1895 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CQLTURE. 



lean; and if space will not permit me to say 

 all I should like to, I may try again in some 

 other issue. Many seem to think that the 

 latter part of November or December is early 

 enough to prepare bees for winter; but some of 

 our best apiarists have learned that the best 

 results in wintering can be secured only when 

 preparations are begun early in the season, so 

 that the inside of the hive need not be disturb- 

 ed after cold weather arrives. Therefore all 

 colonies are to be looked after as soon as the 

 honey-harvest is over, to see that they have 

 good queens, and that there is plenty of brood 

 in all stages, for this brood is to produce the 

 bees that are to live through the winter months; 

 and if, for any reason, there is not plenty of 

 brood at the end of the honey-harvest, it is 

 easy to tell what the result will be the follow- 

 ing spring. If any colonies are found that have 

 been and are short of brood. the queen should 

 be changed for a good one, and brood from those 

 which have an abundance be given them so 

 that they can build up so as to be sufficienily 

 strong in bees before cold weather sets in. If 

 by any means, after all oar precautions, the 

 '20th of October finds us with weak colonies, 

 they should now be united; for it is useless to 

 attempt to winter very small colonies unless 

 we have some special place to put them in, 

 which has proven in the past to be sul'ticiently 

 equal to the wintering of such colonies. Again, 

 we wish to know that all have honey enough, 

 of good quality for winter. Good quality in 

 honey has as much to do with the safe winter- 

 ing of bees as anyone thing that can be named; 

 and he who does not pay any attention to this 

 matter can not expect to succeed. But what is 

 good quality in honey? maybe asked. If we 

 look to nature for an answer, we shall find 

 that, as a rule, the honey which a colony left 

 undisturbed has in store, is that which has 

 been in the hive long enough so that it is thor- 

 oughly ripened, having that rich, smooth taste 

 we all like so well. Now, such honey as this 

 can not be gotten, just at the close of the sea- 

 son, where the extractor has been used till the 

 very last thing, as many novices persist in 

 doing, leaving only the thin watery stuflf which 

 comes at this time of the year for the bees to 

 live upon. In my opinion, upon the injudicious 

 use of the extractor is chargeable much of the 

 loss of bees in winter; for where we hear of 

 large yields of honey taken with the extractor 

 late in the season, we almost always hear of a 

 corresponding loss of bees by the same parties 

 the next spring. To overcome this difficulty it 

 is better to set aside enough combs of thor- 

 oughly ripened sealed honey during the season 

 to winter our bees; and then, when the honey 

 yield is over, exchange combs with the bees, 

 extracting all that is left in the combs taken 

 from the bees if we so desire. In this way we 

 are sure that the bees have such honey as they 



ought to have to winter ou. This applies only 

 to those who are prone to extract too closely 

 during the season; but it is a good plan to work 

 a few colonies for such combs of thoroughly 

 ripened honey to be used in case of emergency, 

 no matter how the bees are worked. 



Another reason why we should not put off 

 preparing the bees for winter till cold weather 

 comes, is that, if we do this, they can not well 

 get their winter stores near and around the 

 cluster in time for them to settle down into 

 that quiescent state so conducive to good win- 

 tering, prior to November 10th or 15th. To 

 arrange these stores, and properly prepare 

 them, requires warm weather; hence all will 

 see the fallacy of putting off caring for them 

 till cold weather arrives. To be sure all have 

 the desired amount of honey, there is only one 

 certain way to do; and that is, to open the 

 hives and take out each frame and weigh it, 

 after having shaken the bees off from it. Next 

 weigh a frame of empty comb, or several of 

 them, so as to get the average weight, which, 

 when deducted from the weight of those in the 

 hive, will give the weight of the honey. If it 

 is found that there is 2.5 pounds of honey, said 

 amount is sufficient for winter where the bees 

 are to be wintered outdoors: or if 20 pounds, 

 that will do very well where bees are wintered 

 in the cellar. If less, the deficiency must be 

 made up; if more, it can spare some to help 

 another colony which may be short. In this 

 way go over the whole yard, equalizing and 

 giving stores as is required, till all have the 

 required 20 or 25 pounds. 



'■ But," I hear some one say, " this is a fear- 

 ful job to shake the bees off from every comb, 

 and weigh it." Well, so it would be if done 

 with each colony; but you will have to do this 

 with only one or two till you get the right con- 

 ception of just how much honey there is in 

 each frame by simply looking at it and holding 

 it before you, when you can count off the num- 

 ber of pounds almost to a certainty. However, 

 you will have to weigh a few, if you have 

 never practiced this plan, to give you the neces- 

 sary training required, lean count off combs 

 of honey so as to rarely vary one pound on the 

 whole hive, and yet do it as rapidly as I can 

 handle the combs; and when the apiary is thus 

 gone over, there is a certainty about it which 

 gives the apiarist a great advantage over any 

 other mode of procedure, which can be little 

 above guesswork at best. If there is not 

 enough honey, after all are equalized in the 

 apiary, to give sufficient stores to all, then draw 

 on those combs you have set aside for emer- 

 gency; and if not enough of these, then you 

 will have to resort to feeding. As I go over 

 the hives in this way I carefully note the 

 quantity of bees, age of queen, amount of pollen 

 in the combs, etc., which is jotted down on a 

 piece of honey-section, this piece being lefr on 



