166 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



April 



at our county fair, I felt somewhat disgusted with 

 exhibits and fairs; but the rather liberal premiums 

 offered bj- our State Agricultural Society have in- 

 duced me to think quite favorably of making an ex- 

 hibit at our State Fair next fall. And now I should 

 be pleased to receive hints from every one who has 

 made an apiarian exhibit at a fair. Friend Uoot, I 

 shall want a set of those glass jars, or bell-glasses. 

 W. Z. Hutchinson. 

 Rogersville, Genesee Co., Mich. 



A 1% OR» IN FAVOK OF CHAFF MlVIiS, 



FROM A CELLAR TRIEND. 



^ HAVE all along been advocating cellar wintcr- 

 Jl iug, nor do I wish to change now. Cellar win- 

 tering has thus far undoubtedly been the most 

 successful method practiced, taking mild and severe 

 winters together. But there are disadvantages con- 

 nected with it that challenge our attention. How to 

 winter well in the fullest sense of the word, is a 

 problem that has by no means been satisfactorily 

 solved. Though my success has given me much 

 contidenct^, and leads mo occasionally to boast that 

 wintering has.no dread for me, still I am not by any 

 means satisfied. True, I am not afraid of losing a 

 large number of colonies by cellar wintering during 

 any winter; but that does not change the fact, that 

 a fair proportion of my colonies is greatly reduced 

 in bees every spring. "All is not gold that glitters," 

 with me as well as with every one else. Uniformly 

 successful, as most men would call it, t am myself 

 far from satisfied. I want my bees strnna at all 

 times of the season; and before I quit the business, 

 I have faith that I shall succ ecd. I do not expect to 

 lose many this winter, and, from present appear- 

 ances, my loss up to May 1st will presumably not ex- 

 ceed 4 to 5 per cent, if that many. But I know that, 

 as every year, there will be a great many so re- 

 duced that they will not be strong enough to work 

 for surplus till half the honey season is over. It is a 

 loss of one-half the profits of the business, and must 

 be remedied. Experiments and observations have 

 convinced me that chaff hives and cellars must com- 

 bine, in a climate like this, to give full success. 

 There is no use denying the fact, that single-walled 

 hives won't do for our falls and springs, however 

 satisfactory in summer, or in the cellar. Bees quit 

 breeding too early, and resume too late. With me, 

 bees ought every year to breed one month later 

 than they do, and you can not get them to do it in 

 thin unprotected hives. And they should breed 

 earlier in the spring, uninterrupted by sudden cold 

 «nap8. On the other hand, we can not as yet claim, 

 with any degree of certainty, that we have a safe 

 outdoor protection for tho winter. The ordinary 

 chaff hive is insufficient during protracted cold 

 weather. Again, we do not want to curry a great 

 number of chaff hives into a cellar, and take them 

 out again every fine day. Many good days would be 

 missed, to say nothing of the labor involved. The 

 only way to solve the problem to the satisfaction of 

 any reasonable man, is to discover a plan that oom- 

 biues the advantages of both cellar and outdoor win- 

 tering. Bees must have access to the open air eccry 

 fine day, and have at all times a moderate, uniform 

 temperature in the hive. How can we do it? I am 

 free to confess, I don't know; but, like the rest of 

 mankind, I have more ideas than actual practice or 



experience. 1 am now getting up a hive with a5- 

 iiich space, filled with chaff and the like, on all sides. 

 If that is insufficient, I'll try 10 or 15 inches. I have 

 tried putting horse manure, known for its heating 

 qualities, all around a hive this winter, and that is 

 the strongest colony I have. But this is an easy one, 

 and the next winter it may not be successful. Mois- 

 turfe absorbents over the top may not prove suffi- 

 cient, and a circulation of air may be found neces- 

 sary. Why not provide absorbents and ventilators, 

 and inclose our hives with horse manure well mixed 

 with hay? The entrance can be open at all times, 

 and the inside of the hives ought certainly to be« 

 warm enough. There is no way, I am convinced, 

 that will insure us against all loss, or even partial 

 less, at all times; but, taking every thing into con- 

 sideration, cellar wintering is by no means the acme 

 of perfection, and some plan of outdoor wintering 

 will, sooner or later, eclipse it. It is time that we 

 bend every nerve to the task that includes every ele- 

 ment of success in our profession — that of discover- 

 ing how to '■'keep your colonies strong." If it takes a 

 ten -dollar hive, feeding, chaff, ventilators, horse 

 manure, or a brick wall, we'll have to get it, sooner 

 or later; fori am certain that only those that can 

 " keep their colonies strong " will make any money 

 out of the business after a few years. 

 Jefferson, Wis., March 17, 1882. Geo. Grimm. 



Now, friend Grimm, I am most agreeably 

 surprised by the above ; for the fact that 

 you so strongly indorsed cellar wintering, 

 and condemned chaff, has troubled me and 

 stumbled me not a little. Almost on your 

 account alone I was very near deciding to 

 build a nice large bee-cellar; and it is be- 

 cause bees suffer in the spring months so 

 much for lack of protection, that I have 

 laid so much stress on chaff hives. For 

 years I have gone over all you mention, over 

 and over again, and many times have I 

 thought we had at last obtained the long- 

 sought desideratum. If you do not, others 

 will recollect my horse-manure experiments, 

 and the many plans of house apiaries after- 

 ward. I agree with you, that it is powerful 

 colonies we need in April, for the great re- 

 sults that we might make. It may have 

 been Doolittle who said, if our colonies were 

 as strong during fruit-blossoms as at bass- 

 wood time, they might, for aught we know, 

 get nearly as much honey from the fruit- 

 bloom. How shall we get them as strong in 

 May as they are in JulyV It can be done 

 with a greenhouse, but it would be rather 

 expensive. I have often longed for an open 

 cave, in the side of a dry bank, such as friend 

 Boomhower describes in this number ; and 

 if I knew just how to keep it from being 

 damp in cold weather, and have it warm up 

 as soon as the outdoor air does in warm 

 weather, I verily believe I should start to do 

 it at once. Who among the friends has an 

 open cave on his premises, where water will 

 not freeze, and where bees could fly out at 

 pleasure, when it is warm enough? Friend 

 Grimm, when you solve the problem I will 

 come and see you ; and when I solve it, ycu 

 must come and see me. I presume neither 

 of us run any gre^t risk 0» such a bargain. 



