Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 July 1875 — How to Transfer Bees. [ARTICLE]

How to Transfer Bees.

A subscriber writes us to know how to change bees, without loss, from the round, log, square gum or common hive to movable frame hives. As this is a timely question, we give an answer at length.. The best time to do this is about the season of swarming, which season varies •with the latitude and climate. In the Northern States, June is the month of swarms; in the Middle and Southern States they come with early and abundant bloom. About the time when swarms are expected naturally, take the hive which you wish to transfer, and, blowing a little smoke into the entrance, remove it a rod or more from its stand, leaving an empty box. or hive in its place, into which the bees that are out in the fields may gather, invert the hive which you have moved and put over it an empty box or hive, as near the same size and shape as possible, and stop all holes or cracks between the two with grass or weeds that may be at hand, leaving no hole large enough for a bee to escape. Then with sticks keep up a sharp drumming on the bottom hive, at which the bees, alarmed, will fill their sacs with honey and mount up into the upper hive. In from twenty to thirty minutes most of the bees with their queen will be in the empty box on top. The beginner need not fear driving too many; let all go that will. Then carefully set the box containing the bees in a shady place and take the old hive back to the place where it stood. While you have been driving, many bees will have come back to their home, and, finding it gone, will be roaming in and out of the empty hive in distress. These will at once rush into the old hive when it returns and gladly adhere to it; then remove it to a location some yards off, when, as it contains many hatching bees and eggs, the bees will at once rear a new queen to replace ' the one just driven out and in a short time be as prosperous as ever. Now place your new movable comb hive, with its entrances all open, on the old stand, and spread a sheet before it; on this sheet empty the bees you have driven into the box and they will at once take a line of march for the entrance of the new hive : if they gather there, brush a few in with a wing or twig and they will call the others, who will enter in a body and accept the new hive as their home. You have now a nice swarm in your new hive, which will work as well as any natural swarm, and quickly stock their hive. You have, beside, your old hive, in which the bees are rapidly hatching, and in three weeks they will have a young queen and a goodly number of bees, but no brood in the combs. Therefore in three weeks repeat the process of driving out the bees; and after this is done, split open the old hive, or carefully take offthe side, and fasten all straight, nice pieces of the comb into the frames of a movable comb hive; a little melted resin will help hold them in place, or they may be kept in place with thorns. Comb need not be rejected because it is old or black, as, if it is straight and iree from mold, it is quite as good to rear bees in or to store honey for their use—indeed, it is proved that old comb is better than new for these purposes. No drone-comb should be put in the frames. This may be.known by the larger size of its cells. Arrange the frames containing comb in the hive, set it in its place, and empty the bees on a sheet in front, as before described. They will soon securely fasten the combs, and work on all the better for this necessary disturbance. To the novice it may seem incredible that bees should be thus driven from hive to hive and directed as you please, but it is now done every day through the summer by hundreds of bee-keepers, who find not only that it may be done without loss, but to great profit. —American Bee Journal.