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~ BEEKEEPING
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How to use this pamphlet.
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BEEKEEPING
~ L!!Sa"" - -,.
BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
IRVING, TEXAS
1988 Printing of the
1983 Revision
Requirements
I. Study a hive of bees_ Remove the combs. Find the queen. Figure
the amount of the brood and the ownber of queen cells. Figure
the amount of honey in the hive.
2. Show the differences among the drones, workers. eggs, larvae. and
pupae at different stages. Tell the differences among honey. wax,
pollen, and propolis. Tell how bees make honey. Tell where wax
comes from. Explain the part played in the life 01 the hive by the
queen, the drones. and the workers.
3. Hive a swarm or divide al least one colony. Explain how a hive
is made.
4. Put foundations in sections or frames. Fdl supers with frames or
sections. Take off fiUed supers from the hive. Fix the honey for
market.
5. Write in not more than 200 words how and why the honeybee is
used in pollinating farm crops. Name live crops in your area pol-
linated by honeybees.
contents
TheBees'Jobs_ __ ......_................. 3
TheBeeColony .................. 9
Equipment __ . __ _ __ ....... 17
Beekeeping Basics __ .. _............... _ 21
Spring Management _ 29
Summer Management _..... , _.. , 39
Fall and Winter Management ............ _..... , . , , 45
Bee Diseases _.. , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Books About Beekeeping. _.. __ . __ . __ ..................... 55
Copyright 1957, 1983
Boy SCours of Amerlce
Irving, Texas
ISBN 0-8395-3362-4
No 3362 Prlnted In USA 2M1288
2
The Bees' Jobs
Did you ever step on a bee and kill it? Maybe you were stung by a bee
when you were younger. How much do you think that honeybee was
worth? No one could tell you, at least not in dollars and cents. But
honeybees are worth plenty-more than most folks realize. For example,
some 4 to 5 million colonies produce up to 250 million pounds of honey
and about 4.750,000 pounds of beeswax every year in this country.
Every year this honey and beeswax sell lor more than SIOO million.
The value of bees as pollinators, however. is more than 100 times
greater than their value as producers 01 honey and wax.
Pollination
Some plants can produce seeds only if pollen is brought to them by
insects. The flower of an apple tree. for example. may not set fruit
unless pollen from another apple flower is transferred to it. The bee
does the transferring job very well. Suppose farmers had to transfer
pollen to all the apple flowers in
every orchard. What a jobl
01 course. pollen from the
flower of an apple tree won't help
a peach tree.. Fortunately. a bee
visits only one kind of flower duro
ing a trip from its hive. Here's how
the bee lransfers the pollen.
At the base of a Dower there is
a nectar gland that secretes a
sweet sugar solution (nectar),
which atlracls bees. As the bee
forces its way through the flower
to get at the nectar, it gets dusted
with pollen. Pollen grains stick to
the hairy back of the bee. As the
bee forces its way into the next
flower. some of the pollen aed
dentally gets brushed off onto the
sticky stigma of the flower. Thus
3
Top-By .ddlng wax to this sheet of found.tlon, bees hIIve made lite celli
deeper. Middle-Bees collect pl.nt waxes, from whIch they make propolls or
bII. glue. 8ollom-TheM tiny pollen pellets were taken from some bee celli In
whIch 1hey hIId been packed.
4
pollen is transferred from one flower to another. This enables the polli-
nated plant to produce seed, from which a new plant may grow.
Bumblebees also carry pollen; so do butterflies and other insects.
Current agricultural production practices, however, have tended to make
pollination by wild bees and other native insects less reliable. Intensive
cultivation such as ",onaculture, where large areas of land are used to
grow only one type of crop, have eliminated the natural nesting sites of
many wild insects. Pesticides used to control harmlul insects also have
killed many wild insect pollinalors. For this reason, honeybees are the
only reaUy important pollinators as far as farmers are concerned. They
are the only insects that can be domesticated. multiplied in numbers,
and moved as needed.
About 50 different farm crops depend in part on the honeybee for
proper pollination. First. there are the fruits, both large (apples. peaches.
oranges, etc.) and small (blueberries, cranberries, etc.). Farmers rent
thousands of hives from beekeepers every spring for orchard pollination.
One or more colonies is commonly used on an acre of small fruits.
Secondly, sweet clover, alsike clover, 'red clover, white dover, and
alfalfa must be visited by an insect to produce seed. In some areas,
farmers grow these crops just for the seed. Bees were not always used
to pollinate such crops. When bees were first used, seed yields increased
many times. For example, in one area five colonies of honeybees 10 an
acre of alfalfa resulted in yields 01 1,000 pounds or more of seed an
acre. Seed yields before were only 265 to 300 pounds an acre. Clover
and allalfa also are used as forage and pasture crops lor livestock and
poultry.
Bees also pollinate some grain crops-buckwheat, for example.
Melongrowers have increased yields by bringing in colonies 01 bees to
pollinate their crop. Insects must transfer the pollen of cucumbers,
muskmelons. and other vine crops. Bees also are used to pollinale
some vegetable crops grown for seed,
How Honey Is Mode
Pollination-the bee's most importanl job-is done automatically as
the bee gathers food. As far as the bee is concerned, gathering and
storing nectar and pollen for food is its main job. The bee needs the
food to live.
When a bee enters a flower. she sucks in the neclar and carries it in
her honey stomach. When she returns to the hive, she gives the nectar
5
to a worker who puts it into a cell. The nectar becomes honey lhrough
an evaporating and ripening process.
Nectar is a dilute sugar syrup. Nectar from white clover. for example.
ranges from 27 to 50 percent water. Other nectars have less water.
more sugar. It takes some 20.000 bees to bring in one pound of nectar.
This makes only aoout one-quarler pound of honey Honey contains only
12. to IS-percent moisture. The bees evaporate or ripen nectar by fan
ning their wings so fast they actually set up a current 01 air in the hive.
While the nectar is in the bee's honey stomach. and when it is Irans
ferred to the hive, enzymes go to work. They mix wilh the nectar so
thai during the ripening process the sugars are converted into simple
sugars called levulose and dextrose. When the honey is ripened. the
bees cover or cap each cell with a thin layer of wax. called beeswax.
Differences in HOney
The honey from one apIary (group of beehives or bee colonies) will
not always be the same as honey from another apiary. The taste and
color may be different. 11 will even smell different. The plants from
which the nectar is gathered determine these differences.
In the North. white clover is one of the chief sources of honey. This
honey is light in color. It is. in a sense. the standard for comb honey.
Basswood or linden trees in some localities are sources of a honey that
is slighUy yellower than clover honey. Basswood honey has a distinctive
flavor. very popular with some people. Buckwheat yields crops 01 dark.
purplish honey with a strong flavor.
In the Western states, especially at high altitudes, aUaUa grows in
abundance. Honey made from alfalfa nectar is light in color and has a
mild cinnamon flavor. In southern California. wild sages give a light
water-white honey.
The honeys of Texas olten come from mixed sources, such as white
brush. horsemint. guahilla. and mesquite. Most of these honeys are light
or light amber. In the humid regions of the South. the honeys are
usually amber and are from mixed sources. The navors are usually
rather strong.
The swamp Spanish needle in such regions as the Kankakee swamp
In northern Indiana and Illinois and along the Mississippi and Dela-
ware Rivers is the source of an amber honey. Sweet clover. plentiful in
nonhero Kentucky and other areas. is the source of honey with 8 slight
green tint. with just a suggestion of vanllla flavor.
6
Food for the Bee
Honey, of course, is food not only for you. but also for the bees. If the
honey supply in the hive is low you can give )'Our bees a sugar syrup.
which is simply a mixture of granulated sugar and water. To make the
syrup add sugar slowly to hot water. stirring all the lime.
The proportions of sugar to water vary according to the season of the
year and your reasons lor feeding. For instance. in early spring you may
give your bees a thin sugar syrup (equal parts sugar and water) to
stimulate brood rearing. In the fall. when the bees are storing foud for
the winter. you may feed them a thicker syrup. Anytime the hive's honey
supply gel'! very low, you should feed the bees a thick syrup to prevent
starvation
Pollen is food for bees, too. It is the only source of protein fed to the
larvae. Larvae are young, immature, wingless bees. Without pollen.
brood rearing is practically impossible.
PoUen is gathered by bees and packed in two special "pollen baskets"
on their hind legs. When the baskets Me full. the bees ny to the hive
and deposit the pollen in cells on the outer or upper edge of the brood.
Other bees pack the pollen in the cells. (See oottom illustration. page
4.)
If a colony is short on pollell. )'Ou can buy pollen substitute and give
it 10 the bees. Substilutes usually are made 01 soybean Oour and yeasl.
HowBeeSwax and Combs Are Made
Bees use honey to produce wax. If you magnify the underside of a
worker bee's abdomen you will see lour pairs of special wax glands. On
the surface of these glands. small scales of wax are fanned by an
unusual (and still unknown) process of digestion. Bees seal honey and.
brood cells with the wax and make their combs with it.
Bees gather honey and produce wax at the same time, bUI they will
build combs only if they need room for honey storage. The longer a bee
retains honey in ber stomach. the more wax she produces. If the bee
can store gathered honey right away. she will produce only enough wax
to repair and seal cells or to make cells deeper. If bees remain filled
with honey lor 24 hours or more, enough wax scales are produced to
build combs.
Combs usually are built from the top downward. They are made of
two layers of sixsided cells placed end to end, with a sheet 01 wax
7
(midrib) between them. The cells are inclined slightly downward Irom
front to back so honey will not run oul
Two or more units of a comb are started side by side. As these units
get bigger their edges meet, so that eventually all the units in one line
form one comb. At the vertical seams where the units join are odd-
shaped and irregular cells called accommodation cells.
Worker ceUs are the smallest-five cells to an inch or 55 cells per
square inch on both sides. There are four drone cells to an inch and
33.5 cells per square inch on both sides. A queen cell is large and looks
like a peanut. Queen cells are placed here and there on the comb.
mostly at the edges. A queen cell hangs vertically, in contrast to the
horizontal positions of worker and drone cells.
Commercial beeswax is made by melting old or broken combs and
the cappings removed during the boney-extracting process, Beeswax is
used as an agent in salves. ointments, camphor, and pomades. It's
used for making candles. comb foundations. polishes. and many other
products. Beeswax makes the best candles because it doesn't smoke as
it bums. It doesn't soften at higher temperatures, so beeswax candles
don't bend or droop.
Propolls
Bees also produce propolis. often called bee glue. This is a gluelike
material made from resinous WilJ[es collected from the buds and limbs
of certain plants. Bees also will pick up tar, chewing gum, or any
similar waxy material to make glue. The bees use propolis to fill cracks
in the hive. They also use this material to make hive entrances smaller
or to strengthen hive parts.
8
The Bee Colony
Let's hop Into a helicopter and
hover a medium-sized city for a
while. The population could be
anywhere from 30,000 to 75.000,
That's how many bees live in a
hive, too. You'll find that the city
and tbe beehive are quite similar.
From the helicopter you can
see a network of streets. The bee-
hive has streets, too-bee spaces,
they're called. How about the
police offICerS on the corners? The
bees have a police force, too. and
a good one. It keeps out bee rab-
beTs. In the city you can see p-
pie going to work, for there are
families to feed. Bees also have families to feed Workers leave the colony
for work every day.
As you look down at the city, look for the window air conditioners.
You won't see units in the bee cily, bUI iI's air-cooled nevertheless. The
temperature is always about the same in the bee city. How do they do
it? With the wings. Bees have a fanning system that gives them perfect
ventilation and air condilioning.
This is about as far as the comparison between a city and a beehive
can go. For one thing, males don't work in the bee city. Sterile female.
bees called UJOrken do all the labor in the beehive. The males, called
drones, are loafers. They stay In the hive all the time. The worker.> wiU
kill unwanted drones. The bee city has no mayor or other form of
government. Instead, It has a queen.
TheOueen
The queen is not a real queen, At leasl. she doesn't rule over her
colony. She doesn't direct the colony's policies. She's simply an egg-
laying machine. She can lay 1.50tl 10 2,000 eggs a day, She can be the
mother of 100,OUO workers in one beehive.
9
Top-A sealed queen looks like a peanut. Middle-Left to right are the queen,
drone, end worker. Botfom-The butletllke cappIng. ere drone brood.
10
The queen comes from the same kind of egg as lhe worker. Her diet is
what makes her a queen instead of a worker. The larva of a potential
queen is fed an extremely rich food-called royal jelly-by nurse bee
workers. Other bee larvae get the rich food only for lhe first three days
of the larval stage. Then Ihey are fed a mixture of honey and pollen
during lhe rest of the larval developmental period.
The nutritional quality of the queens food influences her development.
She is larger and longer than the other bees. and has fully developed
reproductive organs. Her abdomen comes 10 a point Her wings seem
shorter tban the worker's. (See illustration, page 10.)
The queen chews around the tip of ber cell and emerges at the end of
16 to 18 days. If the queen in a hive is killed accidenlally. a new queen
is reared by the nurse bees from a worker larva. The worker larva.
however. cannot be more than three days old.
Soon after emergence the queen gets food, then destroys any remain-
ing queen cells. Often she may have 10 fight and kill queens that have
already hatched.
Between 5 and 10 days after the queen hatches, she takes one or
more flightJ and males with one or more drones while in the air. After
this the queen remains fertile for life. About two days later she begins
laying eggs. The eggs are pearly while and aboul one-sixteenth of an
inch long. The queen usually lays eggs from February 10 October. The
length 01 the egg-laying period depends on weather and available pol
len and honey.
In lhe egg-laying process, nOI all eggs gel fertilized. An unfertilized
egg produces a drone: a fertilized egg. a worker or queen.. Uthe queen
doesn'l mate within three weeks after hatching, she usually loses the
ability to mate. BUI she can still lay eggs that develop into drones, Even
if she mates, she may nol aJways become fertile and thus will produce
only drones. A queen lhat produces only drones should be replaced.
While a queen can live 3 years or more, most beekeepers replace her
with a new queen every year or every 2 years.
The Drone
A bee without a sting-that's the drone, He can't even collect honey,
The only useful thing he does is male with the queen so worker bees
can be produced. Alter a drone males with lhe Queen, he dies. The
other drones simply loaf. They eat food that is stored In the hive. But
their life of luxury is short. After the swarming season or whenever the
11
race have three to five bands of yellow on the abdomen. The head and
most of the resl of the body is black. The Italian bees winter well, and if
purebred are usually gentle.
Probably the second 1II0St popular race is the Caucasian race. These
bees are often recommended for backlot beekeepers, especially if neigh-
bors are close. Purebred Caucasians are quite gentle. They swarm very
little and winter well. One strain is yellow, somewhat like the Italians.
Bees of the strain used by most beekeepers are gray. There are other
races-Carniolan, Cyprian, Egyptian-and there are crosses, too.
If you wanlto start a lively discussion among beekeepers, ask which
is the best race of honeybees. Actually there isn't any c1ear<ul answer,
bul you'll probably find that Ihe best race for you is the race that others
in your area are keeping.
honey supply runs short, the workers drive the drones oul of the hive 10
die of cold and hunger. If a colony is queenless, the drones are usually
allowed 10 slay until a new queen is fertilized.
The drone is the only male member of the hive. He's larger and
heavier than the worker, but shorter than lhe queen. His body is quite
blunl at the end and his wings extend the entire length of his body. He's
hatched from an infertile egg and reared in a cell thaI's larger than the
cell of a worker. A drone develops fully in 24 days.
The Worker
A worker or honeybee develops fully in 21 days. She doesn't live very
long-she literally works herself to death in 6 to 8 weeks. In winter,
when they are less active, fall-hatched workers may live for several
months.
Worker bees are sterile females. They do not produce eggs except
under unusual conditions. They are produced from fertilized eggs laid
in worker cells. When they emerge from their cells they are fully mature.
The abdomen of the worker is shorter than that of the queen and
comes to a point more abruptly. It's also smaller in diameter.
Workers have a barbed stinger. When a worker bee pulls away fr.om
her victim the barbs bold. pulling the stinger from her body. The bee
soon dies.
A honeybee starts working almost immediately after she emerges
from her cell. She never stops working until she dies. Here's her work
schedule: First, she combs hersell and eats honey and pollen to gain
strength. Then, during successive periods, she cleans oul cells: feeds the
older larvae. then produces royal jelly that is fed to the younger larvae:
cleans. cools and guards the hive: evaporates nectar: produces wax and
builds comb: and takes orientation flights. She also may work as a
nursemaid to Ihe queen. After about 3 weeks, she carries waler, pollen,
nectar, and propolis as a field bee. She may also serve as a seout bee,
finding these materials and helping locate a future homesite for the
swarm.
Bee Races
The queen, drones, and workers make up the colony in a hive. But
before you establish a bee colony, you'll have to decide what race of
bees you'll keep. The Italian bees are more commonly used than other
races and generally are recommended for beginners. Bees of the Italian
Top-From left to right .,..
newly laid egg, newly Mtehed
ttoneybee lal'Vll, clay-cHd lal'Vll,
3-day-old lal'Vll,
4-day-olcl lal'Vll, caPSMd cell,
an empty ceil. Rlghl"':'l matu,..
Ia1YII as seen from one skfe of
a cell.
12
13
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The Brood
Every hive has brood-the eggs
and young larvae of the bee. There
are several kinds of brood. An
empty queen cell looks like an
acorn cup. Sealed, it looks like a
peanut. A sealed (capped) worker
broext has a yellow to tan. leathery
appearance and is quite uniform.
The drone brood has round cap-
pings that look like bullets. usu
ally found in the lower corners of Top left-An egg Is lakt In the bonom
the frames. Capped honey cells 01. cell by the qulMO. Top right-Egg
later hatches Into a larvll. Bottom-A.t
nonnally are white and may look end 01 laNai period cocoon Is mede
water-soaked. Pollen cells usually (the pupal stage).
are only partly filled. Ihus are seldom sealed. Pollen is used. of course.
as lood lor the worker and drone larvae.
Three days after an egg is laid it becomes a grub or larva. All larvae
are led royal jelly by the worker bees. Royal jelly is a high-protein.
creamy substance produced in glands in the heads of worker bees.
Alter 3 days. only the future Queen bee continues to get royal jelly. The
future worker bees are fed honey and pollen.
In 5 or 6 days a larva nearly fills the cell and is sealed in with a wax
capping. The larva becomes a pupa. In the pupal stage. the legless
grub changes into an adult bee. The bee then chews its way out of the cell.
14
The queen bee remains in the pupal stage for 7 108 days. II lakes 16
10 18 days for an egg to become an adult Queen bee.
The worker bee remains in the pupal stage for 12 or 13 days. II takes
21 days for an egg 10 become an adult worker bee.
The drone is in the pupal stage 15 to 16 days. It lakes 24 days for an
egg to become an adult drone.
Importance of Temperoture
Temperature has alai 10 do with the activities of bees. In fact. honey-
bees rarely do any useful work when the temperature goes below SOOF
or above 100F. Their activity slows al temperatures below 70 and
above 95. They do practically alllheir comb building and brood rear
ing allemperatures of 92 or 93.
When the outside temperature hils 57, bees slart 10 duster. In a
cluster, bees make !.heir own heat. It's warmest al the center of the
cluster. As the temperature continues to drop. the cluster draws closer
together. The temperature on the surface or outer edge 01 the cluster
remains close to 43 to 46. As winter progresses. the cluster tempera-
ture atlhe center gels higher. Finally it reaches a brood-rearing temper-
ature of 93 to 96. usually in January or early February. Then the
queen starts to lay and brood-rearing begins.
15

.~ ., ~
~ ..--
HIve parts Include; (1) cove" (2) Inner cover, (3) secllon super, (4) shallow
super, (5) excluder, (6) deep super, (7) bottom board, lind (8) 1M hive stand.
16
Equipment
Excluders. foundation. brood chambers. combs, supers, hive 1001.
smoker-do you know whal these are? You'll need them if you want 10
keep bees. If you've handled bees before. a review or bee equipment and
how 10 use it may help you do a betler beekeeping job.
The Hive
You'll wanl to use a movable-frame hive. In fact. in many stales the
law requires that you use it There are other types of hives, such as the
box hive. bul they're seldom used today and are nol practical. The
modern hive. in its simple form. is made up 01 the following (see
illustration. page 16):
Starting at the bottom. there is a hive siand with an alighting board.
Although not essential. it does keep I.he hive off the ground. Resting on
the hive stand is the bottom board or noor of your hive. Your bees enter
the hive through the opening belween this board and the hive body
above it. Mounted on the bottom board is an enlrance-contracting cleat,
a device that makes the entrance smaller, Ihus keeping out cold air lhat
can chill your bees. The cleat is taken oul in hot weather. The cleat also
allows weak colonies 10 guard the entrance, preventing robbing by
stronger colonies.
Next comes the h/IJe body or brood chamber. somelimes called deep
super. This is simply a box that holds the brood frames. Mosl beekeep-
ers (apiarists) use hive bodies containing 10 brood frames. Each frame
has comb foundation made of pure beeswax that Is embossed on both
sides with six-sided cells. The Queen lays her eggs in these cells. There
also is ample cell space for honey and pollen, If you're buying equipment.
remember that many parts are interchanged. thus aU must be the same
size and style. Beginners should consider using selfspacing frames.
Not all beekeepers use a queen excluder. but you'll probably find it
makes colony management easier. The excluder is placed over the
brood chamber. confining the queen there. It is essential where shallow
frames are used 10 produce bulk or cut-eomb honey,
Every hive has a warehouse-a place for bees to store their honey.
This warehouse is called a super. You use supers with regular movable
combs if you produce extracted honey, with section honey boxes if you
17
produce comb honey. You can buy shallow or deep supers. Shallow
supers are preferred by most Scouts. Deep supers are Quite heavy.
Many apiarists use an inner cover because it helps insulate bees from
heat and cold. The outer (telescope) cover laps over all four edges of the
top super to protect the hive.
The main feature of the movable frame hive is bee spaces-
passageways. These are spaces (one-quarter to three-eighths of an inch)
between eac.h frame and between the frames and the sides of the hive
body. The spac.es keep the bees lrom gluing the frames to the hive body
with propolis.
Comb FOundation
It's cheaper to give bees a comb than to have them make their own. ft
takes 16 to 20 pounds of honey to make a pound of wax. If bees make
all their own comb, you lose the honey they otherwise would be
producing.
Four principal types of comb foundation are medium brood founda-
tion lor use in brood and extracting frames, thin surplus foundation for
use in sections and bulk comb honey frames, vertically wired. and
three-ply foundation for use in broOO and extracting frames, and plastic-
based foundation for use in brood and extracting frames. Wire-embedded
foundation is recommended. If you like. you can buy foundation and
embed your own support wires.
TOols and Clothing
You can control bees with a bee smoker. It's one 01 the beekeeper's
most uselul 10015. A smoker is a fire pot attached to a bellows. Cedar
bark, rotten wood, corncobs, cation waste, scraps of burlap, or pieces
of corrugated paper from old hoxes often are used as fuel. When you
work the bellows you force air through the burning fuel. making a
dense smoke. Smoke has a quieting effect on bees.
You'll need something with which to pry apart supers, loosen frames.
and scrape unwanted material, such as propolis, from frames and
hives. While you can use a screw driver or a wide-blade puuy knife.
you'll lind a regular hive toof best.
While some beekeepers prefer to brush bees from combs when remov-
ing surplus honey, beginners will probably find a bee escape makes the
job easier. It is a little metal device that can be inserted In an inner
18
cover that is put between the hive body and the super. The bees can go
down from a super through the escape to the brood chamber, but
cannot return.
You may have to feed your bees once in a while_ A popular feeder is a
5- or IO-pound iridian-type honey pail or large glass fruit jar wilh a
metal screw top. You put holes in the lid with a three-penny wire nall-
one or two holes for slow feeding, three to five holes for winter feeding.
The pail is filled with syrup and inverted over the bee escape hole of
the inner hive cover. Or you can place it right on top of the frames.
There are other feeding methods.
Some beekeepers handle bees with their shirt sleeves rolled up. But
unless you're an expert. don't take chances. Wear light-rolored clothes.
A zippered coverall fastened at Ihe WTists and ankles makes a good
outfit. Wear high-topped shoes or boots.
When handling bees. you should always wear a veil. preferably one
with a wire cloth facing. It should be fastened securely around the neck
-bee-tigbt. Straw hats or any hal covered with callao dotb is best.
Bees tend to sting felt or flannel.
19
20
WIUl the hive ready and poU-
1Ioned, the hive tool Is used to
~ the COYef from lhe top
of the package Cllge. Keep the
CO'iW for subsequent use.
Bounce bees to bottom of c.ge,
then rttmove leeder cen end
queen Cllge. Place cover btlck
on ~ 10 temporarily confine
the bee.
Remove the cork from the
CIIndy end of the queen cttga.
Place the queen cage betwftn
two ' .... m In the center of the
hive with the screen '.clng the
back or Ironl of the hive. Make
aura candy end ia toward the
top.
Bounce and shake the bees
OVllr the frames of the hive.
Maka .... r libera' supply of
the bur. shIIllen dlrecll)'
over the queen cage.
W h l ~ allowing the bees to crawl
down Into the hive, place en-
'nine. feeder in bonom baud
entnlnce. Then g e ~ put Inner
cover on lop of the hlvtl.
The telescoping ouler cover Ie
tnen placed on top 01 the hlvll.
Then pIece the entrance re-
dueer In the bottom board aren.
Se aura f d Is In entrance
feeder.
Beekeeping
Basics
You can keep bees almost anywhere-on an apartment house roof
or in the middle of the desert. Regardless of where you live, you do need
one Ihing 10 be successful-available nectar and pollen-producing
nowers, shrubs. weeds, or other food crop wilhin about 2 miles of your
colonies.
If you live in a city apartment and are thinking of starting a roof-top
apiary, get in touch with your merit badge counselor before you start.
Ask him where to locale your hive. A few cities have ordinances restrict-
ing location of beehives within the city limits.
Location
If you were soing to build a house and had your choice of location,
where would you put it-in the middle of a field, on a shaded 101. or in
the middle of the woods? Would a windbreak make your home more
comlortable?
The shaded lot would be best. of course. It would also be best for
your bees, and for the same reasons. Unless there's some shade. your
bees won't work hard, especially during the middle of a hot day. Bees
like comfort just as much as you do. Bees are also less likely to swarm
if there's some shade. Beekeepers in bot climates build sbeds to shelter
their hives.
You can provide 100 much shade. however. Be sure the hive is not
shaded all day. Set your mves so they face away from the prevailil)g
winds. Put up a windbreak. too, or set your hives out so that you take
advanlage or any nearby natural windbreak. A slatted board lence in
back 01 the hive is ideal. Be sure thai fresh water is available for your
bees at all times.
Grasses and weeds around a hive can be a nuisance. Keep them cuI.
Better yet, pUI gravel or cinder under and in front of your hive.
Buying Bees
There are a number of ways to get bees. You may be able to buy a
swarm or find one that no one claims. You can often buy established
21
colonies-hive and all-from local beekeepers. Examine the hives
carefully to make sure they are in good condilion. Make sure you get an
inspection certificate from an apiary inspector. Your county agent or
counselor can tell you more about Htis. Inspection is necessary so that
you don't buy a diseased hive.
You won't get diseased colonies if you buy package bees. This method
of buying is recommended for beginners. You'lI find package bees adver-
tised in the beekeeping magazines listed at the end of this pamphieL
These packages actually are wire cages containing 7,000 to 10.000
bees. Two-and three-pound packages are the most common. You get a
queen bee with each package unless you state that you don't want one.
There's also a small feeder filled with syrup in each package.
Where you live will determine when to buy bees. In general, the fruit
bloom period is considered a good delivery time. Your bees should
arrive 7 or 8 weeks before the main honey now if you are to obtain a
honey crop.
Installing package Bees
You'd have a hard time moving into a hoose that was only half buill.
wouldn't you? Bees can'l move into a hive that isn't ready, either. Each
hive should be placed where it will remain. Use a hive body and 10
frames with full sheets of loundation and an empty super. Have a
leeder filled and ready lor use.. You can make a good feed by dissolving
one to one-and-a-half parts white cane sugar in one part warm waler
by volume. You'lI need 20 pounds of sugar for each package of bees. If
you don't use combs containing pollen, make sure you install your bees
when conditions for gathering pollen are lavorable.
If you buy package bees. here's a step-by-step outline of what to do.
First, leed the new arrivals. You can do this by shaking, painting, or
spraying the sugar syrup on the bees through the cage sides.
Next, put the package in a cool room unlil evening when you'll house
your new friends. Or if it's a cloudy and cool day, you can install them
any time.
If the bees are not quiet. wet them down with warm water or sugar
syrup. Bounce the cage on the ground to shake the bees to the boUom.
Pry the cover off the c..1se. exposing the feed can, and remove lhe can so
you can take out the cage holding the queen. (See illustration, page 20,)
This cage usually is fastened with a wire to the top of the package. Put
the package cover back 10 prevent escape of the bees from the package.
22
II the queen is alive. remove the paper or cork from the candy end of
her cage. Run a match or small nail through the candy so the bees will
start at once to remove the candy and release the queen. The queen
may be dead upon arrival. In that case, follow the instructions that
came with the package.
Next. suspend the queen cage between two frames at one side of the
hive body and shake most of the bees onto the top of the frames over
the queen cage. Place tbe package (open side down) on top of the
frames on the side away from the queen cage. Place the feeder can over
the cluster of bees surrounding the queen cage, just in front or or
behind the queen cage. Set the empty super on the bottom hive body
and close the hive. Reduce hive entrance to 3 or 4 inches to prevenl
robbing.
Don't bother the colony for a week except to give it sugar syrup. Feed
it all the syrup it will use until the foundation frames in the bottom hive
body are buill into combs.
After the week is up, examine the colony to see whether the queen
has been released and accepted. Look for eggs or brood in comb that
has been built-don't try to find the queen. If you find eggs or brood,
close the hive and leave it another week. U you don't find either, look
again in 2 days. If you still don't find evidence of the queen. either unile
the bees with a colony that has a queen or introduce another queen.
After the package has been installed for 1week. consider your colony
established. Remove the queen cage, package, and feeder that came
with the original package. The regular feeding of tbe colony must be
continued. There are other ways to install package bees.
Opening the Hive
Once your colony is establisbed. there will be times when you'lI have
to examine the hive. For example. you'll have to check for disease:
you'lI have to see that brood rearing is going along all right; you'll have
to check the bees' food supply and find out whether the queen is a good
one; you may have to add more room, remove honey-filled supers, or
get the colon)' ready lor winler. You'll find that it's best to open a hive
on a warm day. preferably between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Bees are less
likely to sting lhen. DOll't open a hive after a chilly rain.
You'll need your bee smoker and hive tool. Wear your veil and a bee
suit or olher suitable clothing. Most beginners wear gloves, although
they usuall)' discard them laler as being too clumsy. Light your smoker
23
24
To open II hive, first direct two
or three puffs 01 smoke at the
IInlt.nell. Work from aide 01
hive.
Neld, rwmove outer coyitt'. pry
up Inner cover, end blow MY-
.,.1 puft:I of smoU over frames.
Remove Il1Ime nearnl you Ilrst.
The queen Is seldom close to
the.lde.
and make sure it stays liL Now you're ready to open the hive.
Approach the hive from the side. staying out 01 the bees' line of flight
It's best 10 have the sun at your back. Blow two or three puffs of smoke
into the hive entrance-it'll calm the guards. (See illustration, page 24.)
Next, take off the outer cover if you have one, and direct a puff of
smoke into the opening in the center 01 the inner cover. Then push your
hive 1001 under the inner cover. Thai should leave a space of about an
eighth of an inch. Blow in a little smoke. then let the cover down for a
second. Work slowly. gently. You don't want 10 kill a bee and excite
olher bees to sting.
Take il easy with the smoke during the entire operation. Too much
smoke may stampede and disorganize your bees. A good guide is Ihis: 11
a lot of bees' heads are sticking up between Ihe fTames, and they look
like they're ready 10 fly off, a Iitlle more smoke is needed. II lhey act
nervous and line up between the tops of the frames, use )'Our smoker.
un the cover again and use a little more smoke. You may lind that
the frames are glued together with propolis. If they are. insert )'Our hive
tool between the frame and the hive wall nearest you and then genUy
pry the frames toward the cenler. Next insert )'Our hive tool between
the first frame and the one next to if and pry the first frame loose.
Always lake the first or second frame out first as it is less likely 10 con-
tain the queen or brood. Lilt out the frame by taking hold of the ends
of the lOp bar. Set the frame against the front corner of the hive so the
queen can nnd her way into the hive if she is on these combs.
When putting the hive back in order. return all the frames but the
first Crowd the frames against the far side. put in your first frame. then
space the others oul. Before closing the hive. place the end bars oltbe
outside frames about one.quarter inch from the side of the hive.
Some other operation hints: Avoid jerky, nervous movements. Don't
jolt or jar tbe hive. Keep your smoker handy and use it occasionally to
keep bees subdued. Don't drop a frame into a hive. Replace all frames
in original order.
Of course )'Ou don't have 10 lear down the whole hive to see what
your bee5 are doing. You can insert your hive tool, lift one end of the
super, and tilt it on an angle to check.
Finding the oueen
You'll have to open a hive to lind the queen when she is 10 be
replaced. This is one of the few times )'Ou'll actually need to lind the
25
queen. Being able to re1:ognize the work of a failing queen Is more
Important. If a queen Is failing, you'll find one or more of these: a
shrinking of the brood area to half normal size: scattered brood-that
is, the brood is not in a compact mass. but is in more or less scattered
and disconnected areas on the same comb; or a drone brood in the
brood area. Some queens just get too old to do a good job. A drop in
honey production may inclicate that you have a failing queen. Also,
there is a tendency for a colony to swarm if a queen is failing.
If you decide the queen should be replaced, your next job is to lind
her. There are a number of ways to do this. Here's one method. Open
the hive as already described. (If there is brood in two stories, take the
upper story aU and sel it on the cover, then examine the lower story
first.) Remove the outside frame and examine one frame alter another
until you find the queen. The queen is usually on or near a comb
containing eggs. If there are no eggs or young larvae in either story and
there are some queen cells started, you can be prelty sure there is no
queen in the hive.
If you jar the hive or use too much smoke the queen may hide and
she'll be hard to find. In such a case, you might use a queen excluder in
either of these ways. Put an empty chamber on the bottom board. and
pUI your excluder over it. Shake the bees into the story above the
excluder. and with smoke force the bees to run through the excluder to
empty the chamber. The queen will then be found on the excluder. Or
you can remove all hive bodies from the bottom board and put on your
excluder. Then pul an empty hive body on top of the excluder. Next
shake your bees from the combs to a place in front of the Ilive. The bees
will return to the hive, leaving the queen on the excluder.
Requeening
Find the queen, and you can dequeen your colony. Keep the old queen
in a cage without her attendant bees. The cage can be put between
combs of brood above an excluder of some other colony until the new
queen starts to lay.
You'll find thai it's best to introduce a new queen during a light honey
flow. Queens are better accepted then. Buy a queen from a reliable.
eSlablished queen breeder.
Your queen will come in a mailing cage. Follow Ihe instructions thaI
come with this cage. First, remove any queen cells that are presenl In
your colony before you introduce this new queen. Next remove the
26
address card thaI's on the cage, but do it carefully. Don't tear off the
pasteboard that covers the hole in the end of the candy compartment.
You can lay the cage, wire<loth cover side down, aver the space between
the hive frames. Sometimes the cage is placed on its side between two
top bars. Or it can be stood on end. with the candy end up, on the
bottom board between two brood combs.
Some bees will find the queen while other bees gnaw away the paste-
board over the end. Then they'll eat out the candy and the queen will
walk out. This takes about 2'1 hours. When the candy is gone, the bees
will be accustomed to the new queen and should accept her.
27
Tn... bees nave built "burr" comb on 1h. underside ol1ne nl.,. cover. Tnla la
a sign they need more room 'or ncmey stol'1lge.
28
1

,
I
spring
Management
If you're just staJting oul wilh bees, your springtime job will be rela
tively simple. But if you have overwintered colonies, you'll be as busy
with your bees as the bees are busy themselves. You-and your bees-
will be getting ready for the big honey flow, your harvest season. You'll
add bees to weak colonies, maybe unile weak colonies, inlroduce new
queens, take care of swarms, do your spring feeding and other chores.
We'lI lake a look al those jobs laler. First, let's see what Ihe new bee-
keeper will have to do.
Civing supers
One of your first jobs as a new beekeeper will be to add a super to
your hive. We can't tell you exactly when to do this, but we can give you
a general idea. Your merit badge counselor can advise you more
specifically.
In general, don't add a super untiJ tbe colony occupies all the firsl
story of your hive and has became crowded enough to welcome more
room. Don't let that first story get 100 crowded though. Usually a super
is given when while extensions of the upper cells af tbe combs are
noticed.
Other things to cbeck: Queen performance, disease, stores (make sure
they're ample). swarming indications. The entrance should be small at
first and enlarged as the weather gels wanner. After spring, you man
age and manipulate your bees as you would any established colony.
House Cleaning
If you've been keeping bees aU winter. your first spring job will be
some housecleaning. Once the weather warms up. take a look at the
entrances to all hives. If you don'l see any bees flying, knock at the front
door and wait for an answer. II no one comes aut, open the hive. If the
bees are dead, close the hive; block off the entrance. Then as soon as
possible gel rid of the dead bees. You can bury them, but do it awny
from your apiary. Examine the combs for disease or have an experienced
beekeeper or a bee inspector check them. Store the supers where bees
29
can't get to them. Combs [rom diseased colonies should be burned.
Clean all the. e.ntrances where you find bees flying. If possible, clean
off the bottom boards. Remove any dead bees, bils of wax, and dirl
Examining Overwintered Colonies
You should examine your live, overwintered colonies on a bright,
warm, early spring day when the bees are flyinS and preferably when
there is a lighl honey flow. The temperature should be near 70_Open
and examine the hive as described earlier. This examination should
lake only a few minutes in order 10 avoid chilling the brood. What are
you going to look for? Here's a check list:
(I) Does the colony have a good queen? Thai is, are there eggs and
brood of all stages? (2) Does the colony have enough stores? In seneral.
you should find the equivalent 01 about 15 to 20 pounds of honey (three
(0 four frames) if the colony is strong. If you can see sealed honey alons
the lop of the frame, you can usually figure thaI the colony has enough
for about IO days. (3) Are there enough bees to care for the brood nest?
A strong colony will cover three to four combs and there should be
brood on at least three combs. (4) Is disease present? Check all dead
and weak colonies. Never use equipment from diseased colonies until it
is sterilized.
If you have strong colonies when you first examine your hives, they
probably will not need allention until the brood nest begins to get
crowded.
First Manipulations
Have you examined all your colonies? II you have, chances are you
ran into al leasl one of the conditions iIIuslrated here, " you did, the
instructions below will help you manipulate your hives. Of course, there
will be other condilions in some apiaries. In that case, consult your
merit badge counselor. Don't attempt any manipulations unless your
colonies are disease free. Here are the more common conditions:
Being queenless, Colony A (see drawins at left) should be united with
Colony C. which is fairly strong, but is in need of more bees and stores.
Colony B has enough bees and brood. but needs stores. It should be fed
15 to 20 pounds of sugar syrup. Colony 0 is queen-right, has enough
honey, but needs hees. Here you have two choices: you can add a
queenless 2-pound package of bees or unite it with a queenless colony.
E is a strong colony. Leave it alone for now. Thai half frame of brood F
30
Queenlen
Que;;;' right
Queen right
3 frames haney
5 frames haney
2 frames haney
3 frames bees
3 frames bees
3 frames bees
No broad
Vl frame brood
1 frame brood
I
A
D
G
Queen right Queen right
Queen right
2 frames honey 5 frames honey
.4 frames honey
6 frames bees Bframes bees
6 frames bees
3 fromes brood 4 frames brood
1 frame broad
B E
H
Queen right
Failing Queen
3 frames honey
5 frames honey
3 frames bees
5 frames bees
I frame brood
'h: frome brood
C F
indicates a failing queen. This colony should be united with a queen-
right colony that lacks bees and stores, such as G. Colony H needs more
brood. Watch this hive, If the queen doesn't expand the brood nest
soon. she should be replaced with a young laying queen. Your colonies
should reach their proper strength between 6 and 8 weeks alter Ihese
manipulations.
Uniting Colonies
Making one colony out of two is fairly easy if you use the newspaper
method. Jt works like this.
Smoke the bees in the stronger colony (always add the weak colony to
the stronger one.) Remove the cover and inner cover. exposing the
frames. Next, cover the frames with one sheel of newspaper and put on
the weak colony. minus the boltom board. Don't leave any openings.
This forces your bees to gnaw through the paper and unite with the
31
When cUpping the wings of a
queen, hold her ahown. Clip
the large wing on one side, on
top. Practice on drone. first.
stronger colony. Because this takes a while. there will be Iitlle or no
fighting between the two colonies. Punch a small hole (use a pendl
point) in the paper only if it is hot or quite warm.
Adding paCkage Bees
You can make weak colonies strong by adding queenless packages of
bees belore the honey flow. But how many bees do you add? Here's a
fairly good yardstick: If there are about three frames of bees and a
young queen in the weak colony, introduce a 3-pound package of bees.
But if the colony has nearly eight frames of bees. I pound of queenless
bees is enougb.
Before you add the new bees, cage the queen and leave her caged lor
a few days. This will keep the new bees from killing her. Next. wet the
package bees with sugar syrup and sprinkle syrup liberally over the
combs of the weak colony. Shake the wet bees on top of the frames or
into a space made by removing three of four frames. Lastly, replace the
frames and cover the hive.
Clipping the Oueen
By the time it's warm enough to start unpacking overwintered colonies,
you can dip the queens. A light honey flow should be in progress.
Clipping should only be done after the
queen is mated. Of course, if you bought
your queen lrom a breeder it will have
been mated and will be laying. You
can ask the breeder to clip her lor you.
Beekeepers clip the wings of queens
to make them easier to identify. This
also keeps the Queen from leaving with
a swarm. Then when the bees miss her,
the swarm will return to the hive.
When handling a queen bee, care-
lully pick her up by the wings with
your thumb and forefinger. Don't pick
her up by the abdomen. To do the clip-
ping, transler the queen to your left
hand. pUlting your thumb under her
and your forefinger over her as illus
trated .11 left. She won't sting. Next.
32
using a line pair of scissors. clip off baH of one pair of wings. Or you
can clip just the large wing on one side. Some beekeepers clip the left
wing one year and the right wing the next year so they can tell how old
the queen is.
If you are a beginner. practice Ihis dipping procedure with some
drones first. When you Ihink you can do it well. practice with a few
workers belore dipping a queen.
Some beekeepers mark their queens to make them easy to find. If you
do this, mark them with a small spot of paint or nail polish on the
thorax-not the abdomen.
Spring Feeding
Bees can starve. In fact. starvation is one of the main causes of
unprofitable beekeeping. Food is especially important in late spring and
jwt before the major honey flow. Your bees need plenty of food to rear
brood. Because of the danger of bringing in disease, most beekeepers
feed sugar syrup rather than honey.
To make syrup lor spring feeding, mix one part of hot water and one
part 01 granulated sugar. Add the sugar to the water and keep stirring
until the sugar is dissolved. You can pUI the syrup in a shallow pan.
cover it with cheesecloth to keep your bees from drowning, and put it in
an empty super on top of the brood nest. Or you can put the syrup in a
friction-lap honey pail and put the pail on lOp 01 the brood Irames in
an empty super. Some beekeepers use an entrance feeder to encourage
brood rearing. Do your feeding in the evening to prevent robbing.
Some apiarists feed dry sugar instead of syrup. When a colony is
short of stores tbey simply scalier sugar on top 01 the inner cover. The
block over the bee escape is removed. The bees soon go to the field.
bring in water, then make their own syrup.
Rabbing
Bees can be criminals-robbers. And if they ever stage a fullfledged
robbery in your apiary you'll never forget it. Any bee can become a
robber. The more loot bees can steal. lhe worSe they get. They'll excite
other bees and before you know il there will be a roaring battle under
way that may last for days.
There can be a robbery any time, but it usually takes place when no
honey is coming in. The robbers generally overpower the guards of a
weak colony and cart the food supply back to their hive. You can spol
33
Overcrowded Brood Nest
tt you spot robber beet: around a hive,
put green weeds or grau in entJ1lnce
to help keep them out. The grass will
dry out after the robbers.,. gone, and
bees can then gel out.
If, soon alter a hive is unpacked. you notice lhat the brood nest is
bulging with honey, consider it a warning sign-the hive is gelting
overcrowded. 11 you don't provide more room, swarming preparations
will result. You can give your overcrowded bees more room in different
ways.
Ha colony has been wintered in a standard brood nest with a shallow
hive body on lOp of it. the queen usually starts laying in the shallow
hive body come spring. When it gets overcrowded you simply reverse
the two sections. You put the shallow hive body on the bottom board
and the deep chamber on top of the shallow hive body. Add another
swarming
super on top to provide space for bees and nectar storages.
Suppose you wintered your bees in two standard hive bodies. You
simply reverse the two hive bodies and add a super.
Maybe you wintered your colony in a single standard brood nest. In
that case, when it gets overcrowded you would simply add a hive body
containing worker comb. You could put in frames of foundation, but
only if the bees are gathering nectar.
Bees like to swarm. II's their way of dividing a colony. Part 01 a colony
leaves to set up a new home. They leave enough bees behind to main
tain the old or parent colony. If you have only a few colonies and want
to increase the nwnber. you might welcome a swarm. But you'll have 10
know how to handle thai swann. Most beekeepers try to prevent swann-
ing and divide their colonies themse.Jves. To prevenl swarming you must
know how to recognize swarming preparations..
U a colony has been busy but suddenly quits working. and you see
bees hanging around the hive, the colony may be gelling ready to
swarm. If you find a lot of queen cells ready to be sealed you can
expect a swarm I or 2 days after the first cell is sealed.
Eliminating the causes of swarming, of course, is how you prevent
bees from swarming. These are the main causes: Overcrowding; lack of
ventilation in the hive: lack 01 combs for brood rearing and for storing
nectar and boney; presence of old queens; confinement of bees to the
hive because of weatber during normal swarming period; too much
heat from the sun; instinct
Of course you can't do very much about a bee's instinct to swarm.
This instinct is stronger in some bee races and strains than in others.
Thus the bee breeder can innuence this instinct some. Clipping a
queen helps prevent a swarm from going too far from the apiary:
Providing shade for the hive also helps. If there is a lack of ventilation
(usually because of hot. sultry weather) you might put I-inch blocks
between the bottom board and the hive at the comers. Make sure your
bees have plenty of room for brood rearing and for ripening and storing
their crop. If the drones get numerous, destroy the drone comb and
replace it with worker comb. Leave only a few drones. Keeping young
queens and providing ample comb space help prevent swarming.
Toward the end of the period before the main honey flow. thousands
of worker bees will emerge. They're rather dumsy at first. getting in the
-
-
robbers quite easily. If you see bees nying around Ihe hive corners or
entrances with a quick, sneaky malian, suspect robbery. These robbers
acl as illhey expecl to be jumped al any time. They're shiny and sleek.
Don't confuse them with bees al
play. Young bees al play will ny
around in front of a hive, but
there's no fighling, no sneaking
around, and the play soon stops.
Fortunately, there are ways to
prevent robbing. Here are a few:
Keep all colonies slrong. Only
weak colonies are robbed. Don'l
leave honey or cappings exposed.
When honey is scarce, don't leave
a hive open long. Reduce the en-
trance of a weak colony so only
one bee at a time can be let in
by the bee guards. Keep the hive
cover bee-Iighl.
To stop robbing when you think
it's starling, put a bunch 01 loose
grass over the hive entrance. The
hive guards will hide in the grass
and take care of any robbers that
try 10 come through. (See illustra-
tion al right.)
34
35
way of others, and often shulting off air to some parts of the hive. This
naturally results in swanning preparations. To keep the bees from $Warm-
ing you might try this:
Put all or almost all of the sealed brood in the lower brood chamber
aJong with the Queen_ Destroy all queen cells and pUI a queen excluder
over the chamber. On lop of the excluder put one or two supers of
empty combs, then put on the second brood chamber holding the
unsealed brood. Destroy any Queen cells that have been started. As the
brood emerges in the upper chamber, it will be replaced with honey.
There are other methods of doing this. Discuss them with you counselor
and use the method that will work best for you.
Hiving a SWarm
Despite all these swarm-prevention practices, your bees might still
swarm. The swarm probably will cluster on some nearby ob;ect. Remove
the brood nesl and supers from the stand and replace them wilh a new
hive body containing (rames of foundation and a frame 01 unsealed
brood from the old colony. Put the brood frame in the center, the
frames of foundation on the outside. Put the empty super from the old
colony on top of the new hive body. Next. set the old brood nest (parent
colony) on a stand about 5 yards (TOm the new hive. Tum its entrance
away from the new hive. Next, collect the swarm and hive it In the new
hive body.
Uyour bees cluster on a bush or tree limb, you can shake them into a
basket or other conlainer and take them back to the hive. You may be
able to cut oflthe branch containing the cluster. If you can't shake the
object or cut it off, you can brush the bees inlO your conlainer. At the
hive, shake Ihe bees onlo the alighting board. The bees will usually
crawl righl in. Keep your smoker handy though. You may have 10
smoke or brush them in.
U the queen isn't with them, your bees will slarl runnins out of the
hive again looking lor her. When that happens, look for the queen. She
may be at the original clustering place or somewhere around the hive
altended by a small group 01 bees.
As a precaution, some beekeepers place an excluder between the
bollom board and the bottom super to prevenlthe queen from leavinll
t he hive afler the swarm has settled on the combs.
The field bees in the old brood nesl will go lnlo the field. When lhey
return they'll go 10 the former location of their hive. There, of course,
36
they'll find the new hive and join Ihe swarm. This should weaken the
parent colony enough to prevent any more swarming. You should also
remove all but one or two queen cells from the parent colony when you
move the brood nesl to its new location.
The parenl colony is now a new colony and can be left to rear a
queen of its own. The new queen will emerge, the combs will gel filled
with brood and honey, and you may have to add a super. II the nights
are cool, make sure the colony doesn't gel chilled.
Artificial Increase of Colonies
When to increase you colonies will depend on two things: whether
your main object is to produce a crop of honey or whether your sole
object is 10 increase Ihe number of colonies. U you're alter honey, you
should nol increase your colonies at the height of a honey flow Start in
the spring. Bul don't overdo it. And don't take away from a colony
unless il can weU spare the bees and combs. There are a number of
ways 10 increase colonies. Here are two.
Prepare a new hive. then fill it with frames containing brood and
bees (not the Queens) taken from several colonies. Introduce a new,
fertile queen. Stuff the entrance tightly with green grass so the bees
cannot leave.. The grass will will in a few days and allow the bees to
leave the hive. u ~ a shade board on the hive until the colony is
established. Don'l forget 10 put frames filled with foundation in the
hives [rom which you look the brood frames and bees.
Some beekeepers take the Queen of a colony and half of the sealed
and unsealed brood and bees and put them in a brood chamber on a
bottom board of a new stand. Plenty of room and honey are given until
the first honey flow. The other half of the original colony is given a new
Queen. II's also given room and honey the same as the new colony. If.
you want 10 increase )'Our colonies, ask your counselor for advice on
what to do.
37
38
Summer
Management
Are you ready for the honey now? Lel's make a quick check to see
whether you are. Make sure your colonies are completely free of disease.
Are your hives fuJi of bees? The Queens should have their hives full of
brood, with enough room for their egg laying. Swarming intentions
should be under control. What about honey production equipment?
Make sure you have everything ready belore the honey flow starts.
If you live in a northern stale. the boney flow may start in June or
July; in the southern stales it may be a couple of months earlieI'. In the
far west and in the sweet clover and alfalfa regions. the main honey
flow usually starts about the first of August. In California and Florida,
the honey flow will come in March and April.
producing Extrocted Honey
As a beginner you'U find it a lot of fun to produce both extracted and
comb honey. Too, you'll learn more about honey production than you
would if you specialized. You can let your strongest colonies produce
comb honey, your weaker colonies exlracted honey-or chunk honey if
you don't have extracting equipment
Of course. large commercial apiaries generally specialize. They pro-
duce either all exlracted honey or all comb honey. II you go into large-
scale beekeeping some day, that's what you'll want to do.
Until the main honey now starts. the job of the extracted-honey pro-
ducer is the same as that of the comb-honey producer. But starting at
the time of the honey (low. their jobs differ. So to avoid confusion, Jet's
discuss the jobs separately.
Equipment
First. of course, you'll need supers. You'll find it best to use shallow
supers. They're not too heavy for Scouts to handle, and Ihey also can be
used for comb-honey production. For extracted honey, have at least two
or three supers for each hive. You'll need a queen excluder to keep the
39
EItracting
When uncapping, move the !mile back
and forth you work up the comb.
Lean the comb lorward so the cap-
pings wllllall clear of the comb.
queen from getting intn the supers. You'll also need bee escapes, a
pair of uncapping knives, containers for your finished product, an extrac
tor that can take two or three frames, two tubs, cheesedoth for straining.
a funnel, and a lamp stove for heating your uncapping knives. You can,
of course, buy complete extracting ouUits.
II you have only two or three colonies, you'll probably produce chunk
honey-square chunks cut out of frames with a hot knife. You don't
need uncapping knives or extracting equipment. Use thin surplus, not
wired, foundations.
putting on Supers
Once you have your equipment and hives ready for the honey now,
your next job is adding supers for the honey harvest Exactly when to
put on that first super will depend upon your location. In general, add
a super when the honey flow begins. A guide used by some beekeepers
is this: If the combs look white along the top bars, pUI on the lirst super.
the bees should be busy flying in and out of the hive entrance. In some
areas the honey flow is large and starts suddenly. Beekeepers there put
on supers before the combs get whitened. Find out what others in your
area do.
Put on one super at a time. II you have a few combs that are partly
filled with honey, you might put them in the cenler of your firsl super.
Tbey'll act as bait to draw your bees up. Once the bees are well slarted
and the honey flow is strong, put on another super. This system is
known as top supering. You can add more supers later, but don't put
them on too fast. Make sure your bees need more room. If you add
supers too fast, they may get only half filled.
Your first super is usually ready 10 be removed for extracting once it
is two-thirds or more capped over. (Capped over means that the honey
is sealed into the cell with wax.) First. take off all supers. lhen put back
the super that is next nearest full. Next. put on a bee escape board. fiat
side down, bee space up. The super thaI's ready for extracting now goes
on top. The bees in this super will go down in about 48 hours. Then the
super is ready for removal from the hive. Be sure covers are light with
no holes where robber bees can get in. Instead of using a bee escape,
some keepers brush or shake the bees into the second super.
Once the honey flow starts letting up, SlOp adding supers. lei your
bees fillihe supers you have on the hive. Remove the honey as fast as it
becomes ripe.
40
You'll find that extracting is easier if you can go to work right after
you take your combs from the hive. Having all your equipment in place
and ready to use will make the
work easier, too. For example,
heat ){)ur uncapping knives ahead
of time.
First. you uncap the combs. (See
illustration at left.) Rest the comb
on a crossbar over the tub that is
10 receive the honey and cappings.
Next, use your knife to slice the
cappings from the comb. Start at
the bottom and move upward,
sawing back and forth. As you
uncap. till the comb forward a
little at the top and the cappings
will drop neatly into Ihe tub. Un
cap both sides of Ihe comb.
Alter all the combs are un
capped, load the extractor so that
combs of about equal weight are
opposite each other. Twn the crank
a few times. slowly. Then reverse
the combs (or direction of pockets if you have a reversible extractor) and
tum the crank until the second side is dean of honey. Reverse the frames
~ n .and extract the remaining honey. Lift oul the combs and put them
nght mto supers. When a super is filled wilh combs. put it back on the
hive if the honeyflow is still on. Your bees may then refill the combs.
~ h e n you are. done extracting a batch. put the cappings into a large
stramer (make It from cheesecloth) and let them drain into the tub
containing the liquid honey. Or if you have cappings baskets fiJi them
with the cappings and hang them in the extractor. A few f a ~ t turns of
the crank should extract the honey. The cappings can then be washed
and meHed. Cappings make a fine light wax.
Chunk Honey
If you don't have an extractor or if you keep only a few colonies, you
can. of course, produce chunk honey. When your combs are entirely
4'
Comb honey, marketed In cartons
like thll, makes en anfactive package.
Honey .180 I. protected from dust
.nd InHCts.
copped over, you simply lake a hot. thin knife and cut the honey out of
the frames in SQuare chunks. Let the chunks drain overnight on a piece
01 hardware cloth placed over a shallow pan. Then wrap them so lor
your family or for sale to neighbors. Chuck honey should be eaten as
soon as possible, since drainings tend to crystallize rather rapidly. Some
beekeepers put chunk honey in jars.
producing Comb Honey
Beekeepers who live where they have an exceptionally good honey
flow have the most success with comb honey. Sections have to be filled
fast. This type of production is exacting and requires good hive
managemenL As for special eqUipmenL youll need comb-honey supers.
foundation, sections, queen excluders, bee escapes. and containers for
your honey. You do not need uncapping knives, a honey extractor, tubs,
or other equipment used in extracted-honey production.
Hlvl! Management
If you're going to produce comb honey. you'll need strong colonies.
For best results, your comb-honey colonies should each occupy at least
two fulJ.depth hive bodies. These colonies should be welJ.protected from
the wind.
When the first blossoms come out and your bees seem to be flying in
and out of the hives regularly, irs time to put on your first super. You'll
probably notice that the combs
are whitened near the top.
There are, of course, a number
of ways to handle your supers
once !.he main honey flow begins.
Which system you use will depend
on where you live and the type of
apiary you have. II you are a be-
ginner, get advice from your coun-
selor or local beekeepers. They can
tell you exactly what to do. The
following plan--called the Miller
Plan-is used by many beekeepers.
When the main honey now starts,
the oldest brood, with the queen,
is put in the lower brood Ilest The
42
rest of the brood, with enough bees 10 protect it, is set on a new bottom
board al a new localion. A queen excluder and two supers are put over
the full brood nest. Because the bees are then crowded almost to the
point of swarming, you'll find that they usually run into the supers and
start work immediately. II they do not. you can bail them up. You may
have to control swarming preparations after the bees are confined to
the one brood nest. Use methods described earlier.
As long as the honey now is steady, new supers are put just above
the queen excluder. The super most nearly completed is put on top of
the new super. Other supers are arranged on top of this. Exactly how
you arrange supers will depend on how much honey they contain.
Remember, as long as the honey flow is steady the super in which the
most work has been done is placed on top of !.he hive.
Tactics are changed once the height of the honey Dow is over. The
newest super added is put on top of the hive-not directly over the
queen excluder as is done when the honey now is steady. Thus, the bees
will fill the older supers before they slart on a new one. The supers are
removed as fast as they are filled.
What about the extra brood on the new bottom board? You can use it
for several things.. Some beekeepers use it to strengthen weaker colonies.
Some let the brood emerge, !.hen use the new queen to requeen the
parent colony. Or you can let the new colony increase.
Taking OH Honew
You don't have to wait until every section in the super is completely
fdled before you take it off the hive. Beekeepers usually remove the
super when all butlhe sections in the outer rows are finished. Once a
super is ready to be removed, it must first be moved "upstairs" and
cleared or bees. You put an escape board under the finished super. The
cover on top should be IighL Illeft this way overnight, the next day the
finished super usually wUl be free of bees and is then taken ofL
It's best to pack your honey right away. Scrape the sections free of all
propolis. then sort them according to weight, finish. and color. Partly
finished seclions should be placed in supers. These supers can then be
put on strong colonies to be finished. Unless you have a large apiary
and ship comb honey by the case. wrap each section in cellophane
wrappers. J( you intend to sell your comb honey, you might put the
sections in window-type cartons. (See illustrations, page 42.)
If you don't pack your honey risht away, put your supers in tiSh! piles
in a warm, dry room. These supers should be fumigated immediately
43
and every 5 or 6 days thereafter for wax-molb control. Do not use
paradichlorobenzene as the odor can ruin your honey. See paRe 54 for
fumigating practices.
You can gel the liS. honey-grading standards by wriling to the Agri-
cultural Stabilization and Conservation Service. U.S. Department of
Agriculture. Washington, DC 20250. Most local ASCS offices will have
copies of the honey-grade standards_
44
Fall and winter
Management
In the fall you face what you might think will be a dull winter so far
as bees go. But it will only be dull if you make it that way. There are
still a lot of interesting things you can learn about bees, and there are
chores to do.
Did you know that a duster of bees, dosed in a hive during winler,
shou.ld always move up? Why? do you know how hot it is inside one of
these dusters? It can be as high as 93 F. when brood is being reared,
while an inch away from the outer part of the duster it may be well
below freezing. A colony of bees always forms a duster when the
temperature approaches 57 F.
There are many management problems you should know. Let's go
over a few.
Getting Ready fOr Winter
Early fall is the beekeeper's "new year." You'll see why as we list your
chores. $tart preparing your colonies for winter in late August (toward
45
the end of the maln honey flow) by checking your colonies for disease.
Also check your queens. Requeen if necessary. A poor queen means
poor wintering. The only bees that contribute 10 good wintering are
young bees reared from eggs laid in late August or early September.
Remove all surplus honey, even if it is not capped. You'lI want to
reduce your hive to two brood chambers, but you'll have to provide
ample stores. Thai means about 50 pounds of honey in tbe upper
100fTame. full-depth hive body and 20 pounds in the lower hive body.
Put the 20 pounds of honey in the upper pari of the combs, just above
the winter clusler space. If it is available, pUl four to six frames of
pollen in the lower hive body.
If necessary, feed your bees in early lall. This will give them enough
time to slore and ripen the sugar solution. Feed them a thick sugar
syrup-two parts sugar. one part water.
Late summer or early fall is the time to unite weak or queenless
colonies with medium or strong colonies. When a hive is ready for
winter, at least six combs in the lower chamber should be covered with
bees. All these fall preparations should be completed by the middle of
fall-Octoher 15. in most areas.
Windbreaks
LeI's lake a recheck: Are your colonies strong'? Do they have enough
honey-50 to 60 pounds per colony? Pollen? Do you have }'Qung queens,
young bees? Those are the imporlant factors in colony make-up for
wintering bees. Providing a windbreak also is important. A windbreak
is any protective shelter [rom the wind. This windbreak might be a
heavy growth of bushes or young trees, or a slalted board fence. Your
apiary should be located so that the fence or trees keep the prevailing
winds from hitting your beehives. A solid board fence wnuld not work
since the wind would bounce off the fence. travel up. then be forced
down on the opposite side-right in your apiary.
Each hive should have a watertight cover. Better weight it down, 100,
so it won't be blown off. Keep your hives well painted. If you live north
of the snow line, you may want 10 pack your colonies for the winter. In
the south, wind protection usually is alilhal is needed.
packing
If you'll be wintering bees for the first lime, ask your counselor if
packing is necessary in you area. If it is, perhaps he'lI help you get
46
In reaUy cold ar.a., some bee-
keepers us...phlilt shellthlng
paper for winter packing. Leaves,
straw, or other InsulatIon Is sluffed
between the paper lind the hive.
After II lop entrance bfock Is naill
on. lop, the lop of the paper is
folded In. middle, then secured
with the outer hive cover and
twine, below.
paper method. often called slaler's--
felt method, has become quite pop--
ular where packing is practiced.
Asphalt p a p e ~ single- or double-
ply. is fastened with tacks or lalh
to the sides and ends of the lower
pari of the hive. Then insulation
material (dry, not green. forest
leaves, sawdust. wheat straw, clo-
ver chaff) is put in between the
paper and the hive. The four cor-
ners are filled first, then the sides.
The top of the hive is covered with
8 to 12 inches of insulation. The
started. Fmd out all you can about
difJerent ways to pack hives. then
pick the method best suiled to you.
There are many methods-some
quite expensive, others relatively
cheap.
You can put your hives in
wooden packing cases. Some bee-
keepers wrap their hives in news-
paper, then cover wil h tar paper.
Others use different types of insu
lation board. Some simply use
leaves. The following asphalt-
47
paper is then folded down and tacked with nails. Often
a second strip of paper is then placed over the hive and tied down. If
the hives have telescopic covers with inner covers, the telescope covers
are removed and put on top of the packed hive, weighted with bricks. If
the hives do not have inner covers, the outer covers are left on.
lf snowfall is usually heavy in your area, or if the lower entrance gets
closed by ice, a top entrance should be used. To make this upper
entrance simply drill a small hole (five-eights or t h r e ~ u a r t e r s of an
inch in diameter) just above the handhole of the hive body. Use an
entrance block as illustrated.
If you do not pack your colonies, you'll want to have an upper
entrance in the event that the lower entrance is closed by snow or ice.
Bees may also get out an upper entrance for flights during the winter.
The lower entrance probably should not be closed entirely, even in
areas having a very cold climate, In other areas the lower entrance
should be reduced in size. To keep mice out of your hives you can use
entrance screens of halfinch hardware cloth.
Bee Diseases
As well organized and well run as a colony 01 bees is, there's one
thing the bees can't handle. That's disease. Even the beekeeper can find
disease "too hot to handle." Disease has put thousands of beekeepers
oul of business. It has caused losses amounting to millions 01 dollars.
Today, fortunately, there are many good disease-control measures. If
you are going to keep bees----even one colony-you'll want to make
yourself thoroughly familiar with the main bee diseases and how to
control them. Read whal follows here, but also read other literature,
ask questions 01 other beekeepers, and seek advice.
State or county bee inspectors will help you. If you suspect trouble in
a colony, call your county inspector or get a sample ul the diseased
comb to your nearest bee culture laboratory.
American Faulbraad
49
The most common brood disease is American foulbrood. It is also the
most destructive. A brood disease is one that attacts brood. Some dis-
eases also affect adult bees.
The American foulbrood germ kills the bee larvae soon after the cells
are sealed. Diseased colonies have cells with sunken, darkened, greasy-
looking cappings, often with
irregular holes or perforations. If
you look into diseased cells you'll
find lan, coltee-brown to brownish--
black dead larvae lying length-
wise along the lower cell wall.
Olten the tongue of a diseased
larvae sticks to the top 01 the cell.
Stick a toothpick into the decayed
body. (See illustration at left.)
The sticky, gluelike contents olten
will cling to the toothpick and
string out when you pull the toolh--
pick oul. You'll also notice a dis-
agreeable odor. Put the toothpick
in your smoker so it will be
burned up.
To lesl lor American foulbrood, push
a toolhplck Into a punctured capping,
then pull II oul slowly, If the cell la
diseased, Ihe ropy browniah remains
will stnllich oul aa shown here. Bum
the toothpkk.
Winter Chores
Once your bees are sel for the winter, leave them alone. Don't open a
hive. You might look the colonies over occasionally to see Lhat entrances
are not clogged with dead bees or ice. If a colony dies, dose it up, find
the cause, and dispose of it as described earlier.
Winter is also a good time 10 check over and repair your equipment.
Get you spare combs, hive bodies, and extracting equipment ready for
spring and summer use.
4B
t .'
Heads of larvae deld trom sacbrood
point up towlrd the top walll of the
ceUI. Other bees removed lome
capplngs.
You can cure this disease. Your bees will lend a hand, 100. They will
remove the diseased larvae. You should strengthen infected colonies by
adding more bees. Dequeen for awhile to break the broodrearing cycle.
This will give your bees more time to clean up the colony.
Antibiotics, primarily terramycin, have been used in the prevention
and cure of European foulbrood, Check with the entomologist al your
state experiment station for the latest recommendations. European foul
brood is found in all slates.
Other Brood Diseases
Parafoulbrood is another brood disease, but it is found only in a few
areas, generally in North and South Carouna. Georgia. and Florida.
The disease usually attacks the larvae before the cells are sealed, but
sometimes it kills late larvae in sealed cells and also young pupae. The
dead brood is first grayish white, then gets light brown. brown, reddish
brown, or dark brown. (See illustration below.) The dead brood will be
found stretched out on the cell floor. heads raised. Scales are easily
removed from the cells. If you have any doubts about what disease it is.
seek expert advice. Conlrol is the same as for European foulbrood.
A fourth brood disease. found in almost all areas, is called sacbrood.
It seldom causes serious losses. In colonies with sacbrood. the brood is
slightly irregular. Scattered here and there you'll find cells containing
dead brood. The cappings over dead brood are first punctured and
This section of brood comb II Infected
with parafoulbrood. The dead drone
Is Ql'"ayllh white It first, then tums
brown.
European foulbrood is a tricky disease. It'll often show up when
beekeepers least expect it. Fortunately. it is not as common as Ameri
can foulbrood. A larva is attacked and usually dies before the cell is
sealed. It generally turns a light yellow; later a grayish or blackish
color. It gives off a slightly sour odor. The larva loses its rounded form
and can be found in almost any position in the cell. The best way to
prevent European foulbrood is to keep strong colonies with young vigor-
ous queens.
European Foulbrood
There are control measures. State laws and regulations help control
this disease. But since bee inspectors can't inspect every colony. you
should do the following: Donl buy bees in hives unless you're sure they
are healthy. Don't use borrowed equipment unless you know irs disease:
free. Make sure there is no source or infection within bee flight of your
apiary. Feed disease-free honey only. Insp<."Ct your colonies for disease
regularly. Learn all symptoms. If you suspect disease. get experl advice,
do nol transfer combs Irom a suspect hive. and guard against robbing.
Sodium sulfathiazole or terramycin are used in many areas to help
(ight this disease. However. some state experiment stations do not rec
ommend using drugs as preventives. If used. they should be fed only as
a preventive in the fall or spring under Ihe advice of your stale ento-
mologist to avoid getting drug residues inlo the honey. Killing and burn
ing the infected colony is the most effective treatmenl.
Before you kill your diseased colony, select a spot thal won't be
disturbed for a long time and dig a hole 24 inches deep. It should be
large enouHh to hold all the materials to be burned. After the bees are
dead, carry your hive to the pit and put it on newspaper or burlap to
calch bits of comb or dead bees that may drop. Start a fire in the pil
When the (ire is burning well put in the bees and combs as fast as
possible. When everytrung is completely burned. rake all the debris
around the pit into the fire and let it burn: then fill the pit with soil.
Honey should not run out of the pit onlO the ground. Always use a pit
for bee burning-not an incinerator.
Save the bottom board. hive bodies, and covers. Scrape them clean,
Catch all scrapings on paper and burn them. Thoroughly scrub the
board, hive bodies, and covers with a strong soap and water. It would
be even bener to use a botlle gas blowtorch to lightly scorch and scrape
the wooden equipment.
50
51
later removed by the bees. (See lIIustration. page 51.) The dead larvae
usually are stretched out full on the cell floor with dark brown or black
heads showing through the openings. It you took out a larva and held it
up. the watery contents would flow to one end. You'd then have a
miniature sack-thus the name sacbrood. There's no definite treal1llent
since this disease usually disappears during a honey flow. Uthe disease
does become serious or prevalent change to queens of a ditferent strain.
Queens should not be reared from a colony containing sacbrood.
Dysentery
Of all the diseases that allack adult bees, dysenlery is about the
worst. I( you live in a warm climate it won't be as serious a problem as
il is for those who live in the northern stales. Dysentery is. more exactly,
diarrhea. Affected bees drop dark, walery excrement over the hives and
combs. This is often referred 10 as "spotting:' Under normal conditions,
bees drop their feces while flying. Suspect dysentery when the hive is
badly spotted in January, February, or a month before warm weather is
due. However, a little spotting-usually a result of a bee night on a
good sunshiny day-is perfecUy normal.
There are several causes of dysentery: lack of a good windbreak.
poor packing. poor and unripened honey, poorly ventilated quarters,
poor fruit juices harvested when there was a lack of honey.
The best preventive measure is to see that your colonies are strong
and large enough lor wintering. A windbreak is a must. Never use
honeydew for winler Slores-use only good, well-ripened sealed honey
or thick sugar syrup. Extract any fruit juices your bees may store in
combs. If the spotting is bad the colony is usually doomed. On the other
hand. if the colony is nol 100 badly SPOiled, dysentery usually dis-
appears with the first flights of the bees.
Nosema Disease
Nosema disease also affects the adult bee. It's caused by a parasite.
Affected bees will be found in front of the hive, usually in the early
spring just before a major honey flow. The bees will be trembling and
crawling around aimlessly. Some will remain inside. The abdomens are
often swollen and look shiny or greasy. Sometimes their wings are
disjointed. In the advanced stages. the bees can't fly.
Having slrong colonies with ample slores and young vigorous queens
are the best preventive measures for this disease. There should be a
52
nearby sourCe of fresh water for your bees, 100. Nosema germs like
stagnant water. Some beekeepers have found that requeening helps.
Research indicates that fumagillin may be effective against Nosema
disease. Ask your state entomologist about it.
paralysis
The symptoms of paralysis are similar to those of Nosema disease.
Affected bees become weak, sluggish, hairless, and shiny, and they
tremble. Their wings are often flattened and disjointed. They either
crawl out of the hive or are pusbed out. The symptoms generally dis-
appear if the colony is given some emerging brood from other colonies
and is requeened with a young, vigorous queen. Paralysis causes more
losses in hot than in cold dimales.
poisoning
Bees can be killed by insecticides that farmers apply to crops 10
control harmful insects. Other pesticides that are applied for disease
control, in a few instances, also may harm bees. Bees that pick up a
pesticide while gathering honey usually die before getting back to the
hive. Pollen collectors. however. bring the tainted pollen back to the
hive for storage. As a result. many nurse bees are poisoned and crawl
out to die, forming a fanlike carpet in front of the hive entrance.
Your best preventive measure against poisoning is to become familiar
with the pesticide program in your area, then manage your bees
accordingly. Avoid putting hives in areas where highly toxic pesticides
(parathion, malalhion, heptachlor, lindane. etc.) are used Some states
prohibit spraying fruit trees when they are in bloom.
Enemies
When it comes to control of the wax rnOlh, an insect thai can destroy
combs at a lerrific rale, we can't emphasize enough whal we've said
again and again-"Keep strong colonies:' In a strong colony, the bees
will destroy the wax moth larvae and carry them oUI of a hive. The
wax moth can make headway only in weak colonies.
Wax moth eggs are laid in small cracks and crevices about the hive.
When the larvae hatch Ihey eat the combs, reducing them to a mass of
webs and waste material. Next. Ihey cal a depression in the wood of
frames and spin their cocoons.
53
Beekeepers who have nondescript black bees and find wax worms in
their live colonies usually requeen with an Italian queen. They may add
a pound of Italian bees to destroy the worms.
Wax moths can get into stored combs. To prevent this, you can put all
your empty combs in hives with entrances dosed and leave them out
until after a good winter freeze. This will kill eggs. larvae, and adult
moths. In warm areas, you can fumigate their combs. Get adult help
when you do any fumigating. Paradichlorobenzene can be sprinkled on
top of some paper and put on top of a tier of combs. Everything is
covered with a tight lid and left a few days.
Mice will damage stored equipment or colonies if proper precautions
are not taken. Keep slored combs in rodentproof buildings. You can
use wire screen guards over the entrances 01 wintered hives. Skunks
can be trapped or killed. You can also drive them away by sprinkling
powdered lye in the skunks' passages. An electric fence around your
apiary will keep bears out.
Final Advice
If you suspect disease in even one hive, don't wail 10 see what develops.
If you don't know what it is or how to treat it, get a laboratory diagnosis
of your trouble immediately, Get in touch with your nearest bee inspector.
your state Extension entomologist, an experienced beekeeper. or your
counselor.
54
BookS About
Beekeeping
Adams, John F. Beekeeping. Avon. 1974.
Dadant, C. P. First Lessons in Beekeeping. Rev. ed. Scribner. 1980.
Hanson, Louise G. Beekeeping for Fun and Profit. McKay, 1980.
Mace, Herbert. The Complete Handbook of Beekeeping. Van Nostrand.
1976.
Root, A. I. ABCand XYZ of Bee Culture. A. I. Root, 1978.
Sammataro, Diana and Avitabile, Alphonse. The Beekeeper's Hand
book. Scribner, 1981.
Taylor. Richard. The How-To-lk;lt Book of Beekeeping. Linden. 1977.
Taylor. Richard. The Joys of Beekeeping. Sl Martin's, 1974.
Weiss, Edward. The Queen and I: A Manual for the Beginning Bee-
keeper. Harper & Row. 1978.
Magazines
American Bee Journal, 51 South Second Street. Hamilton. IL 62341.
Gleanings in Bee Culture, Box 706, Medina, OH 44258.
NeWSpaper
The Speedy Bee, P. 0. Box 998, Jesup, GA 31545.
other Sources
Write to the bulletin clerk of your state experiment station for pam-
phlets on beekeeping in your state, or ask your county agent for tree
copies. An excellent circular for the new beekeeper is Beekeeping for .
Beginners, available from the Bioenvironmental Bee Laboratory, Agri-
cultural Research Center-East, Building 476. Beltsville. MD 20705. Ask
for Home and Garden Bulletin No. 158.
The United States Department of Agriculture has prepared an excel
lent handbook on the subject. Beekeeping in the United Stales (Agriculture
Handbook No. 335) is for sale through the U.S. Government Printing
Office. Washington, DC 20402.
55
AcknOwledgments
The Boy Scouts of America wishes 10 thank John G. Thomas of the
Texas Agricultural Extension Service College Station. Tex.:
Luther and Moina Maserang 01 C. L Maserang ApiaiTies, Fort Worth.
Tex...: and Deborah L Sizemore. science and agriculture writer, for review-
ing IlUs pamphlet. Information and ideas contributed by them led to
this revised edition.
The following were used in the preparation of this pamphlet:
Bee Culture in Kansas. Ralph L Parker. Kansas Slale College of Agri
culture and Applied Science, Manhaltan. Kans.
Beekeeping. E. J. Dyce, New York State College of Agriculture of Cornell
University, Ithaca. N.Y.
Beekeeping in Minnesota, M. H. Haydak. University of Minnesota. St.
Paul. Minn.
Diagnosing Bee Diseases in the Apiary, U.S. Department of Agriculture.
First Lessons in Beekeeping, C. P. Dadant, American Bee Journal.
Hamilton, Ill.
Handbook of Beekeeping in California, J. E. Eckert, California Experi-
ment Stalion. Berkeley, Calif.
Pollination-An Agricultural Practice. Roy A. Grout. Dadant & Sons,
Inc., Hamilton. Ill.
Seasonal Management of Commercial Apiaries, Russell H_ Kelty. Michi
gan State College Extension Division. East Lansing, Mich.
Slarting Right with Bees. The A. I. Root Co., Medina. Ohio.
Photo Credits
American Bee Journal, Hamilton. III.
J. E. Eckert. Manual I S, University of CaJifornia. Davis
Kansas Stale College, Manhattan
Lambert Studios
C. L. Maserang Apiaries. Fort Worth. Tex.
Ontario Agricultural College, Department of Public Relations. Guelph,
Canada
The A. L Root Co., Medina. Ohio
Edwin Way Teale
University of Minnesota. St. Paul
U.S. Department 01 Agriculture
56
t!eRIT BADGE LIBRARY
ThOugh Inlended as an aJd to Boy SCouts. varsity Scouts, and quaHlied Explorers
in meetmg meril badge requIrements, these pamphlets are of general inlaresl
and are made available by many schools and public libraries. The latest revision
dale of each. whICh may not necessarily colTespond to the copyrighl date of lhe
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