-17^ 



(JLI'LVNlN'tiS IN IJEK CULTUllE. 



July 



incht's aliovc tlie lop of tin- hive when its cap is re- 

 moved. A l>iifl;re, or tulie, about lour inches 

 pfiuare, led id from the front of the liox to tlie en- 

 trance of the hive. When i)repariniL!- tlic bees for 

 « inter, one comb is removed and tlic remaining 

 cointiK spread apart. Little sticks laid across the 

 tops of the Irames allow the bees to pass from comb 

 to comb. Over these sticks is laid a woolen cloth, 

 and in tlie surplus apartments at the sides of the 

 brood-nest are jtlaced chatf cushions. 



The large bo.\' is tilled with chaff, and a cover put 

 on, in the center of which there is a hole a trifle 

 larger than the top of the hive. The ordinary cap 

 to the hive is removed, an. I another cap substituted 

 that just Oils the hole left in the cover to the large 

 lio.\, and sets dow n over or outside the upper edge 

 of the hive. This cap is tilled with chaff, the chaff 

 being kept in jilace bj- a cloth tacked to the lower 

 edge of the cap. In the top of the cap is cut a hole 

 nearly a foot square, which is covered with wire 

 cloth to keep out mice. This opening allows the 

 moisture to escape, which is considered of much 

 importance. In one or two instances this upward 

 ventilation was omitted when the entrances be- 

 came closed with ice. Over the whole is placed a 

 roof of rough boards. The packing is done enrli), so 

 that there need he no disturbance after cool weath- 

 er sets in. When it is time for snows to come, a 

 board is leaned up in front of the entrance, to keep 

 out the snow. The little bridge leading to the en- 

 trance is not allowed to become tilled with snow. 

 If any snow blows in it is veiy carefully brushed 

 out with a wing. The packing is allowed to re- 

 main until all danger of even coof weather is past. 

 It was May 18th when we were there, and the un- 

 packing had been finished the previous day. We 

 were never more favorably impressed with the im- 

 portance of fipiing i)acking. In the colony that 

 was packed great masses of bees were hanging out 

 in the surplus apartments at the sides of the brood- 

 nest; while other colonies that were unpacked, that 

 were, we were informed, no stronger, showed little 

 if any disposition to hang out. The hand thrust 

 down into the chaff' outside of the hive showed it to 

 be quite warm. Even though inclined to adopt cel- 

 lar wintering, we think it will be found profitable 

 to pack the bees in the spring, after taking them 

 from the cellar. The fine, strong, booming colonies 

 lound at "Oiir Clearing" have stimulated our am- 

 bition wonderfully to winter our bees in a like suc- 

 cessful manner, and, feeling that "what man 

 hath done man can do," we shall put f<nth e.xtra 

 exertions to winter our bees another winter. 

 Now don't joke us, friend Root, and say it was a 

 woman who has so successfully wintered her bees. 

 Ifyou do, we shall tell you that Dr. Southard, of 

 Kalamazoo, Mich., wintered his entire apiary of 1(11) 

 colonies, and they were packed out of doors. Cyula 

 and her sister jokingly offered to winter some of 

 our bees if we would send them up there, and we 

 are more than half inclined to send half a dozen 

 colonies, just for the fun of the thing, and to see 

 how it will turn out. It is, peihaps, but fair to say 

 that two or three colf)nics in the " Linswik Apiary " 

 did not winter so perfectly as the others, and were 

 considerably w-eakcr, an<l that the proprietors 

 could not tell the reason why. 



.\ KEW WOUDS in UK1''EN.SK ok <i. W. (iATK.S. 



Mr. Gates may not feel like defending himself, so 

 please allow me to say that I know one of his little 

 boys was very sick, and that Mrs. G., who usually 



helped Mr. (J. in packing bees for shipment, had to 

 stay in the house and care for the sick child. Then 

 Mr. Gates' man caught his hand in a horse power, 

 and he was left short of help. I5ees were swarming, 

 every thing full of honey, and no time to extract; 

 queens hatching, and tearing down cells because 

 they could not be attended to. Then another child 

 was taken sick, and friend G. certainly had his 

 hands full. All this time orders were fairly ptmriuu 

 in. Had Mrs. Chaddock known all this, probably 

 she would have been more charitable. It was of 

 friend Gates that I bought the bees by the pound, 

 as mentioned in the July Gleanings, and I have 

 found him the \ery soul of honor. 



S— W. Z. Hutch i.NsoN, 7C— 100. 

 llogersville, Mich., July 8, 1S^.5. 



SPIDERS AND BEES. 



Spiders are one of the Bee - Keepers' best 



friends to preserve empty Combs from 



the Ravages of the Bee-Moth. 



BY REV. Ij. I>. I,ANr.STl!()TH. 



EVEK, since the introduction of movable 

 frames, has there been in our country a 

 greater mortality among bees than during 

 the last winter and spring. Before the use 

 cf these frames, to most bee-keepers such 

 losses were irreparable. How often, by natural 

 swarming, did the old-fashioned bee-keeper, when a 

 few good seasons came in succession, make such a 

 success in the business as convinced him that a 

 given sum of money invested in bees paid better 

 than any thing else':' But sooner or later comes the 

 bad year— when most and perhaps all of his colo- 

 nics are lost— his golden dreams vanish, and in most 

 cases he abandons the pursuit in disgust, having 

 nothing to show for his investment but some empty 

 hives (e.vtra nice for kindling - woodi, and some 

 combs, of value only for their wax. Was he one of 

 the kind who have little use in their vocabulary for 

 the word failure':' Reing able to make but little if 

 any use of his old combs, he painfully waited upon 

 the seasons; and unless he had in him the making 

 of another Quinby or Grimm, he could hope to 

 build up his ajjiary again only if favored by a suc- 

 cession of favored seasons. 



We have had some very calamitous seasons since 

 movable frames began to be extensively used; but 

 l)y those who know their business, how (piickly are 

 such losses repairedl Although not very often re- 

 ferred to, this power of speedy recuperation is one 

 of the greatest benefits which come from the con- 

 trol (if the combs. Nearly every empty comb can 

 be utilized for the bees, especially since the era of 

 sending iiueens by mail and purchasing bees l)y the 

 pound; and even if he has lost all his colonies, no 

 one need call himself a bankrupt bee-keeper, but 

 in a single favorable season may hear again the 

 cheerful hum of industry in hives no longer deso- 

 late and silent. The change so speedily effected 

 seems almost like a resurrection of the dead! 



Hut it takes tintr, even with the best management, 

 to secure such results, and just here comes a new 

 element which ntuxt be taken into account. Noth- 

 ing is so acceptable to the bee moth as combs with 

 no bees to protect them; the older the combs, and 

 the better in all respects for the bees, the better, 

 too, for the moth: and the great question is, how 

 with the least trouble can these empty corabs be 



