Apri 



III 



American l^e Journal 



heat. Of course, the greater consump- 

 tion of stores the more the intestines 

 are loaded, and the greater trouble 

 from confinement. 



Now, what is the point of tempera- 

 ture at which bees are most nearly 

 quiet ? I suppose thousands have found 

 it to be about 4j degrees. I think Mr. 

 Davison is the only one I ever heard 

 of who puts it as low as 3o. Now shall 

 we throw overboard the testimony of 

 the thousand or more, and take the one 

 very exceptional case as our guide, and 

 say to the beginner, " Don't bother ; if 

 your cellar stands at 35 you're all 

 right ?" Do you think it would be 

 wise ? 



Assuming that Mr. Davison's ther- 

 mometer is correct, it might not be en- 

 tirely out of place to ask: Is his suc- 

 cessful wintering on account of the 

 low temperature, or in spite of it .•' and 

 what proof has he that with just as 

 pure air in his cellar he would not 

 have just a little better success at 45 

 than at So ? 



With many others I've been sorry to 

 hear of your sickness, Mr. Byer, and 

 hope that before this gets into print 

 you will be quite yourself again, and 

 able to give this exceedingly impor- 

 tant matter your best thought. If you 

 could know just how kindly I feel to- 

 ward you, I think it would help just a 

 little bit toward making you well. 



Marengo, 111. 



Winter Stores for Bees 



BY C. M. DOOLITTLE. 



From the many questions asked me 

 from time to time, it would seem that 

 there is not a general understanding as 

 regards the amount of stores a colony 

 of bees should have to carry them 

 through the winter. Some seem to 

 think if the bees have barely enough to 

 get them through to March or April, 

 that is all that is required. Yet they are 

 always anxious over the matter, wish- 

 ing in some way to have a sort of "in- 

 surance" to guard against starvation, 

 should not the spring open up as pro- 

 pitiously as usual. 



Now, the best insurance that I know 

 of in this matter is to know positively 

 that each colony has sufficient stores 

 in the fall to last till the flowers bloom 

 in their locality the following spring. 

 If we know this we need have no fears 

 as to their safety along this line. But 

 just how much this should be. is some- 

 thing that often puzzles the bee-keeper. 

 It is always well to bear in mind that 

 under the same circumstances the very 

 strong colony will not consume more 

 stores than the one weak in bees. In 

 other words, a colony that occupies the 

 spaces between 8 or 9 combs when the 

 cluster is settled down for winter, will 

 require more honey to insure safe win- 

 tering than will the one which only 

 occupies 5 spaces. And any colony 

 occupying less than 5 spaces should be 

 united with some other colony of about 

 the same size, if the bees are to be win- 

 tered out on the summer stands. 



Then, it is always well to know the 

 amount of stores each colony has dur- 

 ing the forepart of October, as a later 

 disturbance of the winter cluster is 

 often detrimental in these Northern 

 States, by causing them not to settle 



down into that quiescent condition 

 necessary for good wintering. But this 

 is not telling how much each colony 

 should have. 



When I first began keeping bees I 

 found one writer saying in the bee- 

 papers, that 35 pounds W!»s the needed 

 amount, while many said 25 pounds 

 was sufficient for any colony where 

 wintering on the summer stands was 

 practiced. My preference is 30 pounds. 

 And 20 pounds was considered amply 

 sufficient for those colonies that were 

 to be wintered in the cellar during 4 or 

 5 months of the coldest weather. Those 

 colonies that did not have these 

 amounts were to be fed till they did 

 have them, and the earlier in October 

 this feeding was done, the better it 

 would be for the bees, as they required 

 some little warmish weather to get 

 their stores sealed and about the clus- 

 ter as was desired. 



It often happened that some colonies 

 would have from 45 to (JO pounds of 

 stores, while others would not have 

 more than 15 to 20, and in this case 

 where the movable-frame hives were 

 used, the overplus could be taken from 

 those rich in honey, when by exchang- 

 ing combs with the poor ones, both 

 would be beneiited. If, after this was 

 done, there were still colonies not hav- 

 ing the desired amount, they were fed, 

 and if there was no honey to do this 

 feeding with, a sugar syrup was to be 

 made to supply their wants, some 

 claiming that such was even better for 

 winter stores. 



After trying all the formulas given 

 for making this sugar syrup, without 

 finding any not having many defects, I 

 hit upon the following, which I have 

 used for more than 30 years with suc- 

 cess : 



Pour 15 pounds of water into a suit- 

 able sized vessel, and set it over the 

 fire till it boils. Then stir in 30 pounds 

 of granulated sugar, this stirring being 

 done so that it will not go down on the 

 bottom in a heap and burn. As soon 

 as the whole boils again, set from the 

 fire and stir in 5 pounds of extracted 

 honey; this making 50 pounds of good 

 feed for winter, and being ready to 

 feed as soon as cool enough not to 

 burn the finger by holding it in the 

 same. 



I have given the above formula be- 

 fore ; but I am so often asked about 

 how to make feed for bees, I thought 

 it would do no harm to give it again. 



There are some among our numbers 

 who prefer to feed their bees in the 

 spring, rather than to furnish the full 

 amount in the fall to last till the flowers 

 give the needed nectar. On this ques- 

 tion I am somewhat doubtful, for after 

 years of experimenting I am convinced 

 that the colonies that come out rich in 

 stores after their winter nap will be- 

 come fully as prosperous colonies the 

 following season as will those on 

 which many pounds of feed and a large 

 amount of work have been bestowed. 

 And if this is so, the labor part, at 

 least, could be spent in other directions 

 to a better advantage. However, it is 

 better to feed in the spring than to let 

 any colony go short of stores, which 

 will result in light brood-rearing, if 

 not in a total loss through starvation 

 should an unexpected cold spell of 

 sour, cloudy, rainy weather occur at 



the time of blossoming of the early 

 flowers. 



It is well to remember that if we 

 allow our bees to die in the spring 

 from starvation or otherwise, we lose 

 all they have consumed thus far. It 

 would be far better to have them die in 

 the fall and thus save the stores. If I 

 did not intend to know positively that 

 all colonies had stores enough to last 

 till the flowers bloomed, or till the 

 feeding could be done, I would unite 

 them until I did, for it is one of the 

 mistaken things to do, to let bees 

 starve in the spring. 



If for any reason you think it possi- 

 ble that some of the colonies do not 

 have stores enough, it is well to go to 

 them on some mild day after they have 

 had their first flight in the spring — a 

 day when it thaws a little without the 

 sun shining (as stores can be much 

 more readily seen on a cloudy day) — 

 and remove what you have over the 

 cloth covering the frames, then care- 

 fully roll this covering up till you come 

 to the cluster of bees, when you can 

 note the amount of sealed honey not 

 covered by the bees. If you find plenty 

 of sealed honey along the top-bars of 

 the frames, you can set that colony 

 down as having enough to last till the 

 flowers bloom. If plenty in half of 

 the combs, such colonies should be 

 watched by looking again every 10 days 

 to 2 weeks till the flowers blossom. If 

 very little, or none at all, then make 

 preparations for feeding such at once, 

 though, if they can stand it until 

 the next day warm enough for them to 

 fly, it is better to wait till then, as 

 feeders can be better arranged when 

 the bees can fly than during a cold 

 spell. Should no such day occur, then 

 they should be attended to before they 

 starve, no matter what the weather, for 

 it is better to lose a few bees through 

 their flying out and dying with cold, 

 rather than have the whole colony per- 

 ish from lack of fpod. 



Where you can feed by giving frames 

 of sealed honey, either from other col- 

 onies or from such having been set 

 aside the summer before for this pur- 

 pose, it is not necessary to delay for a 

 day of flight, as by careful working an 

 empty comb at the side of the cluster 

 can be removed, the frames gently 

 spread apart till the cluster is reached, 

 when the full comb of honey can be set 

 in. If this is done in cold weather, 

 these filled combs should be placed in 

 a warm room for 4 or 5 hours until they 

 are thoroughly warmed through, other- 

 wise when placed in the cluster, the 

 bees will be damaged from the frosty 

 honey. By using smoke, as in summer, 

 should the bees be inclined to fly, very 

 few will be lost, and the colony saved, 

 which is well worth the while at this 

 time of the year. 



Borodino, N. Y. 



Uniform Shipping-Cases for 

 Comb Honey 



A'cai^ at Ike Co/oriido Stci/€ Convention 

 liY FRANK RAUCHFUSS. 



Uniformity of grading and^miformity 

 of packages of all commodities pro- 

 duced in rural districts and afterwards 

 brought together to be shipped in 



