130 



FOURTEENTH ANNUAL, REPOtlT OF THE 



32 degrees only, as low as that, and 

 then they are nice and quiet. They 

 are packed in shavings, you under- 

 stand. 



On the first day of March I set them 

 all out again. 



Mr. Erbaugh — I would like to say a 

 word in regard to Dr. Phillips' investi- 

 gations, and Mr. Clark. They have 

 found that the best temperature — the 

 temperature at which . the bees will 

 remain quiet the longest — is 57 de- 

 grees, but at this high temperature 

 they do occasionally need water. They 

 get too dry; instead of the combs be- 

 coming mouldy, the bees need "water. 



Dr. Phillips says that 57 degrees is 

 the best temperature. 



Mr. Wheeler — I winter 300 or more 

 hives in one cellar, all underground. I 

 keep it as tight as I can get it. I do 

 not pay any attention to ventilation, 

 but there is a four inch drain. I do 

 not object at all to the hives being 

 wet. I have never found that water 

 is any detriment. 



My combs will be mouldy in the 

 spring, and I find the bees at the bot- 

 tom are always the stronger. I find 

 that the ones at the top are weaker; 

 but I do as Dr. Miller does: put the 

 light ones at the top. 



Mr. Bull — In wintering above ground 

 you have not so much moisture, and 

 you do not need so much moisture, be- 

 cause my temperature in my cellar is 

 lower than 40. Sometimes it gets down 

 to as low as 20, and it is all right. 

 My bees are perfectly quiet and come 

 out in the spring and swarm in May. 



Pres. Kannenberg — Well, they know 

 you. 



Mr. Bull— I had swarms the first of 

 May last year. 



Mr. Miller — I might add one point in 

 regard to bee cellars — In regard to the 

 cost. A good cement bee cellar, 16 x 20, 

 will cost approximately $250; in this 

 part of the country if we wintered 

 those 100 colonies out of doors and lost 

 one-fourth of them, and paid for double 

 walled hives and packing — it does not 

 take very long for a bee cellar to pay 

 for itself. 



I put 123 colonies in bee cellars in 

 five hours, alone, not long ago. 



A member — "What do you do in early 

 spring ? 



Mr. Miller — I do not set them out 

 until along about the first week in 

 April and they are all right. 



Mr. Schmidt — I set mine out the first 



of March. They are all packed and 

 will not fl5" until it gets warmer. 



Mr. Miller — Another point is: We 

 have to take into consideration the cost 

 of labor and depreciation. Hives that 

 are kept in the cellar, and are kept 

 dry, have very little depreciation; they 

 will last a lifetime. 



If you count up the cost of deprecia- 

 tion, etc., you will find that a good 

 cellar is the cheapest and easiest, and 

 the best way of "wintering bees. We 

 have to have, of course, loss of colonies 

 outside. J 



Mr. Schmidt — I; have 'wintered in the 

 cellar several winters that way with 

 great success. 



Mr. Dadant — Wintering beeg in the 

 cellar I think depends on the locality. 

 Where your honey is such that the bees 

 will winter on it, if you have not clover 

 or something else like that, cellar win- 

 tering is best; but suppose, like three 

 years ago, we had honey dew. The bees 

 will not winter on in the cellar on that. 

 They have to get out and fiy every time 

 they get a chance. 



Mr. Roehrs — I think it depends upon 

 locality, when we should put bees in the 

 cellar and take them out. My experi- 

 ence around Chicago has been this: If I 

 can manage it, the later I put them in 

 the earlier I can take them out, the 

 better for me. I understand Mr. 

 Schmidt ver>- well when he refers to 

 packing bees. 



I pack my bees in the fall and, when 

 it gets cold. I will put rny bees in the 

 cellar, but I will get them out in the 

 spring early and ^ack them again. 



^I put my bees out as early as the 

 first of March if I can do it. I have 

 double walled hives and pack them 

 carefully and my bees do better than 

 any way I have tried. 



I will not gainsay that if you have 

 a bee cellar that is perfect, according 

 to your locality, you can do better; 

 but this is the way I find ou^for my- 

 self in my locality. 



I believe the longer you can have 

 the bees outside, the better. 



Mr, Dadant — Mr. France has had lots 

 of experience with cellar wintering and 

 outside packing, we would like to hear 

 what he thinks about it. 



Mr. France — For a good many years 

 we used to winter outdoors. We win- * 

 tered about 600 colonies. I had to keep 

 count of the colonies and in the Spring 

 give a report to my father, 



I had to report in the spring, and 



