AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



53 



I agree with you, that if matters are 

 not run in pretty good shape, it may be 

 better to have the time filled up with 

 first-class essays, than with very poor 

 discussions; but when it comes to that, 

 I would rather read them in the 

 American Bee Journal. 



Marengo, Ills. 



[We intended to have followed Mr. 

 Jenk's article with a foot note, referring 

 him to the Michigan Agricultural College, 

 but in our very great rush of the past 2 

 months, it was forgotten until too late. 

 He evidently is not as well acquainted 

 with Prof. Cook as we are. 



As to the Essays at Conventions — of 

 course the majority are not always right, 

 but it is pretty safe to locate with it 

 generally. In all our popular institu- 

 tions, on all questions of political 

 economy, on all the great questions of 

 the day, the popular sentiment and ver- 

 dict of the majority control, and to it we 

 bow with all the grace at our command. 

 So, if essays at Conventions, are considered 

 essential and for the best, all things con- 

 sidered, count us with the majority. 

 —Ed.] 



SnccessM Ont-Door Winteriiis. 



J. H. LARRABEE. 



In any discussion of the subject of out- 

 door wintering, Vermont sliould, I am 

 sure, have a voice. All over the state, 

 but more especially in the Champlain 

 valley, bees are wintered out-of-doors. 

 Whether those who inaugurated this 

 system did so with a full knowledge of 

 all the advantages to be obtained with 

 light hives and cellar wintering, I know 

 not, but the fact remains that scores of 

 bee-keepers liere practice this method 

 with scarcely a desire for a change. 



Our valley is favorably situated, the 

 cold being tempered by warm breezes 

 from the lower Hudson region ; but an 

 examination of the meteorlogical observa- 

 tions of the signal station at Burlington 

 would convince many that this effect is 

 not too apparent. 



But there are other reasons beyond 

 the control of the average bee-keeper, 

 why our bees winter so successfully. 



The character of the honey used for 

 Winter stores is generally of the best, as 

 so little Fall honey or honey dew is 



obtained that the major part of the Win- 

 ter stores, if of honey, must be of the 

 white honey crop. This same lack of 

 Autumn forage also renders late breed- 

 ing light, and frees the combs of much 

 surplus pollen. It is no rare occurrence 

 to find no brood of any kind in the hives 

 by the first of October. 



Winter flights are very desirable at a 

 proper time, but may be injurious. A 

 good flight during December is alw^^ys 

 beneficial, but one between January 10 

 and the middle of February is often 

 extremely injurious, as breeding is 

 induced ; and should no flights occur 

 until after the first of April, as often 

 happens, diarrhea may be the result. 



If Spring protection is of sufficient 

 importance to repay all the trouble of 

 providing packing, then should we, who 

 winter in chaff hives, congratulate our- 

 selves upon having obtained this protec- 

 tion without an hour's extra labor. 



The increased consumption of stores in 

 out-door wintering is, I am quite sure, 

 not as apparent at the opening of the 

 clover bloom as on the first of April ; as 

 honey is, I contend, consumed in much 

 larger quantities at this season, by colo- 

 nies wintered in the cellar, than by those 

 wintered in the open air. 



One word more with regard to the 

 method of packing in use here. The 

 material may consist of almost any 

 porous non-conductor of heat. Chaff 

 and planer shavings having the advan- 

 tages of lightness, are the general 

 favorites. Care should, I think, be exer- 

 cised that the packing be perfectly dry ; 

 that it may absorb as much of the 

 moisture of the bees as possible ; moisture 

 being feared next to poor stores as a 

 cause for Winter loss. The packing is 

 held in place by an outer-case, consisting 

 of 2 rims of about 10 inches in width, 

 each with a good gable roof or top. 

 These rims are about 2 inches larger, 

 inside, than the brood chamber, leaving 

 that amount of space for the packing. 



After the close of the honey season, 

 the bees are left as much as possible to 

 themselves, the only care being that they 

 have sufficient stores for the Winter, 

 until about the first of November, Fall 

 "tinkering" and excitement being 

 avoided as detrimental. At this time the 

 brood chamber cover is removed and a 

 piece of burlap or cotton placed upon the 

 frames and the top filled with packing 

 to the depth of about 6 inches. Formerly 

 this super-packing was used loose, but 

 now sacks, or trays with cloth bottoms, 

 are used to hold the chaff or shavings. 

 These sacks are very handy in Spring, 

 when upon some warm day it is desired 



