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VOL. LXI— NO. 5 



HAMILTON, ILL., MAY, 1921 



MONTHLY, $1.50 A YFAJt 



STORES AS CROP INSURANCE 



BY G. H. CALE 



FEEDING has at times been a 

 much abused practice and a 

 subject of considerable discus- 

 sion in the bee magazines. In the 

 spring it is common to have colonies 

 run short of stores, and since usually 

 there is a possibility of minor nectar 

 flows occurring to make good the de- 

 ficiency, feeding is often neglected. 

 Nature is ever a fickle dame, how- 

 ever, and colonies should be watched 

 to insure that sufficient food is con- 

 stantly present to prevent starvation. 

 As long as there is capped honey in 

 the hive, additional food is, for a 

 time, unnecessary. 



However, since the object of all 

 well directed work in the apiary pre- 

 vious to the honeyflow is to have a 

 strong gathering force when the flow 

 begins, there comes a time in spring 

 when feeding is done not only to 

 prevent starvation but also to insure 

 the continuance of brood rearing. 

 When the queen breaks her winter's 

 rest and starts to lay, the daily quota 

 of eggs gradually increases until a 

 high level is reached when the num- 

 ber of eggs in a day may average 

 three or four thousand. Under fa- 

 vorable conditions there is no other 

 period in the year when the amount 

 of brood present at one time is as 

 great as at this peak in the first part 

 of the season. Strong colonies may 

 then increase their population from a 

 force of 15,000 to 20,000 bees to one 

 of 80,000 or more, an increase of 12 

 to 13 pounds of bees. 



Food Required 

 Unfortunately, conditions are not 

 always favorable to this increase and 

 one of the frequent drawbacks is the 

 lack of the stimulation which comes 

 from the presence of an abundance 

 of food for the development of the 

 brood. Where there is a limited food 

 supply the number of mouths must of 

 necessity be restricted, and unless 

 nectar is to be found in plenty out- 

 side the hive, the daily additions to 

 the brood inside will be reduced 

 some time before the reserve food is 



exhausted. Strong colonies with 

 large amounts of brood often do not 

 retrench quickly enough, and when 

 stores are scant such colonies must 

 be watched carefully, since they fre- 

 quently die of starvation in a very 

 short time. 



This behavior places an emphasis 

 on feeding which has not been given 

 often enough. A few figures on the 

 requirements of brood are available 

 which are interesting and of much 

 practical value. In looking over the 

 results of the experiments in bee- 

 keeping cond-cted by R. L. Taylor 

 at the Michigan Agricultural Experi- 

 ment Station, Demuth obtained fig- 

 ures from which he was able to ex- 

 press the total food requirements of 

 the honeybee from the hatching of 

 the egg to the emergence of the 

 adult. It requires approximately 5 

 pounds of honey to a pound of bees; 

 or one frame of honey to one frame 

 of brood. The probable accuracy of 

 these figures will be readily supported 



by those who have observed the swift 

 disappearance of stores when brood- 

 rearing is at its height. To increase 

 in numbers from 3 or 4 pounds of 

 bees in early spring to the 16 or 18 

 pounds which we like to have before 

 the honeyflow, takes a minimum, 

 therefore of 60 to 70 pounds of 

 honey, not figuring the food con- 

 sumed by bees which emerge and are 

 removed by death. 



There is also another factor which 

 enters the feeding question at this 

 time. The mere production of bees 

 is not so important as the need for 

 bees of the right age at the right 

 time. Pig. 1. 



Since the honeybee is not capable 

 of materially renewing its energy, 

 the life of the worker is not measured 

 by time, but by the amount of work 

 done. For the maximum efficiency 

 of the honey-gathering force, there- 

 fore, the workers must not have con- 

 sumed much energy in field labors be- 

 fore the honeyflow begins. Bees may 



Fig. 



