MillerThousand AnswersBeekeepingQuestions.pdf - BioBees

THOUSAND ANSWERS 31A. It is not advisable. Buckwheat seems to fit better as a lategrowth. Even if it should succeed when grown early, it wouldnot be desirable where the earlier harvest gives honey of a lightercolor, and better quality.Q. I have a patch of buckwheat now in full bloom, but my beesdo not pay any attention to it. What do you think is the causeof this?A. I think buckwheat sowed about the first of July yields nectarbetter than that sowed earlier, and yours may have been sowntoo early. However, buckwheat is like white clover and otherplants, it sometimes fajls to yield nectar, no matter whether earlyor late, and I don't know why. Bees rarely work on buckwheatbloom in the afternoon.Buildings, Bees in.—Q. There are a few swarms of bees in ahouse, and one in the bank building, which are troublesome. Theopenings are very small. How can they be killed?A. Try putting in four or five tablespoonfuls of carbon disulfide(called also bisulphide of carbon.) It must be done at a timewhen all the bees are in, some sort of a crooked funnel being arrangedto make the liquid enter the hole, and the hole promptlyclosed. Have no light near, for fear of an explosion.Q. I have an old frame building and between the walls honeybeeshave made a home. There are three or four colonies in thisbuilding, and I would like to know if it would be possible to getthem out from between the walls and put them in standard hives?A. Cut away the walls so that you can get at the combs, andput them in the hive; leave the hive as near as possible to the oldplace of entrance; close up the wall so no bee can get into it,keeping the bees smoked out until this is done; then graduallymove the hive each day to where you want it. That's the generalprinciple, which may be varied according tocircumstances.Buildings for Bees.—Q. Is it possible to keep several coloniesof bees in a building, using a window as a common entrance forall?A. Yes, with proper precautions. The room must be lightenough so bees can easily find their own hives after they are inthe room, or else a tube for each hive to the outside, and theremust be no chance for a bee to get out of the tube into the room.In the first case (the light room) precaution must be taken againstbees flying against the glass where they cannot get out. The window,or windows, must have an opening at bottom and top of eachwindow, or no sash at all.