40 BEES. 
PREPARATIONS FOR WINTERING. 
After the main honey flow is over the management must depend 
on what may be expected later in the season from minor honey flows. 
If no crop is to be expected, the colony may well be kept only mod- 
erately strong, so that there will not be sO many consumers in the 
hive. 
In localities where winters are severe and breeding is suspended 
for several months great care should be taken that brood rearing 
is rather active during the late summer, so that the colony may go 
into winter with plenty of young bees. In case any queens show 
lack of vitality they should be replaced early, so that the bees will 
not become queenless during the winter. 
The important considerations in wintering are plenty of young 
bees, a good queen, plenty of stores of good quality, sound hives, 
and proper protection from cold and dampness. 
If, as cold weather approaches, the bees do not have stores enough, 
they must be fed. Every colony should have from 25 to 40 pounds, 
depending on the length of winter and the methods of wintering. 
It is better to have too much honey than not enough, for what is left 
is good next season. H feeding is practiced, honey may be used, but 
sirup made of granulated sugar is just as good and is perfectly safe. 
If honey is purchased for feeding, great care should be taken that it 
comes from a healthy apiary, otherwise the apiary may be ruined 
by disease. Never feed honey bought on the open market. The bees 
should be provided with stores early enough so that it will not be 
necessary to feed or to open the colonies after cold weather comes 
on. Honeydew honey should not be left in the hives, as it produces 
‘dysentery.’ Some honeys are also not ideal for winter stoves. 
Those which show a high percentage of gums (most tree honeys) are 
not so desirable, but will usually cause no trouble. 
In wintering out of doors the amount of protection depends on 
the severity of the winter. In the South no packing is necessary, 
and even in very cold climates good colonies with plenty of stores 
can often pass the winter with little protection, but packing and 
protection make it necessary for the bees to generate less heat, and con- 
sequently they consume less stores and their vitality is not reduced. 
Dampness is probably harder for bees to withstand than cold, and 
when it is considered that bees give off considerable moisture, pre- 
cautions should be taken that as it condenses it does not get on the 
cluster. An opening at the top would allow the moisture to pass 
out, but it would also waste heat, so it is better to put a mat of 
burlap or other absorbent material on top of the frames. The hive 
may also be packed in chaff, leaves, or other similar dry material to 
diminish the loss of heat. Some hives are made with double walls, 
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