336 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



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■■*--~--^-^-^ffl>ifir*-^'~-f»rmi 



Report of tlie Cortland Union 

 Bee-Convention. 



Written ior the Amei-ican Bee Journal 

 BY C. W. WILKINS. 



The Cortland Union Bee-Keepers' As- 

 sociation met in annual session at Cort- 

 land, N. Y., on Jan. 24, 1893. The 

 meeting was called to order by President 

 J. L. Kinney, and the reports of Secre- 

 tary and Treasurer were read and ap- 

 proved, after which an opportunity was 

 given the members to pay their annual 

 dues. 



The following officers were elected for 

 the ensuing year : 



President — Marion R. Wood, of Cort- 

 land. 



Vice-Pesident — Miles Morton, of Gro- 

 ton. 



Secretary — C. W. Wilkins, of Homer. 



Treasurer — T. T. Barrows, of Groton. 



It was voted to give their Secretary, 

 in the future, a salary of $1.00 for each 

 meeting, to be paid at the succeeding 

 meeting when his report is approved. 



At the request of the Secretary the 

 Association will meet for their spring 

 meeting at his residence, three miles 

 northwest of Homer village, at the call 

 of the committee. It was voted to make 

 these spring meetings, which are held 

 among the various members of the asso- 

 ciation at their invitation, a basket pic- 

 nic, and thus share the burden and labor 

 of supplying the assembly with lunch. 



BEE-ESCAPES. 



The discussions were opened by the 

 questions, "What Has Been Your Ex- 

 perience with Bee-Escapes ? Are they 

 a Success ?" 



These questions were answered mainly 

 by Mr. Morton, who had had more ex- 

 perience with them than any bee-keeper 

 present. He pronounced them an entire 

 success in his yard ; especially so in the 

 clearing of bees out of extracting supers, 

 which they did quickly, and in a very 

 thorough manner. 



WINTEBING BEES UNDEE SNOW. 



The question which has agitated the 

 thinking powers of the apiarist, in this 

 latitude more than any other which has 

 been brought to bear, we believe to be 

 found in the above words, and their dis- 

 cussion pro and con. 



Some of those present preferred their 

 colonies to remain underneath the snow, 

 as the wind might leave it piled above 

 the hive tops until the warm weather of 

 approaching spring caused the snow to 

 become heavy and damp ; then they 

 wished it removed before the dampness 

 penetrated the hives. Others thought it 

 much better to keep the hives free from 

 snow, especially in front, claiming that 

 their bees wintered much better in those 

 hives where the wind kept the snow 

 swept away, that in those covered un- 

 derneath. This latter argument is based 

 upon the point that bees, as nature gave 

 them instinct, seek homes in hollow 

 t.rees, crevices in the rocks, etc., where 

 they are subject to the prevailing tem- 

 perature, which is generally low enough 

 to keep them in a semi-dormant condi- 

 tion, with the exception of perhaps an 

 occasional flight. 



When we place a colony of bees in a 

 hive and allow them to become covered 

 with snow to a depth of perhaps several 

 feet, and remain thus, the order of na- 

 ture is tampered with, and the " little 

 busy bees," as they liven up with a 

 higher temperature, imagine "spring 

 has come with its birds and flowers," 

 and they immediately begin to " hustle" 

 to increase their numbers. "What is 

 the hurt in that ?" you ask. Simply 

 this : The snow is finally removed, or 

 melts away ; the bees are brought more 

 nearly in contact with the prevailing 

 temperature; they find out they have 

 been too "fast;" they have used up 

 their honey in brood-rearing before the 

 flowers " got there," and now their young 

 chills in the cell, and they die with what 

 is commonly called "spring dwindling ;" 

 or, if their stores should all have been 

 consumed, starvation will have preceded 

 all other ailments. Is this exaggerated? 

 We honestly believe not. 



OPENING HIVE-ENTRANCES IN WINTER. 



This subject received quite a spirited 

 and lengthy discussion. The preference 

 seemed to be in favor of leaving a little 

 snow over the entrance, or in not raking 

 out the dead bees and refuse so as to 

 hasten (or allow if it could be prevented) 

 the flight of the bees until the tempera- 

 ture should reach 48^ or 50^ Pahr., 

 when it would be possible for all bees in 



