VOL. XIX. 



CHICAGO, ILL., FEBRUARY 7, 1883. 



No. 6. 



Published every Wednesday, by 



THOMAS G. NEWMAN, 



Editor and Puoprietor, 



moving Bees in Winter. 



As we have quite a number of 

 queries ;iboat moving bees, and the 

 best method of preparing them for 

 shipment, we will give some direc- 

 tions, as we have often done before, 

 but which seem not to have been seen 

 by those who now send in questions 

 on the subject. Mr. T. F. Kinsel, 

 Shiloh, O., writes thus : 



I am wintering my bees in the cel- 

 lar. I expect to sell some, and move 

 6 to 8 miles soon, if it can be done 

 with safety. How shall I proceed V 

 We have good sleigliing, and they 

 could be drawn on a sled. Would it 

 be better to wait until spring '{ Ought 

 they to be placed in a cellar after re- 

 moving, etc. y Will the unavoidable 

 jotting in moving hurt them V 



We cannot advise the removal of 

 bees, in any manner, during a season, 

 when tliey cannot have a good flight 

 immediately afterward. We would 

 much prefer running the risk of 

 breaking down combs, in the early 

 spring, over rough roads, than to risk 

 their disturbance in winter. It miqht 

 do to move them on a sled over the 

 snow,butall the chances are against it. 



Here is another letter, asking simi- 

 lar questions, from Mr. M. E. Buck, 

 McLean, 111. : 



Bees have done well here during 

 the past summer. The spring was 

 very cold and backward. I com- 

 menced with 23 colonies, spring count, 

 and increased to.50, by natural swarm- 

 ing. My bees are the natives, mixed 

 somewhat with tlie Italians. I am us- 

 ing the Mitchell hive. I have taken 

 1,600 pounds of comb honey; a good 

 part of it in one-pound sections. The 

 greatest yield from one colony was 90 

 pounds in one-pound sections. For 

 wintering, I am trying tlie plan of 

 covering my hives over with hay or 



straw, on the summer stands. I want 

 to ship my bees to Kansas. Would it 

 do to sliip by freight V Which is the 

 best way to pack or fix them, where 

 there are .50 or 75 colonies put on one 

 car V Would it do to pack or heap 

 them together V Is Kansas a good 

 place for bees ? I intend to go there 

 and go into the business. 



Some parts of Kansas are good for 

 bees, as shown by reports from some 

 bee-keepers there. The best time for 

 shipping bees is in April, or quite 

 early in May, before the combs are 

 too heavy with brood ; but with proper 

 care in preparing them and ordinary 

 usage in handling, they may be 

 shipped at any time with comparative 

 safety, except in cold weather, if 

 properly prepared for the journey. 



The first work of preparation is to 

 go through the hives and extract 

 about all the uncapped honey, as the 

 least daubing will prove fatal to the 

 bees ; then procure a block 1 inch 

 square, and as long as the hive is wide, 

 in this cut notches and tack in the 

 bottom of the hive, in which to place 

 the frames to keep them steady ; now 

 select the new combs and tliose heavy 

 with brood or sealed honey, secure 

 them well in the frames with strip- 

 binders, and place in the hive ; tack 

 the ends of the frames firmly to the 

 rabbets on which' they rest ; dip the 

 blanket in clean water, lightly wring, 

 fold about six thicknesses, and lay on 

 the fi'ont ends of the frames. 



If the hive has no portico, leave off 

 the cover, and use wire cloth instead, 

 nailing on top of that, three one-inch 

 strips, two inches wide— one across 

 the center, the others across each end, 

 to insure ventilation when piled on 

 each other. Now tack wire cloth over 

 the entrance, and your bees are ready 

 for shipment. 



If the hive has a portico, prepare in 

 the same manner as above, except to 

 bore a 1 14 inch hole in each side of the 

 brood chamber, and also in the cover, 

 which will be used in place of the 

 wire cloth over the frames ; the holes 



to be covered inside and outside with 

 wire cloth, to admit of ventilation. 

 Leave the entrance open the full size, 

 but cover the entire portico securely 

 with wire cloth, leaving free access to 

 it from the interior of the hive ; care 

 must be taken, however, to bore a IJ^ 

 inch hole under the roof-board of the 

 portico, and left open, to allow free 

 ingress to the interior of the hive, as 

 the entrance beneath may become 

 choked up, and the cluster of bees, 

 with the queen, die of starvation 

 through inability to get at the honey 

 in the hive. 



Hives made with porticoes are much 

 better for shipping bees, for it allows 

 them to drag out the dead, cleanse 

 the hive, and, to a great extent, pre- 

 vent dysentery. Prepared in this 

 manner, full colonies may be shipped 

 at all seasons, from May 1st until 

 Aug. 10th, with perfect success. They 

 should be sent by freight, and loaded 

 with the frames running lengthwise 

 of tha car — the end of the frames 

 pointing • towards the engine. If 

 packed in the car the other way, the 

 "bumping" may break the frames 

 down. Old and tough combs are best 

 for shipping. Express charges are 

 too high, usually, exceptfor short dis- 

 tances. 



Mr. G. Damkohler, Clarence, Mo., 

 remarks as follows : 



I intend to move to Florida in 

 March, and as it may be quite cold 

 here at that time, will you please to 



five some directions, in the Bee 

 OURNAL, how to prepare bees for 

 shipment in winter 'i 1 tj^ard, a few 

 days ago, that a whole car load of bees 

 passed through here, on their way 

 South. Perhaps you know something 

 about that shipment. 



The trouble will be to prepare them 

 for the journey so early. In Missouri 

 there may be some warm days when 

 you can do so, but here in the North, 

 it would be too much to expect. To 

 the foregoing general directions for 

 shipping bees, we direct attention. 



Here is another letter of inquiry 

 from Mr. T. Thurlow, Lancaster, Pa., 



