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60 



FIFTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE 



hole was bored in each end of the 

 cover. 



At the time I speak of, in some way! 

 missed a hive and let it stay up on 

 that two-inch block. A good many 

 bees died that winter. 



In the spring I went to my apiary 

 to see how many be^s were dead. I ^ 

 went along and wherever I found the 

 bees wece dead I shook them out and 

 shut up the entrance so that nothing 

 could destroy the combs. 



I came to this hive and saw it sit- 

 ting up on those blocks where I had 

 neglected to let it down, and I said I 

 will let this one alone and shut it up, 

 it is all dead, but when I got near it 

 I found there was a buzzing sound. I 

 turned up. the oilcloth and found I had 

 the strongest colony of bees. 



There are some things we understand 

 and some we do not, and one is that 

 like conditions do not produce like re- 

 sults, as in this instance. 



Mr. Stone — Mr. President, I will tell 

 you another exception. 



Forty years ago I-had a neighbor who 

 kept bees and he let them go through 

 the summer and winter, with his hives 

 open, and they were very strong. 1 was 

 at his house in the spring of the year 

 and his bees were as strong as any- 

 body's. 



Mr. Bowen — I would like to ask Doc- 

 tor Phillips what temperature would 

 It be on the outside when the temper- 

 ature went below 57 on the inside? 



Doctor Phillips — It depends entirely 

 on insulation of the hive; if a single 

 wall hive, the temperature practically 

 is the same inside as outside. We had 

 bees last winter in a packing case with 

 6 inches of insulation all around and 

 the temperature very seldom dropped 

 below 55 until the wind got strong, 

 then it went down. 



Mr. Bowen — Don't you think that 

 change takes place from the opening? 



Doctor Phillips — Cut it down the way 

 we did and it does not take place very 

 rapidly. 



Mr. Bennett^-Do you pack under the 

 hive ? 



Doctor Phillips — Always; use four 

 inches underneath. 



Mr. Bennett— I like Doctor Phillips' 

 paper and think a good deal of it, but 

 I guess mj^ experience with bees has 

 not gotten used to the modern way of 

 taking care of them. 



The same winter Mr. Stone lost 80 

 per cent of his bees, I had about the 

 same number that he had and I lost 

 scarcely any. My brother here spoke 

 of finding hives raised up in front. 



I was very busy one fall and I 

 blocked them up one inch or so off the 

 bottom boards, and was tied up in' the 

 fall and could "not get to them; so the 

 winter came on, and I let them alone, 

 expecting to have severe losses in the 

 spring,* and I went down there and 

 found scarcely a loss; no insulation and 

 in single wall hives. I did not lose 

 but one out of 100 last year. I used no 

 insulation; my bees were set up ten 

 inches off the ground, over a tight box. 

 On some of my hives last year I set 

 my extractor bodies back on the hives; 

 I got busy with fruit and left them un- 

 til spring and those that were double 

 wall hives came through best. 



I do allow for plenty of supplies, and 

 where rtiy main apiary is located they 

 get in their supplies late in the season. 

 They have a lot of young bees, a lot of 

 supplies, and probabkr that offsets the 

 matter of insulation] to some extent. 

 Last winter I had scarcely any loss. 



As a rule I leave only a little space 

 in the front of the hive. If this mat- 

 ter of insulation will pay for the extra 

 expense of it, it ought to be doner 



President Baxter — Conditions must 

 always be known; often it counts for 

 nothing, where one man loses and an- 

 other winters successfully. The qnly 

 way is to' try two apiaries side by side. 

 Winter colonies in one apiary in one 

 way and in the other apiary another, 

 and in this way you get facts. The 

 winter brother Stone had his heavy 

 loss he had lots of honey-dew, while 

 perhaps Mr. Bennett had good stores; 

 that makes a big difference. 



Mr. Stone — I didn't get my .bees 

 packed well. ' 



President Baxter — If you have good 

 stores and strong colonies they will 

 .get along very well without so much 

 attention. 



Let me give you a rule: 



Take the winter of 1884-85; I don't 

 believe we have seen a colder winter. 

 I had three apiaries; my home apiary 

 was packed as I usually pack them; 

 had good stores, colonies were all 

 strong. My two out apiaries were, neg- 

 lected. I was foolish enough to ac- 

 cept a school that winter and never 

 packed my bees. At my home apiary 



