1829_. }
CONTENTS.
Page
CHAPTER I.--Situation of an apiary, 11
II.--Proper time to transport a swarm to the
situation designed for it, 16
III.--Situation of the hives ought never to
be changed, 18
IV.--Most convenient shape of hives, 21
V.--Hives of straw and wood, 23
VI.--Thickness or solidity of hives, 24
VII.--Size of the aperture or entrance of hives, 25
VIII.--To ascertain the weight of hives, 27
IX.--Quantity of honey necessary to maintain a hive, 20
X.--The use of capes or hoods, 34
XI.--How to expel the bees from the capes, 41
XII.--Size of hives, 42
XIII.--Manner of uniting new swarms, 44
XIV.--Methods of uniting two or three swarms in autumn, 48
XV.--Manner of uniting old hives in autumn, 53
XVI.--Neighbouring hives should be united, 55
XVII.--How to feed united swarms, 59
XVIII.--Quantity of food requisite for united hives, 62
XIX.--Benefits resulting from the union of weak hives, 67
XX.--Time and manner of renewing old hives, 71
XXI.--The signs by which to ascertain whether a hive
requires to be renewed, 76
XXII.--Artificial swarms, and different methods of forming
them, 84
XXIII.--Advantages of isolated hives, 94
XXIV.--Enemies of bees, and means of overcoming them, 96
XXV.--Diseases of the bees, 106
XXVI.--Of the different varieties of bees, and their
language, 107
XXVII.--Signs of recognition among the bees, 110
XXVIII.--Preservation of hives in winter, and means of
protecting them from the cold, 112
XXIX.--Manner of preserving hives, by taking them into the
house in winter, 117
Conclusion, 121
THE
BEE PRESERVER
AUTHORS PREFACE.
Having attained old age, I think it a duty, before quitting the world,
to communicate to the public the observations I have made during
sixty-four years that I have been occupied with bees. From my earliest
years I have been very fond of these admirable insects. I began to
observe them under the direction of my father, Jacques de Gelieu,
pastor of the church of Bayards, and afterwards of that of Verrieres,
in the principality of Neuchatel. He instructed me in the principles
of this interesting study, and taught me to like and to admire it, by
making me read the memoirs of the immortal Reaumur, with whom he had
the honour to correspond. Being a nice observer, he had prepared, so
early as 1746, a work in two volumes, entitled "A New and Economical
Method for the Preservation and Increase of Bees, and how to procure
a more abundant supply of Honey and Wax." But when his work was ready
for the press, he lost in one day, by an unfortunate accident, the
whole of his hives except one, which he presented to me, and which I
subsequently managed under his direction.
Thrown from that time into a succession of pressing occupations, he
lost sight of the printing of his work, which is now in my possession,
in his own handwriting. It contains the description of the storied
hive, of which he was the inventor, and which has since been so
variously modified. These hives have been made known only through his
correspondence with M. de Reaumur, and other literary men, as will
appear from the note at the end of this Preface.
In the collection of observations which I now present to the public, I
limit myself to what is strictly practical, leaving to superior minds,
the Swammerdams, the Reaumurs, the Shirachs, the Hubers, to dive into
the theory with which they are so successfully engaged.
Theory, however, leads to practice; and I have built on the foundation
which they have so skilfully laid down. I shall make known what my
long experience has taught me to consider the best form of hives. To
ascertain which merited the preference, I mixed all sizes and shapes
of them in my apiary, noting down their condition and product, thus
securing a result to which no doubt could attach; convinced that it
is easier to multiply hives in good seasons than to preserve them in
bad ones, since, in the first case, one has only to leave them in some
measure to themselves, while in the second there must be assiduous care
and attention bestowed on them. Vexed at hearing of the great losses
that have so generally taken place of late years, and of the sensible
and rapid diminution of these precious insects, I shall point out how I
succeeded in preserving mine in the worst seasons, especially in those
of 1812 and 1813; and I shall lay down the principles from which no one
should swerve, if he wishes to be constantly successful.
Many people are fond of bees--indeed have a passion for them; but it
is not enough to be fond of them,--they must be skilfully taken care
of, according to certain rules, applicable in every case, but more
particularly in bad years. Mistaken care annoys them--niggardliness
ruins them. In laying down rules, I shall always take care to assign my
reasons for them.
Among the discoveries which I had the happiness to make, there is one
of the greatest importance to the practical apiarian, of which I had
not even the slightest suspicion, and which astonished me so much that
I could not believe my eyes. It was only after trials a hundred times
repeated and diversified, that I could fully convince myself. The fact
is certain, the reason is to me unknown, and I leave to persons more
learned than myself to give the explanation.
I have read most of the treatises that have been published on bees,
and have found errors in most of them. To avoid them myself, I shall
advance nothing that I have not verified by numerous experiments, which
every one may repeat. I shall make my narrative as short as possible.
I have said that the storied hives invented by my late father, were
known only through his correspondence with M. de Reaumur, and other
literary men; the following is the proof:
Extract from the _Corps d'Observation of the Society of Commerce and
Agriculture of Great Britain_, 1757-58. Printed at Rennes in 1761, page
162.
"Monsieur de la _Bourdonaye, Procureur General-Syndic_, to whom the
custom of our peasants (of drowning the bees, or suffocating them with
sulphur, in order to deprive them of all the store they have laid up to
maintain them during the winter) has been long known, wrote to M. de
Reaumur, during the last assembly of the states, 1756, to ask for some
instructions on this subject.
"This academician pointed out, in his answer, the methods which he had
expounded in the fifth volume _des Memoires pour servir à l'Histoire
Naturelle des Insectes_; but he recommends, more particularly, to use
the curiously shaped hives, invented by Gelieu, a gentleman of the
principality of Neuchatel.
"Reaumur's letter, which, at first sight, seems to contain a sufficient
description of Gelieu's hive, does not clear up certain difficulties
that presented themselves in the detail, when we come to attempt their
construction from his directions; and therefore Nevel, member of the
Committee of Rennes, resolved to request a pattern hive from Reaumur
himself, which he accordingly obtained, and sent to the society. It
appears that hives of this kind would supply all that can be desired in
the management of bees; but they would cost more than one louis each--a
price infinitely beyond the reach of a labouring man, and which would
even be too great for the rich. It was necessary, therefore, to think
of profiting by the invention of Gelieu, in contriving hives so cheap
that every peasant might use them.
"Monsieur de la Bourdonaye, who paid great attention to this subject,
kindly communicated to the Society both the letter of Reaumur, and the
plan which he himself had formed, of making hives at a small expence.
He began by using, on his own estate, those which he recommended as
an experiment to the Society. It was called an _experiment_, because,
in reality, notwithstanding the probability of success attending the
use of hives like those of which he sent the model, his modesty made
him afraid that experience might, in some shape, belie his hopes. The
Society was not long in ordering hives to be made after the model. They
have made trial of them in the different faubourgs of Rennes. The rainy
summer has prevented these trials being completed, but the commencement
has succeeded very well.
"It is perhaps not altogether useless to give here an abridged
exposition of the accidents that might be prevented, in changing the
shape of ordinary hives, and of the means that might be employed for
that purpose.
"It has been already said, that it is but too common to suffocate or
drown the bees, at the end of the season, for the sake of profiting
by the honey and wax. Those who manage them with more profit and
intelligence, watch the time when the hives are nearly full, to force
the bees up into an empty hive. This operation must be done in fine
weather, in order that the bees may have time to make a sufficient
provision for the winter. This practice, though the best of those in
use at present, causes considerable loss; the brood-comb is taken away
with the wax; so that the proprietor loses a swarm just coming out, as
well as the swarms that this one might have afterwards produced. It is
this loss particularly that Gelieu would prevent.
"The hives at present on trial are, in shape, like a little round
tower, or hollow cylinder, composed of four equal pieces, placed one
above another."
"It is a certain fact, that the cells destined for the reception of
eggs are always situated in the lower part of the hive, which is never
disturbed. According to Gelieu's plan, it is only the storey above the
hive that is taken, until after the brood-comb has furnished a swarm,
and the swarm has taken flight.
"It seems, then, the interest of Rennes to patronize Gelieu's hives;
they guard against the inconveniences of the methods now in use; and
this has induced Bourdonaye to adopt the means of making them of straw,
in place of wood, like those of Gelieu.
"Monsieur de la Bourdonaye's hives are a little higher priced than
those in common use; but they give nearly a quarter more room, and
are, of course, more profitable in regard to price; they are in the
proportion of five to eight.
"We shall soon be able to determine, with certainty, the advantages
to be derived from this invention. Montluc has placed some joinings,
such as Bourdonaye has contrived, underneath his own hives, upon his
estate of Laille. Similar ones, at different places in the faubourgs of
Rennes, will furnish decided proofs of comparison.
"The preservation, and also the increase of bees, is an object of such
interest to Brittany, that the peasants cannot be too much encouraged
to turn their attention to it.
"The Society is well aware that it will be necessary to publish general
instructions on that head, and that the greatest merit of such a work
will be to give _only necessary_ instructions, and nothing more. It
must be made so simple and so cheap as to be within every one's reach,
and, above all, applicable only to practical use. Any thing more is
only fit for treatises wherein the authors are more occupied with
the interests of their own self love, than with those of the public.
But though much has been written on this subject, the Society is of
opinion that there are yet observations and experiments to be made
before publishing a document by which all the world might profit."
On this long quotation, I shall merely take the liberty of remarking,
that the only inconvenience ascribed to the storied hives, invented
and made by my Father--the only objection made to them--is, that they
are too dear, "that they will cost more than a louis each; a price
infinitely beyond the reach of a labouring man." The price is high in
Brittany, where wood is very dear. On the other hand, the model which
my Father sent to Reaumur, was made with a great deal of nicety, as
a common one would not have been worth offering to that illustrious
academician who sent him in return a very handsome thermometer,
graduated by himself. My Father's hives, more simply wrought, were less
expensive.
THE
BEE PRESERVER,
&c.
CHAPTER I.
SITUATION OF AN APIARY.
The choice of a good situation is of the utmost consequence. An apiary
will not thrive in a bad situation, however well it may be cared for in
other respects.
1. The hives must, above all things, be sheltered from the wind. It is
the first precept of Virgil[1]. For that purpose, the force of the wind
must be broken, either by houses or by lofty trees in the vicinity.
A wall, however high, or a simple hedge, is not sufficient, because
the bees that fly to the fields prefer stopping in places where the
air is tranquil, near bushes, or along hedges or dells, where they
find a much greater abundance of honey than in places exposed to gales
of wind. They fatigue themselves flying from flower to flower, and
still more returning to their dwelling, after having completed their
little ladenings: with a rapid flight they get over a great extent of
space, frequently against the wind; but, on approaching their hive,
they slacken their speed, and advance, wheeling round and round, to
recognize it. A mistake, at this time, might be fatal, and cost them
their lives; and if, at this moment, they encounter a strong current
of air, or a whirlwind, to repel them, they are again forced to wheel
round to reconnoitre their habitation. After a hard struggle, the
most vigorous arrive; the others fall, without power to rise again,
especially when the air is cold, or the sky clouded. The ground will
then be strewed with dying or dead bees, which never happens when the
hives are placed in sheltered situations.
[Footnote 1:
Principio sedes apibus statioque petenda,
Quo neque sit ventis aditus (nam pabula venti
Ferre domum prohibent).
Virg. Georg. lib. iv. ]
2_d_, The second condition of a good situation is its proximity to
a fountain; or, still better, to a little brook, where the bees may
drink[2]. Water is absolutely necessary, and enters as much as honey
into the composition of the pap with which they nourish the brood; and
the pollen or dust of flowers, which they bring home on their thighs,
is also a very essential ingredient in this pap. The vicinity of deep
waters is very hurtful to bees; and I have sometimes seen hundreds of
them drowned attempting to drink out of a cistern.
[Footnote 2:
"At liquidi fontes et stagna virentia musco
Adsint, et tenuis fugiens per gramina rivus."
Georg. l. iv. ]
If there is no small stream or fountain near them, they should be
supplied by troughs, filled with moss, and then water poured on it,
until they are as full as they can hold. The working bees come in
swarms to them in the spring, and quench their thirst without risk.
3_d_, It is commonly believed that an apiary is not well situated
unless it stands in the sun. This is an error; bees like the shade when
working, and like the sun only when in the fields, which then animates
and sustains them. For this reason, when people wish a swarm to settle,
after it has left the hive, they hasten to cover it; because the shade
induces them to rest, while a hot sun annoys them, and inclines them to
take flight again. When we wish to disperse a cluster of bees off the
front of a hive, we have only to expose it to the rays of the sun in
the heat of the day. The bees then retreat under the hive, on the side,
or behind it. They thrive well in thick forests, and delight in them;
because there they find a uniform temperature and a propitious shade.
How often, during the dog-days, have we not seen the honey running
down, and the combs melting, in those hives exposed to the heat of the
sun. In one hour, sometimes, a whole apiary will be destroyed. It is
also a mistake to suppose hives exposed to the sun produce the earliest
and strongest swarms. I have oftener than once experienced the reverse.
My earliest swarms have generally come from the best shaded hives,
and which only receive the sun late. I have even lost some in such
situations, because they took flight sooner than we thought of watching
them. We need never fear to shade a hive since Virgil recommends
it[3]. If the roof does not project sufficiently to protect the hive
from the sun in the heat of the day, I would advise them to be shaded
with deals or pieces of matting.
[Footnote 3:
"Palmaque vestibulum aut ingens oleaster obumbret."
Georg. iv. ]
4_th_, The most favourable exposure is towards where the sun is from
ten o'clock till mid-day. They should never be turned to the east or
west, but, more especially to the north, where the cold and tempestuous
winds would greatly injure them.
5_th_, Hives should not be placed high, on a first or second floor,
as I have sometimes seen them, unless they be completely sheltered;
because the wind is less powerful near the ground than in elevated
situations.