1895 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



847 



Our Symposium on Wintering. 



The Subject Keviewed by a Few of the Prominent 



Bee-keepers who Have been Successful in 



Wintering for Many Years back. 



ESSENTIAL rONPITIONS; THE MODERN OUT- 

 DOOR AND INDOOR PLANS FULLY described; 



packing: upward and bottom ventila- 

 tion; SEALED covers; SUB-EARTH VENTI- 

 LATORS: MODEL BEE-CELLARS, AND HOW TO 

 CONSTRUCT THEM. 



[A few year." ago the siihject of wintering 

 was an old and hackneyed one until it was 

 chopped oflf. There were a good many con- 

 flicting theories, and many were losing heavily. 

 But in later years these theories have come 

 more and more into harmony, and success is 

 crowning the efforts of nearly all. It seemed 

 to me it might be well for us to devote one 

 whole number to a review of the subject, to 

 consider the essential features, and those points 

 upon which there seems to be now general 

 harmony of opinion. I therefore asked a num- 

 ber, as before stated — those who write only 

 occasionaly, but who nevertheless are very 

 successful — to give us briefly their methods, 

 wherein they attain success, and then to tell us 

 briefly what things they had learned in the 

 last few years.* Among other things. I told 

 them not to be afraid to go over old ground: 

 that we desired to see how many prominent 

 bee-keepers were following essentially the same 

 methods. If these methods should be largely 

 the same, it would be proof that they were 

 nearly correct. While one might suppose that 

 one article might be largely a duplicate of 

 another, each writer treats the subject in quite 

 a different way, as the headings will show. 

 —Ed. J 



OUTDOOR WINTERING IN VERMONT. 



THE IMPORTANCE OF A BROOD-NEST SUITED 

 TO THE SIZE OF THE COLONY. 



By J. E. Grane. 



About the middle of September, or as soon 

 after as I can get to it, I look over my bees and 

 carefully weigh with my eyes the amount of 

 honey that each hive contains, and set down 

 the amount of sugar syrup that each needs to 

 carry it until warm weather or spring flowers, 

 beside the number of each hive. At this time I 

 also see that each colony has a laying queen. 

 If any are queenless they are broken up. If I 

 find any drone-laying queens, the colony is 

 united with others. I also note carefully the 

 size of each colony, and reduce the brood- cham- 

 ber to correspond with the size of the colony. 

 I then feed sugar syrup, containing some honey, 

 as quickly as possible, in quantity such that 

 each shall have of honey and syrup from 12 to 

 30 lbs. This is to include the stores of honey in 

 the hive before feeding. I expect to have my 

 feeding all done by Oct. 15th. 



I winter my bees on their summer stands, 

 and the next thing to be done is to pack for 

 winter; and I prefer to pack at once as soon as 

 feeding is finished. I was 11 days this year 



*I did not call on the regrular contributors, be- 

 cause we were familiar with their methods. — Ed. 



feeding about 8500 lbs. of syrup, most of my 

 bees being from 3 to 11 miles from home, with 

 only one horse to draw it. 



For packing I use sawdust, chafl', leaves, and 

 planer-shavings. All are good, but the wind 

 blows the leaves at times very uncomfortably, 

 and chaff is very apt to attract mice; and the 

 sawdust has a way of getting through any little 

 crevice or hole, so I dislike it, and prefer planer- 

 shavings to any thing else. 



As I leave the packing around the sides of 

 the brood-chamber during the summer I have 

 little to do but spread a cloth over the top of 

 frames, and fill one side of the brood-chamber, 

 if empty, with shavings, perhaps a few around 

 the upper edge of the brood-chamber, and lay 

 over the whole a cushion filled with packing, 

 and tuck down snug and warm. 



For cloths to lay over the frames I use cotton 

 cloth, old pieces of carpeting, old woolen cloths, 

 straw matting, and any thing that will let the 

 moisture pass through. Burlap is good. Mat- 

 ting made of cocoanut fiber is perhaps the best, 

 or at least will last longest. I have used enamel- 

 ed cloth, and very strong colonies seem to win- 

 ter well under it; but I do not find the combs 

 as dry and clean as when some cloth of open 

 texture is used. 



About half or two-thirds of the way from the 

 bottom to the top of the brood-chamber in 

 front I have a tube ?i or X inch in diameter to 

 connect the inside of the chamber with the 

 outer world. In other words, 1 have an upper 

 entrance so that, should the lower entrance 

 get clogged with dead bees, the upper one can 

 be used by the bees and so prevent their worry- 

 ing themselves to death. 



Treated in this way, bees winter here in 

 Western Vermont year after year safely, and, I 

 believe, economically. My bees, so far as I 

 know, are now all snug, and warmly packed 

 this Oct. 24th, and will require very little far- 

 ther attention until April. Should the weather 

 be warm, the bees can fly and enjoy it. If cold, 

 they can remain snug and warm in their nests. 



Were I asked what I have learned in recent 

 years in wintering that is of importance I 

 should say, thevalue of having the size of every 

 brood-chamber correspond with the size of the 

 colony that is to occupy it. Quinby, in "Bee- 

 keeping Explained," says that a small colony 

 will consume nearly as much honey as a good- 

 sized one; and when both are wintered in the 

 same size of hive he is undoubtedly correct; 

 but my experience has been that, when the 

 brood-chamber is reduced to fit the colony, the 

 consumption of honey during winter does not 

 seem proportionately greater for the small 

 colony than the large one. Nor yet do I find 

 the loss greater of small colonies properly put 

 up for winter than large ones. 



My theory is, that, if a good-sized colony 

 should have eight frames to winter on, and 30 



