THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 371 



According to my experience and observation, a weak or un- 

 populous colony needs warm protection. Especially is this true if 

 their stores are not of good quality, or if they are short in quantity 

 and scattered throughout the hive with much empty comb near the 

 contracted cluster of bees. Again, some kind of protection is neces- 

 sary in localities where cold weather is long continued, in a cold, 

 damp climate, or in a low altitude. It seems that a weak and un- 

 protected colony requires too great a proportion of their bees to 

 form that protecting crust I have mentioned, so that there is not 

 a sufficient number of bees remaining to form what should be the 

 main body of the cluster within this outer crust, where a little more 

 heat should be maintained, the bees remaining less dormant and 

 slightly active, and so able to minister to the needs of the colony 

 as to heat and nourishment. When all, or nearly all, the bees are 

 required for the more dormant crust, the colony perishes. 



The best method of packing I have found, and I have tried 

 about every form, is to set the hives together in bunches or piles 

 so that all their adjoining sides touch each other. To this end there 

 must be no projections on these adjoining sides either on the bottom 

 boards, bodies or covers. They should be placed four abreast facing 

 south or southeast and the front end should be left exposed to the 

 sun. The top and the northeast and west sides of the bunch may 

 be packed with straw or chafif if desired and the packing held in 

 place with boards and rocks or with burlap and baling wire. I 

 think it is a good plan in case of weak colonies to place a second 

 tier of four or five hives on top of the first, with covers and bottoms 

 removed from between the two tiers and these replaced by single 

 sheets of tin or sheet iron. To form temporary bottom boards of 

 these metal sheets a bee space is formed on their upper sides by 

 tacking strips on the sides and back. 



To avoid confusion the entrances are contracted and separated 

 as far as practicable, with here and there a sheet of tin shoved in 

 between the hives. The removed bottoms and covers are used to 

 retain the packing or to protect the bunch of hives from storms. 

 No mixing of bees need be feared when separating the hives in 

 spring upon their summer stands, since the appearance of the whole 

 yard is entirely changed at once. This should be done when few 

 bees are flying and all locations will be marked by the bees on their 

 first flight. 



[Mr. Oliver Foster gave his wintering plan, somewhat similar to the one here 

 described, some time ago in the Review. Here, however, he has gone into the 

 question a little differently. It must be borne in mind that packing straw around 

 the hives as he describes will give good results only where the winters are com- 

 paratively dry. This plan will apply only to the arid west where the winters are 

 dry and comparatively mild. Winter protection is needed in the west, however, 

 for the west does have prolonged cold spells. The loss was verj' heavy in eastern 

 Colorado the past winter, largely on account of the severe weather. The bee- 

 men are preparing for more protection another winter. 



