THE APIARY.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XIII, Issue 2, 21 August 1916, Page 156

THE APIARY.

E. A. EARP, Apiary

Instructor

BREEDING

Normally, at this season of the year there are usually large patches of brood in the hives. A further examination may be carried out where the beekeeper was in doubt last month as to the hive being queenless or not. The absence ’of brood at this season will denote a poor queen or that the hive is queenless. In either case it is advisable to unite with another hive. This should be done immediately, as a queenless hive stands in great danger of being robbed by other bees in the apiary. A ready method of uniting is by placing the weak colony over a strong one on the stand of the latter, with a sheet of newspaper between the two hive-bodies. They may be examined after a couple of days to see if things are going well, and if the paper is not bitten through it should be torn in several places. In another day or two the united colonies will be working peaceably. In the case of the weaker ■ colony it is wise to kill the queen before uniting. At this examination the beekeeper must keep a strict watch for symptoms of disease. If foul-brood is discovered in a mild form the ■ colony should be marked for treatment later in the season. Should, however, the colony be badly affected it is advisable to sulphur the. bees and destroy the combs. Care should be taken to remove the hive to a place of safety until it can be properly cleansed.

APIARY REGISTER.

As mentioned in a previous note, a register for keeping records of individual hives will be found of great assistance. Where a number of colonies are kept such records are invaluable, as they enable work to be carried out expeditiously, and act as a guide to. the beekeeper in laying out plans for the forthcoming season.

OVERHAULING THE HIVES

In August a great deal of the preliminary seasonal work of the apiary may be done. Each hive should receive a good coat of paint. This will help to preserve the timber, besides giving the hives a neat appearance. The bottom boards should be scraped clean. During the winter months there is usually an accumulation of cappings, pollen, and dead bees, and if left this becomes a harbour for woodlice, which are very objectionable. A simple plan is to provide a spare bottom board. Lift the hive on to

the spare one, scrape the old board and replace the hive. Remove all top boxes, as advised last month, and make the bees snug and warm for brood-rearing. Remove all weeds and long grass from round the hive. Long grass keeps the hives and bottom-boards damp and acts as a habour for insects.

CLEANSING HIVES AND FRAMES.

Do not fail , to cleanse all hives and frames that have been in contact with diseased colonies. This work may be undertaken now and the hives and frames prepared for future use. Where there is • only a small number of frames to be cleansed it is hardly worth while to attempt to save them. However, if much material has to be treated the saving effected will more than pay the beekeeper for his time and labour. There are several methods for treating hives and material, but perhaps the simplest and most effective is by the use of boiling water and caustic soda. Many beekeepers recommend the use of a painters’ blow-lamp, but this tool is not always handy, and, besides the charring of the hives, is an advertisement for all time that they once contained diseased bees.

The most suitable vessel for cleaning frames is an ordinary washing-boiler. To every 8 gallons of water add i lb. of caustic soda, and allow to boil. The - frames may be tied in bundles of six and immersed in the liquid. The caustic soda attacks the propolis and wax, and this immediately floats on top of the water. Three to five minutes’ immersion will serve to cleanse each bundle of frames. Skim the refuse from the top of the water frequently, and as the solution . weakens add more soda. Stack the frames in supers and place in the sun to dry. The hive-bodies and bottom boards may be cleansed by means of a swab. t , Immerse the swab in the boiling water and carefully wash' the . inside of the hives. Care must be taken when using caustic soda, as it is liable to burn the hands. ' ‘ -

ARRANGEMENT OF THE HIVES.

■ There is no set system of arranging hives, and they may be placed according to the preference of the beekeeper. The entrances should all face the north if possible, but on no account face them south or in a westerly direction if this can be avoided, as the cold driving winds from these quarters militate against successful brood-rearing. It is important that the hives be so placed that the beekeeper need not pass in front of the entrances when carrying on operations. Do not place the hives close together

in long rows, as there is a danger of the queens entering the wrong hives and being destroyed ; moreover, the plan will militate against successful manipulation, as the closely adjacent colonies will be disturbed whenever one is opened.

A good arrangement of the hives is to' set them out in pairs with at least 3 ft. between each two pairs. This affords the beekeeper .plenty of operating room. The two hives comprising the pair may stand within a few inches of each other, leaving clearance for the roofs. The space between each 'two rows should be .at least 6 ft., but more can be given if space is not a consideration. In order to preserve the bottom boards the hives should be raised a few inches off the ground. Concrete blocks or old bricks make excellent supports for the hive. Each hive should have a slight" cant, so that the entrance is about 1 in. lower than the back of the hive. . This will prevent water from collecting on the bottom boards.

USE OF FOUNDATION.

Section 6 of the Apiaries Act provides that “ In any case in which it is found by an Inspector that the bee-combs in any hive cannot without cutting be separately and readily removed from the hive for examination, he may direct the beekeeper to transfer the bees to an approved hive within a specified time.”- This makes it very clear to the beekeeper that he must exercise some care to get the bees to draw down straight combs. It often happens that bees are put into hives fitted with frames which contain no foundation. Having done this the beekeeper is satisfied that he has complied - with the Act, but such is not the case. It invariably happens that the bees cross-draw the combs, and the hive is in the same condition as if the bees had been put into a common box. The bees build the combs to suit themselves, and instead of drawing them straight down, as in well-built frames, they fill the hives from side to side with irregular pieces of comb and render the manipulation of the frames an absolute impossibility without breaking them to pieces.

By the use of foundation beekeepers can obviate this trouble and induce the bees to draw down straight combs ; thus examination for disease can proceed without hindrance. By the introduction of comb foundation a great step was made in modern apiculture, and perhaps, next to the invention of the frame hive, it marked the most important development in beekeeping. The judicious use of comb foundation gives the apiarist complete control over brood-rearing, and this factor is perhaps as important

as that of good straight combs. .It usually happens that if bees are provided with strips of foundation, or put into common boxes, they build a large quantity of drone-comb, which will be subsequently utilized , for breeding drones ; - thus one of the principal objects of the use of foundation is defeated. The presence of a few drones in the hive is imperative, as they are required for impregnating the young queens j but in practice it is usually found that the bees will contrive to breed a sufficient number for that purpose although full use be made of foundation.

Drones, as beekeepers know to their sorrow, are non producers, and it is generally conceded that they do no work in the hive, but, on the other hand, consume large quantities of food gathered by the workers, and their presence in large numbers will militate against profitable beekeeping. Traps may be used for the purpose of catching the drones, but this method is not in general use, save perhaps by beekeepers who make a practice of rearing queens, and then they are applied for the purpose of trapping drones from undesirable queens. In practice it is by . far the best policy to use full sheets of foundation, but in any case the beekeeper who neglects its use altogether will be up against the problem of having to transfer his bees at a later date.

ROBBING

Keep a strict watch for robbing. This is most likely to occur when feeding has to be undertaken, and once started it is about the hardest matter to cure. Feed only in the evening, so that the excitement created by the supply of warm syrup will have died down before morning. Keep the entrances to all hives contracted, and see that there are no cracks through which a robber could possibly enter. Perhaps the main cause of robbing, however, is the presence in the apiary of queenless or weak colonies. If the bees once discover • a queenless hive there will be no peace until the source of trouble is removed. The inmates of such a hive will not defend their stores as bees in a normal condition will, and unless the colony is united with another, it will tend to demoralize the rest of the apiary, until none but strong colonies will be safe from the depredations of the robbers.

Where a weak colony is in danger of being attacked, and where the beekeeper is satisfied that it is worth saving that is, if he considers the queen good enough to build up a strong colony by the time the main honey-flow sets inhis best plan is to pile wet grass on the alighting-board and well up above the entrance, keeping the grass wet for a day or two, and painting any cracks

in the hive. with ke osene or • carbolic solution. This treatment will soon settle the robbers and restore peace in the bee-yard. However, the best thing to do with weak colonies is to unite them without delay with stronger hives. Like most other troubles, though, prevention is the best thing when dealing with robbers. Do not spill any. syrup near the hive, do not leave any combs lying about, and do not have any weak colonies, and you ,will not be troubled with robbing.