A Manual Or An Easy Method Of Managing Bees Part 3

This operation is both practicable and easy, and is of prime importance to all cultivators, who wish to avoid the necessity of hiving them when they swarm; and yet it will not prevent swarming, except in that part of the divided colony which contains the Queen at the time of their separation.

The other part being compelled to make another Queen, (and they generally make two or more) will be likely to swarm to avoid their battle, as explained in remarks on Rule 2. The hive containing the old Queen may swarm for want of room; but, at any rate, in performing the operation, it has saved the trouble of hiving one swarm, and prevented all danger of their flight to the woods.

Multiplying colonies by this rule is a perfectly safe method of managing them, admitting they are not allowed to swarm themselves so low as to leave unoccupied combs, which will be explained in remarks on Rule 10.

RULE X.

ON PREVENTING THE DEPREDATIONS OF THE MOTH.

All such stocks as are infested with the moth, will manifest it as soon as warm weather commences in the spring, by dropping some of the worms upon the bottom board. Let the apiarian clean off the bottom board every other morning; at the same time strew on a spoonful or two of fresh, pulverized salt.

Immediately after a second swarm has come forth from a hive, the same season, the old stock should be examined; and if swarming has reduced their numbers so low as to leave unoccupied combs, the apiarian should take the Queen from the swarm, and let them return to the old stock. In case they remain in a cl.u.s.ter, hive them in a drawer, and return them immediately.

Third and fourth swarms should always have their Queens taken from them and the bees returned to the parent stock.

REMARKS.

"This insect (the moth) is a native of Europe; but has found its way into this country, and naturalized itself here."--THATCHER.

This unwelcome visitor has interested the attention and called forth all the energies of the most experienced apiarians of our country, and of many of the greatest naturalists in the world. Their movements have been observed and scrutinized by the most learned--their nature has been studied; various experiments have been tried to prevent their depredations; but after all, the monster in gaudy hue marches onward, committing the greatest havoc and devastation, with but little molestation. I have lost my whole stock at least four times since 1808, as I supposed by the moth. I tried all the experiments recommended in this and other countries, that came to my knowledge; but after all, I could not prevent their ravages.

In 1830, I constructed a hive (which has since been patented) which I supposed would afford all the facilities for managing bees in every manner that their nature would admit of, and at the same time render their cultivation most profitable to their owner. By constructing windows of gla.s.s, on every side of the hive, nearly the size of its sides, and darkening them by closing doors on the outside of the windows, which may be opened at pleasure, I have been able to discover many important facts, both in relation to the nature and economy of the bee, and its enemy the moth; but, probably, much yet remains to be learned concerning both.

The moth, when first discovered by the common observer, is a white worm or maggot, with a reddish crusted head, and varies in size according to its living. Those which have full and unmolested access to the contents of a hive, will frequently grow as large as a turkey-quill, and an inch and a half in length. Others are scarcely an inch in length when full grown.

They have sixteen short legs, and taper each way from the centre of their bodies to their head and exterior or abdomen.

The worms, like the silk-worm, wind themselves into a coc.o.o.n, and pa.s.s the dormant (chrysalis) state of their existence, and in a few days come out of their silken cases perfect winged insects or millers, and are soon ready to deposit their eggs, from which another crop will be raised.

The miller, or perfect moth, is of a grayish color, from three-fourths of an inch to an inch in length. They usually lie perfectly still in the day time, with their head downwards, lurking in and about the apiary. They enter the hive in the night, and deposit their eggs in such places as are uncovered, of course unguarded by the bees. These eggs hatch in a short time, varying according to circ.u.mstances, probably from two or three days to four or five months. At an early stage of their existence, while yet a small worm, they spin a web, and construct a silken shroud, or fortress, in which they envelope themselves, and form a sort of path, or gallery, as they pa.s.s onward in their march; at the same time being perfectly secure from the bees, in their silken case, which they widen as they grow larger, with an opening in their front only, near their head, they commit the greatest havoc and devastation on the eggs, young bees and all, that come in their way as they pa.s.s.

When the moth has arrived to his full state of maturity, he makes preparation to change to a miller, by winding into a coc.o.o.n, as has been already explained. The miller is surprisingly quick in all its movements, exceeding by far the agility of the quickest bee, either in flight or on its legs. Hence the enemy becomes so formidable that the bees are easily overcome and soon fall a sure prey to him.

Now, in order to remedy the evils of the moths, and prevent their ravages, and at the same time aid the bees in their prosperity, and make them profitable to their owner, I found it necessary to use a hive differing materially from the old box, and commenced operations in the one already referred to, (called the Vermont hive,) in a course of experiments which have produced results perfectly satisfactory. From six years experience in its use, I have not the least doubt that bees may be managed to the best advantage, and without ever being materially injured by the moths.

A bee-hive should be made in a perfect workmanlike manner, so as to have no open joints; the boards should be free from shakes and cracks, because the bees will make their tenement perfectly tight, so as to exclude light and air, by plastering up all such places as are left open by the workman, with a kind of mortar, or glue, of their own make, which is neither honey nor wax, but is very congenial to the growth of worms in the first stages of their larva state, and being secured from the bees by the timber, in a short time they are able to defend themselves by a silken shroud.

Now the miller enters the hive and makes an incision into the bee-glue, or cement, with her sting, and leaves her eggs. These eggs hatch there, and the brood subsist on the glue until they have arrived so far toward maturity as to enable them to encase themselves in a silken shroud; and then they move onward.

Now unless the bees chance to catch him by the collar, or nape of his neck, while feeding, and drag him out of his place of concealment, they will be compelled to cut away the combs all around his silken path, or gallery, and drag out the worm and his fortress all together. At the same time, the bees are compelled to cut away the combs so far as to destroy many of their young brood in making room to remove the annoyance. I have known them to cut away their combs from four to eight or ten inches to re move this silken shroud, and have known them to cut and drag out their only remaining Queen before she was transformed to the perfect fly, which occasioned the entire loss of the whole colony.

Repeated experiments have demonstrated the fact, that placing bees on the ground, or high in the air, is no security against the moths. I have lost some of my best stocks by placing them on the ground, when those on the bench were not injured by them. I have made a groove in the bottom board, much wider than the thickness of the boards to the hive, and filled the same with loam: I then placed the hive on the same, in such a manner as to prevent any crack or vacancy for the worms; and yet in raising the hive four weeks afterwards, I found them apparently full grown all around the hive in the dirt. I have found them very plenty in a tree ninety feet from the ground.

The best method, in common practice, to prevent the depredations of the moth, is, to suspend the bottom board so far below the lower edge of the hive as to give the bees free entrance and egress all around the same during the moth season, or to raise the common hive, by placing under it little blocks at each corner, which produces nearly the same effect. But I know of but one rule, which is an infallible one, to prevent their depredations, and that is this: keep the combs well guarded by bees. See Rule 10.

Large hives, that never swarm, are never destroyed by the moth, unless they lose their Queen, melt down, or meet with some casualty, out of the ordinary course of managing them. They are not often in the least annoyed by them, unless there are bad joints, cracks, or shakes, so as to afford some lurking places for the worms. The reason for their prosperous condition is obvious. The stock of bees are so numerous that their combs are all kept well guarded during the moth season, so that no miller can enter and deposit her eggs.

Hives made so small as to swarm, are liable to reduce their colonies so small as to leave combs unguarded, especially when they swarm three or four times the same season. All swarms, after the first, sally forth to avoid the battle of the Queens; constantly making a greater draft, in proportion to the number left, until the combs are partly exposed, which gives the miller free access to their edges.--The seeds of rapine and plunder are thus quickly sown, and soon vegetate, and fortify themselves by their silken fortress, before the bees are aware that their frontiers are invaded. While the moths are thus engaged in establishing their posts on the frontiers of the bees, the latter are constantly and indefatigably engaged in providing themselves with another Queen, to supply the place of the old one, which has departed with a swarm, and raising young bees to replenish their reduced colony. Now as the moths have got possession of the ground on their frontiers, it requires a tremendous effort on the part of the bees to save their little colony from a complete overthrow.

If late, or second and third swarms are always returned immediately, according to the rule, the combs are kept so guarded that the moths are compelled to keep their distance, or be stung to death before they can accomplish their purposes.

Hives made so large as not to swarm may lose their Queen, and then they will abandon their habitation and emigrate into the adjoining hive, leaving all their stores to their owner, which, unless immediately taken care of, the moths will not fail to destroy.

The moths are often complained of when they are not guilty. Hives are frequently abandoned by their occupants, in consequence of the loss of their Queen, unnoticed by any observer, and before any thing is known of their fate, the hive is dest.i.tute of bees, and filled with moths.

In the summer of 1834, one of my neighbors had a very large hive that never swarmed, which lost their Queen; and in the course of a few days the bees entirely vacated their tenement, and emigrated into an adjoining hive, leaving the whole of their stores, which amounted to 215 lbs. of honey in the comb.

No young bees or moths were discovered in the hive. Instances of this kind frequently occur, and the true cause is unknown, from inattention.

The Queen may be superannuated, or may become diseased in the breeding season, so as to render her unfruitful; or she may die of old age. In either case, the colony will be lost, unless supplied with another Queen, as explained in remarks on Rule 8; for when the Queen becomes unfruitful by either of the foregoing causes, the bees are not apprized of the loss which will in future be sustained by them, until after the means of repairing the same are gone beyond their reach. All the grubs may have pa.s.sed the various stages of their transformation, or at least advanced so far towards the perfect insect, that their nature cannot be changed to a Queen.

The Queen is much more tenacious of life than any other bee, and may live to a great age. But one Queen exists in the same hive any great length of time. When there are more than one, the peculiar sound of each, as explained in remarks on Rule 2, is heard by the other, which always results in a battle between them, or the issue of a swarm in the course of a day or two.

Bees, when placed in a dark room in the upper part of the house, or some out-house, are easily cultivated a short time with little trouble, and are sometimes made profitable to their owner; but as they are liable to some of the same casualties as those kept in swarming hives, they cannot be as profitable.

Large colonies never increase their stock in proportion to the swarming colonies. There is but one female in a large colony, and they can do but little more in raising young bees than to keep their stock good by replenishing them as fast as they die off or are destroyed by the birds, reptiles and insects, which are great admirers of them, and sometimes swallow them by dozens. Now if it requires five swarming colonies to be equal in number to the one first described, it is not difficult to imagine that five times as many bees may be raised by the swarming colonies: for one Queen will probably lay as many eggs as another.

The swarming hives are no more liable to be destroyed by the moth during the swarming season, than others, if the hives are kept well replenished with bees according to Rule 10.

RULE XI.

ON FEEDING BEES.

If it is found that a swarm need feeding, hitch on the feeder, well stored with good honey, while the weather is warm in October.

The apiarian should use the same precaution in feeding, as directed in Rule 4, to prevent robberies.

REMARKS.

The best time to feed is in the fall, before cold weather commences. All hives should be weighed, and the weight marked on the hive before bees are hived in them. Then, by weighing a stock as soon as frost has killed the blossoms in the fall, the apiarian will be able to form a just estimate of their necessities.

When bees are fed in the fall, they will carry up and deposit their food in such a manner as will be convenient for them in the winter. If feeding is neglected until cold weather the bees must be removed to a warm room, or dry cellar, and then they will carry up their food, generally, no faster than they consume it.

A feeder should be made like a box with five sides closed, leaving a part of the sixth side open, to admit the bees from their common entrance with its floor level, when hitched on the front of the hive. It should be of sufficient depth to lay in broad comb, filled with honey. If strained honey without combs is used for feeding, a float, perforated with many holes, should be laid over the whole of the honey in the box, or feeder, so as to prevent any of the bees from drowning; and at the same time, this float should be so thin as to enable them to reach the honey. It should be made so small that it will settle down as fast as the honey is removed by the bees. As soon as warm weather commences in the spring, the feeder may be used. Small drawers cannot be depended on as feeders, except in the spring and summer, unless they are kept so warm that the vapor of the bees will not freeze in them. It would be extremely hazardous for the bees to enter a frosty drawer. They will sooner starve than attempt the experiment. Drawers may be used without danger from robbers, but when the feeder is used, robbers must be guarded against as directed in Rule 4.

Care should be exercised, in fall-feeding, to supply them with good honey, otherwise the colony may be lost before spring by disease. Poor honey may be given them in the spring, at the time when they can obtain and provide themselves with medicine, which they only best understand.

Sugar dissolved, or mola.s.ses, may be used in the spring to some advantage, but ought not to be subst.i.tuted for honey, when it can be obtained.

Bees sometimes die of starvation, with plenty of honey in the hive at the same time. In cold weather they crowd together in a small compa.s.s in order to keep warm; and then their breath and vapor collect in frost, in all parts of the hive, except in the region they occupy. Now, unless the weather moderates, so as to thaw the ice, the bees will be compelled to remain where they are located until their stores are all consumed that are within their reach. One winter we had cold weather ninety-four days in succession, during which time the bees could not move from one part of the hive to another. I examined all my hives on the eighty-third day, and on the ninetieth day I found four swarms dead. I immediately examined for the cause, which was as already stated. I then carried all my hives into a warm room and thawed them, so that the bees could move. Some hives that I supposed were dead, revived; some few swarms I found nearly dest.i.tute of stores, which I carried into the cellar, turned them bottom up, cut out a few of the combs, so as to make room to lay in combs filled with honey, which served as good feeders.