AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



2T5 



Further Details of Packing Bees 

 for Winter. 



Written Jor tlie American Bee Journal 

 BY JAMES A. QKEEN. 



(Coatinued from page 244.) 



The outer cases which I use for pack- 

 ing 4 colonies were made of some refuse 

 inch lumber I happened to have. The 

 only objection to the use of such lumber 

 is its weight — a matter of little conse- 

 quence when two can work together in 

 packing and unpacking. If new lumber 

 is to be used in making them, I would 

 get common lumber, and have it split 

 and planed on one side. Packing cases 

 made of such lumber are lighter, easier 

 to handle, and may be kept neatly 

 painted if desired. 



I formerly advocated making outer 

 cases of lath, and most of my boxes for 

 packing single colonies are made of that 

 material. Lath is the cheapest material 

 that can be used for the purpose, and it 

 has some other good points in its favor ; 

 but all things considered, I would prefer 

 to use wider and better lumber. 



The boxes are made of such size that 

 when put over the hives there is a space 

 ©f 4 inches for packing all around the 

 outside of the hives, and 8 inches on 

 top. This space is quite sufficient to 

 allow the use of coarse packing ma- 

 terial, such as planer shavings, leaves, 

 straw, or any other material of this 

 nature that is easily obtained. Where 

 sawdust can be easily obtained — it is 

 somewhat expensive, and hard to get 

 here — it is perhaps better than a looser 

 and more open material. When it is 

 used, the thickness of the packing may 

 be somewhat less — say 2 or 3 inches at 

 the sides, and 6 inches on top. 



The wintering cases that have been 

 offered for sale by several supply dealers 

 are not large enough to admit of a suffi- 

 cient quantity of packing material, es- 

 pecially on top. 



Chaff is a good packing material as 

 long as it is kept dry. A serious objec- 



tion to its use, sometimes, is that the 

 grain which it is apt to contain attracts 

 mice, which often find their way into the 

 hive and greatly injure or destroy the 

 colony. 



Perhaps the best packing material, 

 cost not taken into consideration, is 

 ground cork. Cork is specially valuable 

 to those who think it necessary to use 

 a porous covering for the top of the 

 hive, with some absorbing material, in 

 order that the moisture generated by 

 the bees may pass off in this way. This 

 is something that I consider entirely un- 

 necessary. In preparing my bees for 

 winter I leave on the flat board cover 

 that covers the top of my hives, and 

 usually this is sealed down tight, which 

 is the way the bees will always have it 

 if they are given the opportunity before 

 cold weather comes. 



I will say right here, though, that I 

 believe that bees will go through the 

 winter just as well if a porous covering 

 is used, which, while not permitting a 

 draft, allows a very slow circulation of 

 air that will carry upward the moisture 

 of the hive. With very large hives hav- 

 ing only a small entrance, perhaps this 

 is the best plan. But as soon as the 

 bees begin to rear brood in the spring, it 

 is very desirable that the hive should be 

 perfectly tight on top. As I do not be- 

 lieve in disturbing bees in early spring 

 to make any changes in their hives, I 

 prefer to have the top sealed down tight 

 at all times, and avoid, as far as possi- 

 ble, loosening the covers after the bees 

 have sealed them down tight in the fall. 



Some inquire if a dead-air space would 

 not be as good as the more troublesome 

 packing. Dry air is a most perfect non- 

 conductor, and in all our packing the 

 air that is contained in the interstices is 

 of more value in retaining heat than the 

 packing material itself. A perfect dead- 

 air space, if it could be secured, would 

 be as good a protection against cold as 

 could be devised. Practically, though, 

 a "dead-air space," as a protection 

 against cold, is an Impossibility. 



Heat is conveyed not only by conduc- 

 tion and radiation, but by "convection," 

 the name given to that process by which 

 heat is carried by moving particles of 

 air, or other gas or liquid. If a body of 

 air is confined between two walls, even 

 though the enclosure is perfectly air- 

 tight, if one wall is warmer than the 

 other, or any part of the interior, cur- 

 rents of air will be set up that will carry 

 the heat to the colder portions. Parti- 

 cles of air coming in contact with the 

 warmer wall are heated, and rise. 

 Their place is taken by colder particles, 



