58 MONTANA EXPERIMENT STATION 



than two or -three degrees at most, and the bees should not be dis- 

 turbed after once in place until spring weather has opened up. 

 Great care must be taken not to take the bees out too soon as they 

 v.'ould naturally be easily chilled after being in the even temper- 

 ature of the cellar, should a sudden cold snap come. 



Right here it may be noted that the killing of bees during 

 winter by cold, is usually accomplished by the chilling of small out- 

 side clusters by successive cold snaps until the colony is so dessi- 

 mated in numbers that it cannot withstand an unusually cold wave. 

 Starvation sometimes occurs when the cluster of bees is caught oy 

 a sudden cold snap away from its stores and, of course, not being 

 able to move, will starve, even though plenty of stores are in the 

 adjoining 'combs. To prevent this, some beekeepers cut small pass- 

 age ways through the combs with a pocket knife or place a stick 

 across the top of the frames, over the cluster, to raise the quilt up 

 and allow the bees to pass over the frame to the adjoining combs. 

 These percautions are obviously not so necessary when wintering 

 in the cellar. 



To regulate the temperature of the cellar water is sometimes 

 placed there in large vessels as it is a great evener of temperature. 

 Care must be taken not to cause dampness if this plan is followed, 

 A plan to secure ventilation without changing the temperature 

 described by Professor A. J. Cook, now of Pomona College, but for 

 some years an experimenter along apicultural lines when in Michi- 

 gan, seems feasible. Air is conducted into the cellar by pipes from 

 a distance of one hundred or two hundred feet, so that it will become 

 tempered either with cooler or warmer air by the time it reaches the 

 cellar. To establish the current of air a pipe, running up through the 

 floor above, is connected with the stove pipe of the kithcen stove, 

 above the damper so as not to destroy the draft. Every time a fire 

 i? started a current of air is drawn up and so an incoming current 

 along the underground pipe is established. 



In the spring one of the first things to be done about the apiary 

 is to take a look at the stores of each colony and at the same time 

 remove from the bottom board the accumulation of dead bees and 

 knawings. Care must be taken not to start robbing, as the bees are 

 inclined to rob at this season as also late in the fall. Not much 

 smoke should be used or much manipulating done very early in the 

 spring, as often the bees are incited to attack and ball the queen, 



