THE APIARY

Otago Witness, Issue 3277, 3 January 1917, Page 6

THE APIARY

fry J. A.

A SUMMED IX A SOUTHERN APIARY. THE DIARY OF~A BEEKEEPER

December 20.—Having an interest in an apiary at Oran Brig Farm, Mataura Island, 1 have to look it over about every 10 days. That was tiie work for to-day. " The distance away is about nine miles, and my method oi travelling is that good old hasbeen—a push bicycle. The apiary consisted, to start the season, of 25 colonies. On my first visit about a fortnight; ago it was necessary to renew a number of the broodnests, as foulbrood was showing; in them. This was done, and the diseased combs stacked to save tbe hatching brood. To-day these combs were removed altogether. Any reappearances of the disease during {he season will be dealt with as found. Tho apiary is at present very prosperous, and I found to-day new combs from, narrow starters that were without a cell of drone comb —just as nice combs as one could wish from full sheets. It is always best when working with starters to give them only to a laying queen, and when a new set of combs is built, to go over them and remove and place above tho excluder any that show too much drone con b. In going over the colonies to-day 15 full supers were taken for extracting. The district is one of the best in Southland, and grows clover to perfection. It is one of the choice locations of the Dominion for an apiary. December 21. —Until now the queens in the old colonies have had the run d"f tho supers. Our work now is to put in excluders and confine them to the single-story brood-nest, at the same time taking away all frames that contain sealed honey and no brood. In this way we brought in today our first 25 supers of honey for extracting. These were fairly heavy, and should yield about 401 b each in honey. stcrday and to-day there has been one swarm each day, so iliat in that respect we have nothing to complain about. Both days were good nectar days, and the bees are getting fairly on to the clover. December 22.—A perfect day. My scale hive made a record, putting on 221 b. This is the highest I have ever had from a hive on the scales, though others have exceeded it. Mr Nichol, of Bluff, reported 251 b for one clay last year. (By the way, Mr Nichol promised me a copy of his season's record. 1 wonder if he has forgotten.) To-day's work was to finish up putting in the excluders and taking away, as yesterday, all sealed honey clear of the brood. This resulted in a further 31 supers for the extractor There were three swarms to-day, starting two new colonics. _ The apiary during the afternoon was a picture to delight the beekeeper. A great many hives had to send out a cluster of bees to prevent over-heating, whilst the air was full of bees.

Dcember 23.—The honey-flow still continues, the record to-day being 131 b. Wo have always striven to set past the New Year holidays before starting honey-extract-ing. This year, however, we have not enough material to keep them going without extracting, so to-day was spent in preparation for that work, and in the afternoon the machinery was put in motion jusb to sec that all was in order. Ten super* were put through, yielding about 4001 b. Our plant js working well, and the combs are coming out of the extractors very- clean. The honey shows no sign of manuka yet. though probably during the last few days some has been coming in. It as a little dark, but of fine quality and flavour. December 24 and 25 (Sunday and Christmas Day).—Santa Claus has been about all week amongst the bees, but for these two days he has gone to the children. I suppose the work of filling so many stockings requires all his energies. At all events, he has allowed the be«s a quiet rest. I notice by the papers that the Germans found Santa Claus in one of his trips, and they looted his toys and then tied hun to a stake to shoot him. I think he must have escaped, however, for he has been seen since with a new bundle. Poor old banta Claus! It will be hard on him il he loses some of his family through this horrible war Christmas has come and gone and left the beekeeper busy. The writer of these notes wishes the beekeepers of A T ew Zealand a prosprous and a happy Now Year. December 26—A southerly wind with a alight nip in it prevented the best results to-dav. We arc anxiously looking for rain, and unless some comes scon the honey season will be short. Our work today was extracting, and our first filling of our receiving tank was completed. It holds «4Uld.

The gain for the week has thus heen 601 b, which is abnormal for the week preceding Christmas.

TAKING OFF HONEY RAPIDLY.

(By Louis H. Seholl.)

Two comments on a recent discussion of the above subject by me that have appeared in Gleanings will bear a few words of explanation, so that the readers will not feel that they may be misled by the experience that I gave. The first of the comments, bv P. C. Chadwick, appeared on July 15. Mr Seholl says (.Tune 15) that by his method it is possible to take off .more than 10001 b of honey in half an hour! Then ho adds. "The writer holds an actual record of 11401 b of honey removed in exactly 28 minutes." I figure that tu be just a fraction under 411 b per minute. No, thanks; I do not care to have anyone slamming around my pefs like that. In the August 1 issue Mrs Allen comments in this manner: ".Air Seholl fiays, 'lt is possible to take oif more than ICOOIb of honey in half an hour." My marginal comment, in the light of our own recent experience reads merely ' Whew !' May I repeat it here—' YVhe —cw ! : " Let me explain that we are just as careful about "slamming around amony my pots" as is friend Chadwick, and that the trick of taking off the quantities o£| honey does not harm the bees in the leasjß The truth of the matter is that, when jfl hive is approached and the cover raised, tfl bees are simply told by the " smoke : fl guage" to move down and ou* of imM

inished super or supers that are to come off that hive. Then the cover 18 removed entirely, thrown on the ground in front of the hive, and more smoke is blown over the top of the open super. While the bees are making their way down, the next hive is treated in the samo manner, then another until wo have four or five hives open and the bees going down, Rapidly returning to the first hive, wo smoke them all again in tho same rotation. Next wo set down tho smoker, and. with hive-tool in nana, pry loose and lift off quickly the topmost super from each of the four or five open hives. Grasping the smoker again, we go over the smoking operation with .each hive that has moro honey to come off, in a rapid manner. Thus the supers are rapidly freed of the bees and removed from the hives. . The few remaining bees, still in some of tho supers, will find their way out and back to the hive from which they camo by tho time the supers are loaded on the waggon or truck, or they are shaken or 'jostled" out of supers not entirely free of them by gently " jouncing " the lower part of the "supers against some object. All of this is,done so,quickly, and yet in so gentle a manner, that there is no room for argument on the subject of "slamming around." —New Braunfcls, Texas.

SCALE HIVE RECORD FOR WEEK, lb. December 19. —Weigbt at end of 91 la-st week December 20.--Increase per day .. 7 98 December 21.--Increase per day .. 9 3 07 December 22.--Increase per day .. 22 129 December 23.--Increase per day .. 13 142 Deeember 24.--Increase per day .. — 142 December 25.--Increase per day .. 6 148 Decernber 26.—Increase per day .. 3 161