1905 



(..LEAMXCS IN BEE CULTURE 



181 



matter extends over a period of fiftec u years 

 or more. By this I do not mean that 1 nave 

 given all the colonies I winter in cellars a 

 flight every winter; for if bees are winter- 

 ing well, and remain in a quiet dormant 

 state until time to set them out in the spring 

 I do not believe a winter flight is necessary; 

 in fact, I believe it may do more harm than 

 good— not necessarily the flight itself, but 

 the excitement and disturbance of getting 

 the bees out and back in the cellar may 

 draw more on their vitality than the longer 

 confinement would. On the other hand, if, 

 owing to poor stores or an unfavorable cel- 

 lar, the bees begin to get restless and un- 

 easy toward the latter part of winter my ex- 

 perience has been that a flight at about this 

 time is a great benefit. I feel morally cer- 

 tain that a great number of colonies to which 

 I have given a flight under such conditions, 

 and which have come through the spring in 

 good shape, and built up into strong colonies 

 in time for the white-honey harvest, would 

 have perished by spring dwindling if they 

 had not been allowed to have a winter flight. 

 I have often had large numbers of colonies 

 that had dark fall honey, and in some cases 

 more or less honey-dew for winter stores, 

 g^t restless toward the latter part of winter, 

 and begin to spot the hives. Such, when 

 given a winter flight, always came through 

 in much better shape every way than colo- 

 n'es in the same condition that were not 

 given a flight. 



But one thing in regard to winter flights that 

 I learned by dear experience is that, after a 

 colony has had a good flight, it should be put 

 bsck the same day, or at least the next, or 

 brood-rearing may be started. One year I 

 set a large number out about the middle of 

 January, and left them out about a week, 

 as the weather continued so mild that they 

 could fly every day. Over two-thirds of 

 them started brood-rearing, and I lost near- 

 ly all of these, for they seemed to keep on 

 trying to rear brood after being put back in 

 the cellar, and most of them ran out of 

 stores, and starved to death before it was 

 time to set them out in the spring. I never 

 knew a colony, though, to start brood-rear- 

 ing if it was put back the same day, or 

 early the next, before they commenced to 



fly. 



Southern Minnesota/ 



[Our experience here at Medina confirms 

 Mr. Davenport in every particular, so far as 

 we have gone. We have always put our 

 bees back the same day, as we would not 

 dare to take our chances on having another 

 favorable day. I can readily see, however, 

 how a week of good weather might set the 

 bees to rearing brood so as to sap material- 

 ly the vitality of a colony at a time when 

 it could ill afford to lose any strength. 



I can not help believing that the conclusion 

 arrived at a number of years ago, that there 

 was no advantage in taking bees out of the 

 cellar, was utterly erroneous. If they are 

 suffering because of overcharged intestines, 

 why would not positive relief be given if that 



poisonous fecal matter could be discharged? 

 Certainly it would. 



If we get right down to it, I think we 

 shall discover that the reason why the prac- 

 tice was given up was because of the nui- 

 sance or bother. Then is it not true that 

 some who condemned it allowed the bees to 

 stay out for a flight too long or selected 

 days that were too cool? I have never ad- 

 vocated more than a few hours' flight on a 

 favorable day, then putting the bees back in 

 the cellar again the same day. — Ed.] 



WHAT MADE THEM GO OUT ? 



Why Some Bee-keepers Succeed and Some 

 Do Not. 



BY C. E. WOODWARD. 



I am asked every now and then why so 

 many people go out of the bee business ev- 

 ery year. In the first place, I do not admit 

 the implied condition of affairs as stated in 

 the question. They say to me that the bee 

 business can not be a very profitable one or 

 it must have a great many more unusual 

 drawbacks than most other kinds of busi- 

 ness. I do not believe the number of those- 

 who drop out of the bee business is any 

 greater in proportion than in many other 

 lines of trade in the mercantile world. It 

 must be remembered that hundreds of peo- 

 ple become interested in honey-producing 

 and queen-breeding each year, and they rep- 

 resent all classes and characters of human- 

 ity, from the schoolboy to the aged invalid. 

 Many of them have made failures in numer- 

 ous callings of life, hence they are attract- 

 ed to the bee business and think it a very 

 easy one; and the result is, another failure 

 to be recorded in the chapter of misfortune. 

 Those who go into the bee business with this 

 idea seldom succeed, because they are woe- 

 fully ignorant in regard to the elements nec- 

 essary to success, and are not willing to give 

 the work the attention and money which it 

 ofttimes needs. 



Looking at the bee business from the 

 view of dollars and cents, it should be borne 

 in mind that capital and experience are nec- 

 essary for success unless one is willing to 

 start in a small way and is satisfied to wait 

 till the business can be established on a pay- 

 ing basis, which can not be done in one sea- 

 son. I know of no other vocation in which 

 those interested expect as great returns in 

 so short a time, and with so little outlay, as 

 with the honey-bee. They seem to look on 

 it as an easy get-rich-quick proposition— that 

 the bees board themselves and work for 

 nothing, and they are to take in the pro- 

 ceeds thereof; then if their expectation is 

 not fulfilled they are quite apt to condemn 

 the business because this class of people 

 have failed at it. On the other hand, in- 

 vestigation shows that the man and not the 

 bees was at fault. Many who become inter- 

 ested as queen-breeders, either as a fad or 

 for profit, do so with a very faint idea of 

 what is required to reach the point at which 



