THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



did not winter so well. The comlis 

 would be damp and mouldy at the cor- 

 ners and back side of the hive. 



J\'Iy bees winter well, protected in this 

 way. I have had them hang- out at the 

 entrance in the evenfng in April, ready 

 for the third brood chamber (Heddon 

 hive) during apple-bloom, and that 

 when the hives were filled the previous 

 fall with aster and golden rod honey, 

 which so many say is fatal to good 

 wintering. 



Gasport, New York. 



[I take it from the picture, although 

 Mr. Sproat does not say so, that while 



the bottom-boards are left on the hives, 

 the covers are removed. I presume that 

 a piece of burlap is placed next to the 

 brood frames before the paper is put 

 on. 



I can see no reason why bees packed 

 as Mr. Sproat above explains, should 

 not winter well. It is certainly a cheap 

 method for preparing colonies at out- 

 yards for winter. 



iMr. Sproat imdoubtedly misundjer- 

 stood in regard to golden-rod and aster 

 honey for winter. There is no obj tac- 

 tion to this honey I believe, if the 

 bees have had a chance to properly 

 ripen it. The reason it is so many 

 times not good, is that it is gathered 

 in the fall, is rather thin, and the cool 

 nights prevent a proper ripening.] 



Something About Bee-Cellars. A Sub-Earth Ventilator 

 Considered Necessary. 



E. S. MILLER. 



'•^ BEE-CELLAR made of boards 

 ^^^^ and posts may serve for a 

 few }ears, Init when one is 

 permanently located and owns his own 

 land it would seem better to build of 

 stone or cement. 



Three or four years ago I built a 

 cement-block cellar. 14x20 ft. and 8 ft. 

 deep, at a cost of about $300. It was 

 lathed and plastered overhead and filled 

 in above with sawdust. It has a cement 

 floor with a drain at' one corner. The 

 walls are plastered with cement and 

 sand to keep out the water, since the 

 cellar extends about eight feet below 

 the ground-surface in the hardest kind 

 of clay. There is a 2;/' ft. trap door 

 leading to the attic. 



I winter here about 80 colonies, and, 

 although, thus far. there have been no 

 losses, the cond|itions are far from 

 satisfactory. It is too damp. There 

 is a strong odor and many dead bees 

 are found on the floor. An under- 

 ground ventilator will be installed be- 

 fore another vear. 



At another yard the cellar is built in 

 a sand hill, and is made of brick with 

 a brick floor. This cellar has been 

 used for wintering bees for more than 

 twenty years. Results were similar to 

 those of number one until a sub-earth 

 ventilator was put in. Conditions are 

 now perfect. The air is practically as 

 pure as that outside, and the tem- 

 perature is just right. The bees are in 

 excellent condition. 



At my home yard the walls and floor 

 of the cellar are made of cement. It 

 is built in clay ground and has the 

 honey-house al)ove with a trap door 1^ 

 by :) ft. in the floor. I bought this 

 place five years ago and used it as it 

 was for two winters, leaving the trap- 

 door open for "ventilation." The re- 

 sults were foul air, mouldy growth in 

 the hives, many dead bees and a loss 

 of about one-third of the colonies. 

 Three years ago I put in an under- 

 ground ventilator, and since that time 

 have not lost a colony in wintering in 

 that cellar. The conditions seem to 



