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Rh built up. A nucleus hive of this sort must be placed in a warm room, unless it is hot weather, as there are no bees to warm the brood. Care must also be taken to put a wire screen over the entrance of the hive for a day or two to prevent the queen from escaping if she becomes uneasy midst such a dreary waste of adolescence.

MAXIMS FOR INTRODUCING QUEENS

Be sure the colony is queenless before attempting to introduce a queen.

Be sure the bees have not progressed far in rearing young queens.

Be careful not to anger or disturb the bees by smoke or hot blast or otherwise when placing the queen in the hive.

If honey is scarce, feed the colony before trying to introduce the queen.

Place the cage containing the queen on the frames near the centre of the brood-chamber, wire cloth below her, so that the cage rests on the bars of the frames.

Do not disturb the colony for forty-eight hours after introducing the queen-cage.

Be careful not to allow the queen to escape by flight when liberating her.

Remember, a queen crawls up instead of down.

After queens are two or three years old they should be replaced by young queens.