CHAPTER XVIII.
The Apiarian's Monthly Manual, or Hints for the Management of Bees for every month in the year, upon the Depriving System.
Should the cold be intense, no operation whatever should be performed on the Bees that requires the removal of the hives. If snow be on the ground keep the perforated sliders (page 18.) closely down that air may be admitted, but not a Bee allowed to escape until it be thawed; but immediately upon the disappearance of the snow remove the slider, and give them full liberty. I have known many stocks lost by not attending tothis precaution, and more especially after a long confinement, do not suffer the snow to melt either upon the covers or hive-boards, but brush it off every day as it falls. Attend regularly to the condenser (page 90.) which to boxes with flat roofs is a very necessary and useful appendage.
Upon a mild day in this month let the floor board of each hive be cleaned, and a little food administered, should the stock of honey be very low. See that the coverings be sound, and that no moisture comes upon the top of the hives. Should it be found that any of the hives have perished, which will sometimes occur, and from causes which cannot be exactly ascertained, let them be immediately removed, and the honey which they contain taken out, and reserved for feeding those that may require it.
Clean the hive-boards again, and should any of the stocks require feeding, supply them, attendingstrictly to the directions given in Chap. IX. Towards the end of this month place a vessel, containing water, near the Bees, as directed inpage 3. This also will be found a good time to examine the pedestals upon which the hives stand, for after remaining some years in the ground they are subject to decay at a few inches below its surface, especially if regard was not paid to the quality of the timber at the time of fixing them.
Clean the hive-boards for the last time, and supply food, if required, as before directed. The Wax-moth, that redoubtable enemy to Bees, appears this month; they may be seen frequently at twilight running upon the outside of the hives: destroy them as much as possible, and, as Huish says, "frighten not away the Bats that fly about the hives, for they destroy numbers of them." A full supply of small hives, boxes, glasses and adapters should now be provided, old ones cleaned, or new ones purchased. A few large hives alsoshould be ready, for if from inattention to giving room and ventilation, a swarm should be compelled to leave their hive, they will be wanted.
Weak hives are now very subject to an attack from robbers, the best protection that can be afforded them is the slider page 18, with the help of which three or four Bees will guard the entrance more effectually than many times that number without it.
The time will now have arrived for supplying each stock with a small hive or other receptacle for honey, as directed in Chap. 4, and should the season be a favorable one, the supply even of a second may be found necessary before the end of the month. Continue to destroy Queen wasps and hornets, and to watch carefully for moths. Should the bees of any hive appear inactive at this time, or should they not be seen to carry in pellets of farina whilst others are doing it, and this inaction continue for eight or ten days, lose no time in examining the hive, and should themoths have begun their work of destruction, which may be known by seeing the combs joined together by their silken webs, cut away the combs affected with a sharp knife, and the hive may, perhaps, be saved.
Strict attention should now be paid toroomandventilation, for, as has been said in page 24, if both these be carefully observed,swarming may be prevented altogether. Swarms may now be purchased as directed in Chap. II. About the middle of the month, in good seasons, small hives and glasses may be taken off, full directions for which may be found in Chap. V.
At the end of the month look for wasps'-nests and destroy them; a very easy and effectual method of doing it is to fill a common squib or serpent case with a mixture of sulphur and gun-powder, in equal parts, with a very small quantity of nitre all finely powdered and rammed very hard into the case, set fire to it by means of touch-paper, and when in a state of ignition, stick it into the hole of the nest and place your footupon it, when it ceases to burn let a person with a spade turn out the nest; in this manner a great number may be effectually destroyed in one night.
Small hives and glasses must now be taken off as they are filled and sealed up, (and stored in cool places, observing to keep them in the same position as when standing upon the stocks,) and their places supplied by empty ones. Go on destroying wasps'-nests.
Continue to take off hives and glasses as they are filled, but supply no fresh ones, the honey season being now chiefly over.
Small hives remaining upon the stocks that are only partially filled with honey may now be taken off, providing the stock will not be too much impoverished thereby; wherever the chance of this presents itself leave them on through the winter, or until they are emptied by the bees; those partially filled hives taken from rich stocks may begiven to weak ones, now, or in the spring as required. Robbers will at this time be carrying on their depredations, and should a serious attack be observed the sliders must be used as before directed.
Examine the coverings to the hives that they be all sound, and that no rain be admitted through them; the entrances may now be narrowed, if Taylor's slider be used (page 18) the side with three openings will be most proper for this season.
Clean the floor-boards of the hives, and see that they stand firmly on their pedestals, contract the entrance so that only one bee can come out at a time, for at this season mice are likely to lodge themselves in the hives.
The same attentions are necessary this month as in the two preceding, but if the cold should be intense the hives must not be removed.
FINIS.
Printed by T. C. Newby, Angel Hill, Bury.
Transcriber NoteMinor typos corrected.
Transcriber Note
Minor typos corrected.