384 THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



be two combs about two-thirds filled with honey, and two on each 

 outside filled with well ripened lujney. We h.houid never, when 

 suppl^'inrr a colony with winter stores, give it a full nmiiber of 

 combs of sealed honey. W'e should never place in the center of 

 the hive a solid comb of sealed honey. All combs of scaled honey 

 should be placed at one side of the winter nest. Jf anybody doubt 

 that bees try to have a winter nest, let him break into a cluster of 

 bees in winter when the temperature is about zero in an out-door 

 colony. If the arrangement of combs has not been disturl)ed in the 

 fall we will find the bees tightly jammed into the cells and the 

 spaces between the combs forming a hemisphere or ball. Their 

 stores should be around and above the winter nest. When it comes 

 to indoor wintering, especially where the cellar temperature does 

 not go below 45° Fahr., a winter nest is not vitally necessary. 

 But if the temperature goes below 45° and remains there for sev- 

 eral days, the absence of a winter nest may mean the death of 

 colonies. Nature has provided the honey bees wdth a winter nest 

 and if the bee-keeper tampers with her plans, he may in the end 

 tamper with his pocketbook. 



\Vc can do certain things contrary to nature, but we must not 

 interfere with the arrangements of their combs that constitute the 

 winter nest. 



Points on Indoor JVijitcriiig. 



Too low a temperature in a cellar will kill bees. A tempera- 

 ture below 40° Fahr. is too low. An excess of dampness in a cellar 

 does no harm providing the temperature is high enough, not lower 

 than 45° or 50°. A low temperature lower than 40° Fahr. and an 

 excess of dampness is a very bad combination and will kill bees. 

 A high temperature above 50°, but little or no ventilation, will cause 

 the bees to be uneasy. If the temperature is above 45° there 

 should be some ventilation. Bees can be wintered in a cellar without 

 much ventilation, providing the temperature is held uniform between 

 43° and 45°, but they will winter much better if there is some 

 fresh air. 



Ideal conditions are: A nearly uniform temperature of 45° 

 Fahr.; a slight amount of moisture; continuous ventilation and 

 absolute darkness. A very bad combination is a constantly varying 

 temperature that goes down nearly to the freezing point and then 

 rises sometimes to 55° or G0°. It will do no harm, for the bee-keeper 

 to enter the cellar occasionally with a light to examine the bees. 



Preparing the Cellar for the Bees and Carrying Thcui In. 



If the bee-keeper has but 10 to 25 colonies to winter it will be 

 well to darken a small corner in the cellar under the dwelling house 

 by partitioning off a small department in one corner. The partition 



