Beekeeping in the Clover Region. LT 
heavy sugar sirup or honey of fine quality, after brood-rearing has 
ceased. (Fig. 4.) This feeding should be done rapidly. It is not so 
important that the stores used in the spring be of such good quality, 
as there are usually opportunities for flight. 
In the colder parts of the clover region, where the average winter 
temperature is below 25° F., many beekeepers prefer to winter their 
bees in cellars. If this is done, the beekeeper should see that the cellar 
is properly constructed, so as to maintain during the period of con- 
finement a uniform temperature, not too low or too high. This 
usually can best be done by constructing the cellar so that the 
ceiling is below the frost line (fig. 5), in order that the cellar may 
Fic. 4.—Map showing average date of first killing frost in fall. From these data the 
beekeeper determines the time to pack colonies outdoors. Feeding for the improve- 
ment in winter stores is done after the first killing frost. 
not undergo rapid changes in temperature. Detailed directions for 
the construction and maintenance of the winter cellar are given in 
Farmers’ Bulletin 1014, to which the reader is referred. When bees 
are wintered in the cellar they will perhaps be kept in one hive-body, 
but in this event a second hive-body with plenty of honey should be 
stored, to be given to each colony during the period of heavy brood- 
rearing of spring. The hive-body with the bees should contain about 
25 pounds of honey. A failure to provide this extra room and stores 
is the cause of great loss in many parts of the clover region. There 
is no better place to store the extra hive-body containing honey, or 
any better way to winter bees in the cellar, than to leave all the honey 
with the bees, if one can arrange to handle the heavy hives as they 
are put into and removed from the cellar. 
