Show FACTS FOR FARMERS i That our readers nay be quite ready for the swarming season we give in advance ad-vance some items oc swarming and it attendant clustering along with suggestions sugges-tions about swarming apparatus from Gleanings in Bee Culture Mentioned with other swarm catchers is the ono used by A E lau an experienced apiarian It has no patent on it and is illustrated in the accompanying cut It is simply a wire cloth cage fastened to a pole with two legs so attached t the pole that they can be set out or in something like a tripod The lower end of the pole may be sharpened to stick in the ground in order to steady the catcher and t prevent it from being tipped forward for-ward by the weight of the bees The head or cage is 10x10 inches square by 1 thick and is covered on each side covere with wire cloth It is wade in two parts and hinged together so a to open and close When closed it is held together by a small hook One of the parts of the head is fastened t the pole forming a catcher as may be imagined by referring to tho cut The head i made of tX inch stuff hence is very light Mr ilanum usually furnishes eight or ten of these catches to each of his apiaries I two or mores more-s issue at one time ho pIoceeds to catch the bees and queens using a catcher for each swarm and as is usually usual-ly the case when more than one swarm issues at one time they will mingle and cluster together In such case he set the catchers near together and awaits tho results I more bees settle on one catcher than on the others ho shakes them off from this one and on rising they will almost always divide up equal ly each swarm clustering around its queen The corn popper catcher is thus described de-scribed by one who used fi i A UNPATCNTED SWARMING APPARATUS The lid of the popper was thrown back and the popper itself was crowded 1 up gently against the lower end of the I cluster The bees very soon rolled over each other until the popper was level full of them The wire cloth top was thrown over and snapped shut We did not know whether we had secured tho queen or not It did not matter much for half or twothirds of thecluster was confined in tho popper and the queen if outside together with the remaining bees would cluster around their captive comrades We thrust the handle down into the soft dirt near where the bees were flying quite tines ant tile popper as thus supported i sup-ported a couple of feet from the ground where the bees could get at them Wo then left them for an hour or so When we returned l the outside bees were clustered around the popper They wero now in such shape that we could carry them were we pleased and hive them where we pleased which we did with entire success In concluding the article gleaned from the editor presents two ideas First if the queens are not clipped the queen herself will usually he found on the outside of the cluster near the bottom bot-tom end I therefore the corn popper cage or other receptacle be pushed gently against the lower end of theswarm you are likely t secure not only the larger portion of the bees but the queen also and in this event your swarming is practically done The other idea is this After these wir cloth cages such a the corn popper and Manuals arrangement have been used a few times for catching swarms they will acquire the scent of the laying queen and of former swartstP The catcher will in consequence l more readily accepted for clustering by succeeding swarms In time thee cages will have little bits of wax adhering to them and these also form no email I part of tho attraction I |