THE APIARY.

Otago Witness, Issue 4028, 26 May 1931, Page 11

THE APIARY.

QUEENS. Stimulating nutrition is the mirage of many . beginners, who promise . themselves great things from it. Provided that one does not excite robbing, it can be useful or at least innocuous. Above all, it can be of use to weak families who consume relatively more than strong ones in order to maintain themselves, have little reserve provisions, and have few foragers. Of such families there should be none in the apiary, but there are always some, and if they have a good queen it is a pity not to help them. There is need, however, to keep in mind that the real secret of remunerative apiculture is this : the good quality of the queens. Where this is not, no artifice will succeed; where it is, no stimulus is necessary, for there will be abundant provision for all. The vigorous and prolific queen cannot do other than oviposate prolificacy; only the bees can limit her labour, if they are not in sufficient numbers. or if they feel themselves short of stores sufficient to raise a numerous progeny. There is great danger in not going warily in the substitution of new queens. Those who are in the hives were probably raised under good conditions—that is to say, when the old queen was still alive, and. mostly during the honey crop, which is the moment when queens get exhausted. Another time they are queens of swarms—very excellent these, as all know. There is need then to think well before suppressing a queen whose age is unknown in order to substitute another which may be inferior. Therefore renewal only in cases of evident necessity and amongst those principally that of a stock which has not developed well in spring. Then indeed a queen kept in reserve from a good nucleus, even from the preceding year, will render a precious service.

OLD OR YOUNG QUEENS? “Kill any queen not up to standard regardless of age, but never on account of age,” is the advice offered by Mr F. R. Beuhne, secretary of the Victorian Apiarists’ Association. In a season like the present, he points out, three-year-old queens are very valuable. These colonies raise fine supersedure queen cells, one or two at a time, which can be used for re-queening other colonies by removing them when sealed. Under this system the colony immediately will start one or two more queen cells, and as only the best of the queens are allowed to continue for the third year the practice tends to improve the strain of bees. _ Colonies with the younger queens get rid of their drones during the latter part of the season, while those with three-year-old queens retain them until winter, so that autumn-raised young queens will be mated to drones of the best stock. Mr Beuhne, writing in the Australian Bee Journal, states that for several years he has dispensed with nuclei altogether, haying found them a nuisance in an apiary of strong colonies. They swarm out with a virgin queen and join other normal swarms, causing confusion. Young queens are mated from the super of a normal colony divided horizontally by a slatted excluder or vertically by a solid division board. When the young queens are laying they are removed and introduced where required, and after a week another queen cell caif be given in the portion from which the queen was removed. It is best not to try and introduce a queen that has only just commenced to lay to another hive from which the queen has just been removed. Allow the queen to lay for about a week first, so that the change from lively virgin to mature queen is not sudden, as a newly laying queen is liable to be balled. To change queens, says Mr Beuhne. we cage the queen to be replaced in a Miller introducing cage without any bees in her own hive. Two to four days after we destroy the queen. The new queen is put in the same cage, also without bees. The cage is returned to the same place between the brood comb with the outlet closed, and only candy to be released within an hour or two. Failure has never been experienced under this method.

Our London correspondent, writing on April 10, states: There have in the past been many occasions when the display windows of '’the High Commissioner’s Office in the Strand, have caused passersby' to stand and gaze. But they are assembling in even greater numbers just now, fascinated by the extremelj- clever display of honey, arranged by Messrs C. and E. Morton (the London agents of the New Zealand honey producers’ organisation) assisted by the publicity officer of the High Commissioner’s Department. The pastoral setting is very well carried out. The bees are new, and they are grouped in many pleasing poses. But perhaps the great attraction is due to the “ mystery ray.” The apparatus for this is inside the window; the passerby outside is directed to place his hand over a certain section. As soon as this is done the big Mr Imperial Bee begins to work, moving eyebrows, lips and head, the while he turns over pages, each one of which indicates in clear lettering the outstanding qualities possessed by New Zealand honey, and gives reasons why it should be more widely used. The pedestrians are so interested that they rather block the path, but the advertisement is an excellent one, and the display is one of the most original that has ever been thought out. Movement is suggestive of life, and perhaps next time development is contemplated means will be found to propel the Imperial Bee Band into action. This important little tableau is equipped with instruments of music and is headed by an imposing drum-major. Next week, with the apple display in another window, New Zealand House will indeed by a magnet to draw the passing public.