WORK FOR THE MONTH.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 10756, 30 April 1913, Page 2

WORK FOR THE MONTH.

Now is the time to finally end the season's work among the bees, and fix them up snugly in their winter quarters, and tho sooner it is done the better. The days are getting short, consequently tho hours of sunshine are lessening, and the average temperature is getting lower, all denoting a period of rest for the bees, and the need of any necessary manipulations of the hive being finished at once. All colonies with healthy queens not past their prime of life, and haying had a fair amount of food in their hives up to the present time, will have more or less brood in three or four frames. Such colonies will come out strong and in first-class order .in spring. "SVhen going through the hives not© those colonies (should there be any) that havo no brood, and see whether they have queens or not. All that have queens and are fairly strong should be noted for superseding the queens as early as possible next 6eason, and any weak or queenless colonies should be united with other colonies.

All surplus lionoy boxes or supers unoccupied, or only partially so should be removed, and the bees concentrated into as small a space (without undue overcrowding) as they can be conveniently put into. If inv instructions have been followed there should be not less than 301b of food in each hive, and all the better if there is more. This may be put at the sides of the

lower hive., or' if it is necessary meanwhile to leave on one top box the food may ho distributed between the upper .and lower boxes. I have usually found it necessary to leave on olio top box to contain all the bees at this time, for when autumn brooding has been going on satisfactorily the colonies aro very strong, and it needs a two storey hive to hold them all. What brood there may bo .should hi put altogether in the lower hive. There should not be less than, three well-fitting mats over the frames of each hive. I find clean sacking stuff the most suitable material for mats. Second-hand sacks thoroughly cleansed and free from odour will do well for cutting up for mats. There should ho a good supply of spare ones on hand through the winter to take the place of any that may get damp through leaky covers.

Leaky covers aro an abomination Nothing will do more harm to a colony in winter than a damp domicile. Dampness absorbs the heat of tho hive, making it colder, it makes tho combs mouldy, eours tho food, and causes dysentery among the bees. Amplo ventilation and dry mats will prevent these evils. The usual cause of damp mats is leaky covers. Most of our New Zealand timber is prone to suncrack when exposed to the direct ravs of the sun as tho covers are, but if the timber is thoroughly seasoned before nailing, and bo given three coats of paint before use the covers will remain sound for a long time. I have, however, found most of the covers crack more or less after a while. Where the cracks are slight a coat of thick paint will remedy the trouble, but when large enough to need putty it is better to cover the timber with cheese-cloth. It is always best to have a few spare covers on hand to change with any that leak while repairing the latter, though in the absence of spare ones the repairs can be done to covers while on tho hives.

Prepare some fairly thick j>aint, cut the cneese-cloth two feet wide, then give the top of the cover a liberal coat of paint, and while wet lay on the cloth from one side of the hive and paint over the cloth. There should bo no wrinkles in the cloth, and it should be brushed right into the angles of tho ridgeboard, and cut off after it has been well smoothed down. A cover that would be otherwise useless will last for many years when done in this way, and be thoroughly rainproof.

Where it is necessary to unite weak or queenless colonics it should be done at once. First select the* colony you intend to unite the weak one with, then place a queen-excluding zinc over the frames of the former, and; after the are all in, about sundown, lift the weak colony with the hive it is in, and place it over the other as a top box, with communication through the queen excluder. This latter keeps the bees more or less apart for the time being until they become friendly, but it is best to be on the watch for a while, arid if signs of fighting are seen at the entrance,- give a good dose of smoke. ' Before uniting, if the queen of the weak one is discovered, pinch her head off, but if not readily found it will not matter, as the bees will soon kill her.