1310 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Oct. 15 



kept dark aucl uudisturl)ed. This cellar can 

 be easily ventilated, if necesssi'y; but the 

 frequent going in and out, opening doors 

 above, often gives all that is necessary. 



Noise above the bees does not seem to dis- 

 turb them much. I know of a successful 

 cellar within a few feet of a railroad where 

 trains are frequently passing. The bees get 

 used to it. 



Again, if I could have all my desires grant- 

 ed for an outside cellar I would want a dug- 

 out cellar in a sandy hill, with a stream of 

 spring water running through to purify the 

 air and keep it the same temperature. If 

 mold gathers on a cut piece of potato in the 

 cellar it means that ventilation is needed in 

 some way. Have the bottom of the cellar 

 covered with sand or dry sawdust; and if air 

 gets bad, some air-slacked lime on the floor 

 may help it. 



But wintering with many is not half the 

 problem. To keep the colonies gaining ev- 

 ery day after being taken from the cellar is 

 often the trying question. Let me suggest 

 that such parties try to protect each hive as 

 it is set on its summer stand, with some 

 heavy building-paper, keeping it there until 

 settled warm weather. If you have not tried 

 it, do so. Also soon after placing the bees 

 outside in the evening of a cool day, some 

 time, weather permitting, open each hive 

 just long enough to know the amount of hon- 

 ey; if short, mark it at once on whatever rec- 

 ord you keep of each hive, and see to it 

 that each gets some feeil. I prefer sealed 

 combs of honey; but if out of those, I have 

 used freshly tilled combs from the liee-house. 

 If the bees need feeding later, iise something 

 that can be given in a wholesale way. I now 

 use gallon syrup-pails or fric-tion-top pails, 

 with cover punched full of small holes, like 

 a pepper-box lid. Set it on top of the 

 brood-combs and place for a day an upper 

 story ai-ouml it to protect it from robbers, 

 covering the vacant space around it with 

 cloth. The gallon or more of feed will be 

 taken into the coml)s inside of a day, with 

 no rol)bing or exposure of brood. The pails 

 can be used later with new covers to sell 

 honey in. thus costing one cent for each gal- 

 lon feeder. 



Platteville. Wis. 



»««»«•■ • ■ 



CELLAR WINTERING. 



The Value of Young; Bees in the Fall ; an 

 Ideal Cellar should lie Provided with 

 \'estil)ule(l Entrance and some Means foi- 

 Ventilation ; Mid-winter Flights Unnec- 

 essary. 



BY ( . .\. HATCH. 



hOCAiaXY AND WINTE1{1N(;. 



The location makes all the ilifference when 

 it comes to the wintei'ing problem. To treat 

 all alike from Texas to iVlichigan would be 

 absunl and the height of folly; so to a cer- 

 tain extent each one must solve his own 

 problem, or at least be guidinl by others liv- 

 ing in the same latitude. 



METHOD OF VVINTEKING. 



Having tried almost all methods of winter- 

 ing, such as packing in straw, chaff hives, 

 burying, outdoor cellars, and cellars under 

 dwellings, I am convinced that, all things 

 considered, a good roomy cellar under a 

 house with people living above is the very 

 best place for our bees. Why it is so has 

 never been so clear. May be it is the better 

 ventilation they get, or the closer attention 

 during the winler. 



A SPECIAL KEPOSITOKY. 



But conditions may be such that we can 

 not have a cellar under a dwelling-house for 

 our bees. The next best thing is a bee-cellar. 



LOCATION OF CELLAR. 



This should be near the bees, and, if con- 

 venient, should be so all carrying of bees 

 into the cellar will be down grade, or at 

 least on a level. A bank or side hill is pref- 

 erable, so as to leave the entrance on a 

 level rather than down steps. Better to 

 move the bees to a good location for a cellar 

 than to try to make a poor location work. 



ENTRANCE. 



This should face the east if convenient, so 

 as not to get the sun in the hottest part of 

 the da}', from 11 o'clock to 3 p.m. This is 

 important, but not essential, for experience 

 teaches it is easier to control the cold and 

 keep it out than it is to keep the heat out 

 on warm days toward spring. A southern 

 exposui'e is the least desirable of all, for 

 this reason; and happy is the man who can 

 have a hill at the northwest of his location 

 for both bees and bee-cellar, to protect him 

 from cold northwest winds during winter 

 and spring. 



DEPTH. 



Seven feet l}elow the ground level is the 

 least to be thought of, and eight is better. 

 The greater the depth the more even the 

 temperature, and the greater the influence of 

 the earth's temperature. A shallow cellar. 

 or one above grouml, is of all things to be 

 shunned. 



SIZE. 



This should depend on the number of col- 

 onies to Ije put in. The actual room occu- 

 pied by a ten-frame L. hive is approximately 

 8 sq. ft., and there should be room to walk 

 all around the hives between them and the 

 walls of the cellar — a space of at least 2 ft. 

 A cellar 12x10 ft., inside measure, would be 

 ample for 100 colonies of ten-frame L. or 

 120 eight-frame L., allowing for a support of 

 1 ft. at the l)ottom, and hives 5 deep — a dou- 

 l;)le pile through the center of the room. I 

 think it would l)e Ijetter to build two cellars 

 rather than put many more than this num- 

 ber in one place. Economy of construction 

 would point the same way. 



MATERIAL FOR CELLAR. 



Of course, stone, cement, or some lasting 

 material is l)est for the walls; but walls made 

 by setting well-seasoned posts of oak at the 

 sides, and oak plank, will last several years, 

 and, so far as usefulness is concerned, are 

 just as good as any. 



