CHAPTER XXVIII.

TURNOUTS.

THIS is a name we give to swarms evicted or ejected from parent hives three weeks after they sent off their first swarms. Second swarms may have gone from them as well as first ones; but, on the twenty-first day after the first swarm leaves a hive, the combs are free from brood, save a few drone-cells, drones being twenty-four days in being hatched, and workers twenty-one days. The eggs laid by the queen on the morning of the day she left the hive with the first swarm, come to perfection on the twenty-first day after. The young queen that has taken her place has not yet begun to lay, and therefore there is no brood in the hive. Very well. Large hives gather a great deal of honey before they swarm. If the weather be fine while fruit-trees are in blossom, they generally lay by from 3 lb. to 5 lb. a-day per hive. In fine seasons, large hives, properly managed, contain from 20 lb. to 30 lb. of honey before the month of May closes. New honey will not be in the market for a month or two after May, if we do not evict or turn out the bees from these heavy hives. But we do turn them out; and for sixty years at least my father and his son have practised this mode of getting honey in great quantity so early in the season. honey is superexcellent, and commands not only a high price but a ready sale. What do you consider a good

Such

If there be only 20 lb. in a of it into one empty, save In this way we get 25s.

price for such honey? Fifteenpence per pound, or 6s. 6d. for the Scotch pint of 5 lb. hive, we drum the bees out cross-sticks and guide-comb. worth of honey, and another swarm, which we term "a turnout," from the stock-hive, which has before yielded one or two swarms. Thus we get two or three good swarms and 20 lb. of honey early in June from every stock-hive. These turnouts are generally a shade better than the second swarms from the same hives; and when no second swarms have been obtained or taken from the hives, the turnouts are very large swarms indeed, and require large hives. By practising this mode of taking honey from stock-hives three weeks after first swarming, our hives have combs beautifully young and fresh, free from foul brood, and never overburdened with farina or bee-bread. Then there is the encouragement of profits already in the pocket, and two months of summer yet to

come.

A hive should be about 42 or 45 lb. weight to yield 20 lb. of honey. Sometimes we pass sentence against hives of less weight, drum the bees out on the twentyfirst day after swarming, and take honey from them; and sometimes, instead of taking their honey, after the bees have been turned out of them, we place them in a dry room till autumn; and if we then find it will be advantageous to keep them for stock, and take the honey from heavier hives, they are refilled with bees taken from the honey-hives, and placed in the garden.

The process of turning bees out is simply that of driving them into empty hives. In the case of artificial swarming we drum but a few minutes, but when we wish to drive all the bees out, we drum for fifteen minutes or more. When there is brood in a hive the bees are loath

to leave it; but as the hive that swarmed three weeks before has no brood in it, the bees are easily driven out.

We shall be sorry if we find that we have failed to give the most ignorant bee-keeper that reads this work a correct and complete idea of this process and principle of eviction; for we reckon that if he well understands what we aim at and realise, and how we compass the whole, he will stand on a higher platform than many pretentious bee-keepers.

The turnouts of small hives may be united to second swarms if they happen to stand side by side. It is understood that if the spring months have been unfavourable for honey-gathering, the hives will be too light for yielding much honey. In such season there will be no turn

outs.

But, looking closely into this turning-out system, the reader may say, "It is not a wise and economical one; for, by putting the bees into an empty hive, you compel them to make new combs, which cost them a great deal of honey. Leave them in their own hive, and thus save the consumption of honey necessary in the building of fresh combs." This remark is both logical and philosophical, and, moreover, full of common-sense. No sensible man will attempt to resist its force. But it is found wanting when put in the balance against "the almighty dollar" of a good honey season.

K

CHAPTER XXIX.

FEEDING.

IN bee-keeping, as in other things, it is not all honey and sunshine. Stings and venom-bags are placed side by side with honey-bags in the bodies of these industrious creatures. Cold, rainy seasons come sometimes; and when they do come, bees have to be fed pretty constantly. One year well remembered by some apiarians, the best hives, though well attended to, never rose in weight beyond 22 lb. each. They were near starvation-point the whole of the summer. In such seasons the management of bees is attended with anxiety, disappointment, and loss. Part of the profits of other years have to be spent on sugar to keep.them alive. On two noticeable years bees had to be fed from April to August, when the weather changed, and became so favourable for honey-gathering, that strong hives rose rapidly in weight to 70, 80, and 100 lb each. It is rather an unfortunate circumstance for a working man to commence bee-keeping in a wet season. His bees must be fed again and again; and his wife does not like to see so great a waste of sugar, and may grumble sorely about it. To put an end to such loss and dissatisfaction, he sells his bees at a sacrifice. Such failures we have seen with sorrow. We should be glad if any poor words of ours contribute in the smallest degree to encourage all

beginners to go forward, even if one bad season succeeds another. Success is certain to the persevering. During the last twenty years we have had far more favourable years for honey-gathering than unfavourable ones. The last few years have been unusually favourable for beekeeping. In our native village in Lanarkshire, the profits of bee-keeping in 1864 were about £4 per hive; in 1865, about £3; in 1866, about £2; in 1867, nothing; in 1868, between £3 and £4; and in 1869, about £3. But years unfavourable for honey-collecting may be expected; and when they come our bees will require attention and feeding. We do not care much how bees are fed, so that they get enough.

As large hives, well populated, gather more honey in favourable weather than small ones, it should be borne in mind that they consume more in rainy weather. Hives that gain 5 lb. per day in fine weather, lose 1 lb. in weight during the night. Of course, when bees are not at work, the wear and tear and heat of a hive are not so great; but I have known a hive become 7 lb. lighter, and eat 1 lb. of sugar as well, during one unfavourable week. In a large hive there are probably upwards of 50,000 bees, and about the same number in embryo in their cells. Both bees and brood need food, and a great deal of it. He is the best bee-master who feeds his stock liberally and judiciously in rainy summers, for he will receive in return for all his attention and liberality, good measure, pressed down and running over. If bees be well fed, they remain strong and healthy-the hum of prosperity and contentment is kept up-breeding goes on-thousands are added to the community; and if fine weather come, they will gather twice or thrice as much honey as those that have been barely kept alive. If hives are kept on