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Conventions. 



Lancaster County (Pa.) Convention. 



F This Association was convened on May 

 12th, at Lancaster. 



In the absence of President P. S. Reist, 

 the chair was occupied by Vice President 

 J. F. Hershey, and F. R. Diffenderffer was 

 appointed Secretary pro tern. 



Reports. 



J. F. Hershey, of Mound Joy, said he 

 wintered 70 colonies and 17 neuclei indoors. 

 They came out well; he lost none at all: 

 they are storing honey fast. The house he 

 quartered them in is partially underground. 

 A place four feet deep was dug; in this a 

 frame shed eight feet high was erected. 

 The earth was partially banked up around 

 it. There is plenty of ventilation. The 

 house is dark, and the temperature was 

 from 40° to 45°. The combs do not mold. 

 There is six inches of saw-dust on the roof, 

 on the floor and on all the sides, thus absorb- 

 ing all the moisture and keeping the house 

 dry. Mr. Detweiler, a neighbor, has a house 

 of the same kind. He wintered 75 colonies 

 and lost none. His 70 colonies were put in 

 on December 10th; taken out March 10th 

 for a flight, and put back until April 7th. 

 The operation consumed only SO minutes. 



D. H. Lintner wintered 13 colonies on 

 summer stands. Lost four in January and 

 February by dysentery, as he thinks. They 

 were housed near a gate and in rather a 

 damp place. To this, and the continual 

 slamming of the gate which disturbed them, 

 he attributes the morality. He cured the 

 dysentery in other colonies by giving them 

 oil of ainseed. The dead colonies had plenty 

 of honey, but the combs became moldy. 



E. Kreider wintered 14 colonies, losing two. 

 Those left are strong and storing honey. 

 He put chaff around two that were weak; 

 these are now among his strongest colonies, 

 and are storing honey. 



Henry Shiffer wintered 3S colonies on the 

 summer stands. They are all in excellent 

 condition. He put corn fodder around those 

 on the north side, and boartls on the top. 

 He fed some of the weaker ones last fall; as 

 they had only a few pounds of honey, feed- 

 ing was necessary. 



I. G. Martin, of Earl, wintered 29 colonies, 

 packed in chaff. They came out this spring 

 in good condition. Some were weak, but 

 they also came out all right. They did not 

 fly often; once in January and again in 

 February. So far as he knows, all the bees 

 in his neighborhood have come out well. 



John B. Eshleman wintered 30 colonies; 

 he lost two, one becoming queenless, and 

 the other for want of honey before he found 

 out they were short. His bees are in good 

 condition, and storing fast. He wintered 

 them in a shed protected from the north 

 wind. He thought a strong colony will 

 pass the winter with but little protection. 

 Wintering them warmly will give more 

 brood early in the season; that is the ad- 

 vantage of housing them warmly. If bees 

 received the proper attention in the fall, by 



taking all the frames but such as they can 

 cover, and then add them again as they are 

 needed in the spring, we should no doubt 

 do better. 



Jacob Gorgas has several colonies that 

 will be ready to swarm at an early day. His 

 bees have gathered much honey already; and 

 are busily at work. He wintered 8 colonies, 

 and has them all. 



J. H. Davis wintered 27 colonies on sum- 

 mer stands. One he packed carefully and 

 came near losing it. He gave them less 

 protection than last year and had better re- 

 sults. He believed with Mr. Hershey that 

 if bees were housed, honey will be saved. 



Peter S. Reist has 50 colonies, and with 

 nothing but a little protection against the 

 cold winds, they all came through safely. 



Mr. Hershey reported a New York man 

 who saved only a dozen out of 60 colonies, 

 and others in the same State who met with 

 equal losses. Here we have had no losses 

 comparatively. 



Henry Huber thought bees ought to have 

 more ventilation in winter than in summer, 

 and he proceeded to relate an instance in 

 confirmation of this fact. Currents are fa- 

 tal to bees, but a chaff cushion on the top of 

 the frames will absorb all the moisture. 



The Price of Honey. 



Peter S. Reist thought the members should 

 consult with each other about the price of 

 honey, as there is a probability of a consid- 

 erable supply for sale. 



J. F. Hershey. I shall ask 20 cents. If we 

 put our honey into good shape we can get 

 more than the California product sells for. 

 If the crop is good we shall get less; if small, 

 a higher price can be obtained. 



Mr. Gorgas reported some of his honey 

 granulated in the combs. He asked for a 

 remedy, and was told it was because of the 

 cold, and that warm weather will remedy it. 



"What Causes Dysentery In Bees. 



Mr. Davis thought long spells of cold 

 weather caused dysentery. If bees get an 

 occasional flight they will be comparatively 

 free from it. 



Mr. Hershey thought cold and bad honey 

 were the main causes. Bees must consume 

 a certain amount of honey to keep up the 

 heat. A weak colony consumes too much 

 honey to keep up the animal heat. If con- 

 fined too long they will get the dysentery, 

 even if they have the best of honey. A 

 strong colony may be confined longer, as 

 they have more bees to keep up the heat. It 

 is not necessary for each bee to consume as 

 much honey as if the colony were weak. 



Mr. Eshleman. If cold affects one colony 

 in this way, why are not all affected ? You 

 may have this disease at all seasons among 

 bees. He believes it is in the food they get. 

 He believed a cider mill has bad effect on 

 bees. 



Mr. Hershey said his weak colonies made 

 just as good honey as his strong ones, and 

 that nevertheless they got the dysentery. 



Peter S. Reist had authority for saying 

 sweet cider is not injurious to bees, but 

 sour cider is. They may also be other 

 foods that are unwholesome, causing this 

 disease. Besides, it may be contagious ; 

 one hive may infect others. 



