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GLEANINGS IN BEE OULTU.^E 



\('ii(il;i(i(»ii. Pile one liixe diiectly on lop 

 uf another. Leave windows and ventilators 

 open until the temperature reaches 40 de- 

 grees, then gradually close up but do not 

 allow the temperature to rise above this 

 point if it can be helped, until they are set 

 out again in the spring. 



In the winter of ]911 — one of the coldest 

 winteis we ever had in Minnesota — I had 

 only fifteen colonies — not enough to create 

 any heat of themselves in the cellar. The 

 thermometer stood at 45 degrees when they 

 were put in about the first of November. 

 From this time to Jan. 15 the temperature 

 gxadually lowered until it stood at 32 de- 

 grees in the bottom of the cellar. There it 

 remained the rest of the winter; and when 

 I removed the bees about the first of April, 

 with the temperature outside wai'm enough 

 for flight of bees, the thermometer still 

 registered 34 degrees in the cellar, a rise of 

 only two degrees. 



M\ ery colony was in fine condition, with 

 \eiy few dead bees on the cellar bottom. 

 In 1912, with 25 colonies it was the same 

 story except that the thermometer stood at 

 34 degrees all winter instead of 32. This 

 year (1913), since putting in 95 colonies 

 the first i^art of November, the tempera- 

 ture has been exceedingly mild outside ; yet 

 the thermometer which registered 48 degi'ees 

 tlie day after putting in has not at any time 

 lisen to more than 50 degrees {Dec. 1913). 



Winter losses of bees in Minnesota have 

 been altogether too great in the past. We 

 must find some way to overcome this; and, 

 judging by my experience the last two win- 

 ters, with hives full of young bees ard with 

 suftlcient stores, with a snug Avarm space 

 under the frames in which to cluster, and a 

 cellar constructed on scientific principles, T 

 believe we have gone cjuite a way toward 

 solving the problem. 



Minneapolis, Minn. 



STIMULATIVE FEEDING SHOULD BE DONE IN THE FALL 



BY D. M. MACDONALD 



Whenever this question is brought up for 

 discussion we must recognize that a con- 

 siderable amount of diversity of opinion 

 prevails among beekeepers as to the how. 

 why, where, and when this operation should 

 be carried out. Many who look upon them- 

 selves as good and successful beekeepers 

 underdo feeding; others overdo it, while 

 very many entirely neglect it, even when 

 taught by bitter experience that feeding- 

 would pay both cost and labor. Oblivious 

 of the fact that the undertaking, timely at- 

 tended to, or either overlooked or done out 

 of season, may spell either success or failure, 

 they go on sacrificing thousands of stocks 

 yearly, and, of course, this means thousands 

 of pounds which, but for pusillanimity, 

 gross carelessness, or simply forgetfulness, 

 might well go into tlie purses of men who 

 could well accept more than they now re- 

 ceive. The question is broader and deepei- 

 than even this one of pounds or dollars 

 because beekeepers are often content with 

 weak or medium stocks when they might 

 have nine out of ten of these laggards right 

 in line with their best colonies, provided 

 they gave even a modicum of thought and 

 intelligence to the question of stimulation at 

 the right time and in the right way. The 

 broad rules apply equally on both sides of 

 the Atlantic, although some minor points of 

 difference may crop up with you and Avith 

 us, chiefly owing to locality and the various 

 sources of supply yielding in. late fall. 



When we come to the direct question of 

 stimulative feeding to promote breeding, 

 and provide our stocks with more bees and 

 stronger forces, we discover a distinct cleav- 

 age of opinion. There is a marked line of 

 demarcation, and Ave encounter two schools 

 of thought Avhose beliefs and practices are 

 diametrically opposed. I haA^e been reading 

 up all the authors on your side in my pos- 

 session — upward of a score — and I find the 

 above holds good. Both sides are emphatic 

 in promulgating their oAvn opinions, and 

 frequently are intolerant of those of their 

 opponents. Our literature shoAvs as much 

 diversity, and the doctrines are as forcibly 

 asserted and maintained. 



Here are two brief tenets embracing the 

 Avhole matter in a nutshell. First, Dr. Mill- 

 er Avrites in Gleanings for December, page 

 837, " I don't believe I ever gained by stim- 

 ulative feeding." In "Alexander's Writings," 

 p. 30, Mr. A. asserts, " I knoAv of only one 

 Avay to secure a good Avorking force, and 

 that is by stimulative feeding." Nothing 

 can, aj^parently, reconcile these two diver- 

 gent statements ; they are like the two poles, 

 as Avidely sundered as possible. Yet, as I 

 have said, I can produce evidence from 

 tAventy prominent beekeepers, or leading 

 Avriters of our bee literature, supporting 

 both statements, and most of them clinch 

 their theoretical statements by producing 

 actual practical facts — conclusions deduced 

 from evidence accumulated in the course of 



