1903 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



331 



TEMPERATURE OF BEE-CELLARS. 



Subject to Conditions ; other Important Factors; 



Ventilation more Important than Temperature; 



Keeping up instead of Building up. 



BY S. T. PETTIT. 



Answering a question throug-h Glean- 

 iN<;s concerning- the proper temperature of 

 bee-cellars, I will say that anyone temper- 

 ature for all bee-cellars, and all conditions 

 of hives and bees in those cellars, will fit 

 iust about as well as one size of boot will 

 fit the feet of all men. I believe 45° is 

 about right when the hives have nothing 

 more than a cloth over the tops; but I be- 

 lieve 38 to 42 is beUer when each hive has 

 a good cushion on it. But there are other 

 conditions, both of cellars and of hives — 

 important factors in good wintering — that 

 must be considered to determine the right 

 temperature for each cellar. I never could 

 pronounce definitely upon the proper tem- 

 perature of any given cellar without first 

 consulting the bees in that cellar. If they 

 are happy and contented, and manifest it 

 by their silence and dryness, I would note 

 that temperature; and if it has prevailed 

 for some time I would decide that it is 

 about right for that number and condition 

 of the bees in that cellar. But cellars dif- 

 rer so much in construction, material, and 

 conditions of exposure to and protection 

 from bleak winds that it may be necessary 

 in some cellars, in order to continue a good 

 supply of fresh air, to allow the tempera- 

 ture to drop to 36 during cold spells. 



To make my point clearly understood, let 

 me suppose a cellar, well built of brick, 

 cement, or stone, and practically air-tight, 

 and well supplied with adjustable venti- 

 lators, but a portion of it above ground, 

 and in a pretty cold place. Now, it is 

 clear that, in severe weather, the tempera- 

 ture will drop considerably — may be to 36 

 or even 35. Well, if the temperature will, 

 in all probability, rise to 38 or 42 in a few 

 days, it is better not to close the ventilators 

 nor to change them very much, for, very 

 likelj', if they be closed the bees will soon 

 become restless and more or less noisy, and 

 the temperature will rise, perhaps, to the 

 ideal of perfection in many minds — ^5; but 

 I can assure you that teinperaficre at the 

 expense of pure air is a bad trade — a losing 

 move. 



With warm top packing, or without it, I 

 would rather winter at from 35 to 40 than 

 deprive the bees of a continuous supply of 

 good air. Mr. Editor. I am unworthy of 

 recognition as an humble writer if I shrink 

 from expressing my convictions, even if I 

 stand alone. But I say that the remarks 

 of many of the veterans, such as "build- 

 ing-up," "getting the bees ready for the 

 honey harvest," "coaxing the bees into the 

 sections," also of expressed errors in man- 

 ner of wintering, clearly show that the 

 wintering problem is not yet fully under- 

 stood and disposed of; ihdeed, I question if 



comparatively many yet comprehend the 

 grand possibilities of perfect wintering. It 

 is not enough to say, "My loss is only 4 

 per cent; " the important question is, "What 

 about the condition of the 96 per cent? Mak- 

 ing two out of three, or giving help from 

 the strong to the weak, are perhaps the 

 next best things to perfect wintering; but 

 they lag a long way behind in the race of 

 the season. 



Here is one difference. Good strong col- 

 onies may be made from brood and bees 

 taken from those likely to swarm too early 

 if nearly all are in perfect condition. The 

 one who can make five good colonies out of 

 four gets a long start ahead of the man 

 who mikes two out of three, and yet the 

 spring count may be the same. If bees are 

 so strong when sections are given that they 

 are glad to go up for elbow room, not more 

 than one hive in fifty will fail to go to work; 

 and the closer the sections are to the brood, 

 the more bees will be crowded into them. 

 You see they can't help going to work. Re- 

 fusing to do so would be doing violence to 

 the nature of bee life. There they are, 

 crowded right against warm, soft, tempt- 

 ing foundation; brood- chamber full, and 

 their sacs so full that their whole bodies 

 are just aching for a place to put it, and 

 more coming in. Talk about building up 

 the bees for the honey harvest! Let us sub- 

 stitute keeping up for "building up;" bet- 

 ter fall and winter work, and less spring 

 work. 



Another thing, poor wintering is respon- 

 sible for the impaired usefulness and even 

 for the lives of many good queens. 



Aylmer W., Ont., Can. 



[I am with you in believing that temper- 

 ature at the expense of pure air is a bad 

 trade. I also agree most heartily with you 

 when you advocate fresh air and lots of it. 

 Indeed, I am not sure your views are not 

 orthodox. — Ed.] 



EARLY OR LATE CUTTING OF ALFALFA DE- 

 PENDENT ON LOCALITY. 



The Future of Alfalfa Honey; The Condition not 

 Reassuring to the Bee.keeper in California. 



BY W. A. H. GtLSTKAP. 



You are nearer right on the alfalfa ques- 

 tion when you say that it " depends some- 

 what on locality" than the contestants 

 generally are on this subject. It is mainly 

 a question of locality. 



Few questions are settled to suit every- 

 body at the present time, and for various 

 re isons they can not be. But this problem 

 has been really discussed on two lines, and 

 they have been so blended as to cause con- 

 fusion. 



1. Is alfalfa cut earlier than it was sev- 

 eral years ago, and therefore oftener in the 

 season? 



2. Is it more profitable to cut early than 

 after the plant is more mature? 



