THE APIARY.

Otago Witness, Issue 3995, 7 October 1930, Page 11

THE APIARY.

WORK FOR THE MONTH.

October is usually a busy month for the beekeeper, and also a very important month, as at this time of the year the beekeeper is able to do much to assist the bees in building up, so that a strong colony may be ready for the honey flow, says an expert. Hives that have not yet been opened up should receive attention without delay, and the following points carefully noted:— (1) If a laying queen is present, her presence is shown by there being eggs in the brood combs; in the event of their being no eggs, action should be taken to obtain a new queen from a reputed queen bee-breeder, of which there are many in the Dominion, or, if the beekeeper wishes, he may unite the queenlesa colony to a weak colony that has a queen. Should the brood and eggs be “ pateby ” about the 'brood combs instead of being evenly spread over the combs, this hive will need watching, as it usually indicates an old or failing queen, and, should she not improve, the queen should be destroyed and replaced with a new and prolific one. (2) Thd- amount of food in the- hive should be 4, observed. There should be at least 201 b, as from now on the amount of brood under normal conditions will rapidly increase, and stores likewise rapidly decrease. Any shortage of food should be supplemented by artificial feeding; the syrup being made up of onethird sugar _ and two-thirds water, a weaker solution than recommended for winter feeding. (3) The health of the colony should be noted and if any sunken cells capped with a darker capping than the other cells are seen, these cells should be opened with a splinter of wood; the splinter should be inserted in the cell, twisted round and then carefully withdrawn, if a dark gluey-I.ke substance draws out with a ropiness adhering to the splinter, it is fairly- conclusive that American foul brood is present. Hives eo infected should have their entrances contracted to avoid rob-J-ng, and should also be marked for treatment. . If the beekeeper is in any- doubt regarding the disease, he should consult the nearest Department of Agricultures apiary instructor. The Apiaries Act requires that “.Every beeekeper on whose apiary any disease appears shall forthwith take proper steps to cure the same, al ?d to prevent its spread, and shall, within seven days after his first becoming aware of the presence of the disease, send written notice to an apiary' inspector.”

NOTES. Observers of the United States Department of Agriculture have ascertained that bees sometimes travel eight miles in search of suitable nectar producing flowers, and that■ 18,000 trips of 16 miles each, or 300,000 miles, would be covered to gather Hb of honey.. At Wyoming, where irrigated lucerne is the only source of supply, hives were placed eight miles from the plants. The bees made daily trips to the fields, gathered their requirements, and returned in the evening. Regular journeys were maue, and the departmental apiculturists noted no signs of weariness in the insects. The indications were that they could go much further if the necessity arose.

At a conference of New South Wales beekeepers in Sydney the president of the Honey Producers’ Association of the Richmond River districts stated that heavy burdens had been placed on the industry by Arbitration Acts. Something, he suggested, should be done to equalise railway freights. It appears that under the existing arrangements it cost 25s to send a ton of honey from Adelaide to Sydney, about 1100 miles. The freight from BalIma to Sydney, 330 miles, was 50a a ton, and from Bathurst to Sydney, 140 miles, rxr’ for Agriculture j j r ' , ss \ agreed to have plans diaited for the formation of a central executive with delegates from all the honey producing localities in the State.