1876 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CVLTURE. 



204 



hives must be well supplied lor the winter. In sec- 

 lions where fireweed is abundant, or certain species 

 of golden rod are plentj' the hives are filled very lull 

 almost every fall. The asters which grow in our 

 State are not the kinds which furnish the large yields 

 of honey so often spoken of, so comparatively little can 

 be counted upon from that source. It would pay our 

 apiarists to procure seed of the most common spe- 

 cies of wild aster which grows in the middle South- 

 ern states. We suppose, then, that our hives are 

 fairly supplied with honey this fall, yet, to be sure 

 each hive should be examined, and any that may be 

 deficient, supplied by feeding honey or white sugar 

 syrup, or by giving them combs full of sealed honey. 

 While Ihere are many expensive stjles of feeders, 

 simply a shallow pan set in the cap or top story of 

 the hive will ansiver every purpose. A quart or so 

 of food may be poured in just at dusk, and shavings 

 or cut straw scattered on the surface to keep the 

 bees from drowning. In order to estimate correctly 

 the quantity of honey in a hive it will be necessary 

 to examine each comb separately or to weigh the 

 whole together and then <leduct the weight of the 

 hives as well as something for the weight of the 

 bees, combs and pollen. The easiest way I found is 

 to ascertain by weighing the amount of honey which 

 a comb of average thickness will contain, and from 

 that estimate the amount in each hive. Of course 

 an allowance must be made for the weight of the 

 combs, especially if old, and the pollen they may 

 contain. A little practice will enable one to judge 

 ijuite accurately by simply lifting one comb alter 

 another from the hive, how much it contains. There 

 ought to be not less than thirty pounds to each 

 stock that is to be wintered on the summer stand; 

 for in-door wintering twenty pounds will suffice. 

 My experience has convinced ms that, other things 

 being equal, those stocks that have a superabun- 

 dance of honey are much more apt to prove the 

 paying stocks during the next year, than those that 

 have to be fed any time after November or even 

 than those that have just enough to carry them 

 through until spring flowers appear. Forty or fifty 

 pounds then would be preferable to thirty. In ex- 

 amining the combs it is well to cut one or two small 

 holes near the centre of each to serve as winter pas- 

 sages for the bees; and, if possible, arrange the 

 combs in such a manner as to leave some empty 

 cells or such as contain brood near the center of the 

 hive. The brood soon hatches, aud in cold weather 

 the bees crawl into these empty cells and being 

 densely packed between the combs the whole mass 

 is enabled to keep up the necessary heat of the hive. 

 It is the natural disposition of the bees to store their 

 honey in this shape, that is, over and around the 

 brood nest; but during a good yield of honey late in 

 the season they fill and seal all the combs to the 

 bottom. When this occurs the bees, being separated 

 by the cold sheets of honey are liable to perish be- 

 fore empty cells are obtained. The remedy is to use 

 the extractor on the central combs, removing only 

 a portion of the honey from each. We suppose then 

 that one one of the conditions upon which success- 

 ful wintering depends is present, namely : an abun- 

 dance of honey. 



The second point to be mentioned is that the hive 

 should be well stocked with bees. Carefully lift the 

 cover or turn the hive up some cool morning and if 

 the cluster occupies five or six spaces call thestoek 

 fair. Yet "the more the merrier," and safer too. 



Our third point is. every hive should have a good 



queen, one that has shown no signs of failing and ii^ 

 not past her third season. 



Special repositories with thick walls like those of 

 an icehouse are often constructed for wintering 

 purposes. Dry cellars are also devoted to same pur- 

 pose. These rooms should be dark, and, if possible, 

 kept at a temperature of about 42 deg. F. The hives 

 should be set in as soon as cool weather makes its 

 appearance ; and before the combs become frosty, 

 the top of the hive may be removed and a blanket 

 or straw mat laid on the frames. 



If the stocks are populous, and have good queens 

 and plenty of honey, and the hives can be properly 

 packed I would rather have them remain on their 

 summer stands. Make a box just the width and 

 length of the hive and three inches deep and set 

 the hive over it. This will give an air space below 

 the combs and preclude the possibility of the freez- 

 ing up of the entrance. If the hives are large, so 

 much the better. Place the eight or ten combs con- 

 taining the winter's food near the center, and hang 

 on each side a division board, made by nailing to- 

 gether pieces of lath with an even layer of straw 

 between them ; place above a cap or top story sev- 

 eral inches deep, lay a quilt or straw mat across 

 the tops of the frames, and pack chafl" or cut straw 

 over and around them very closely. The cover 

 should not shut very tightly but should admit no 

 water. If snow-drifts cover the hives, they will l/e 

 much better oft'. 



To sum up, then, the conditions for successful 

 out-door wintering seem to be the following : Strong 

 stocks, plenty of honey, good queens, large hives 

 well packed above and at the sides with dry ab- 

 sorbing material, an air space of two or three inches 

 below the combs, and a chance for the moisture 

 caused by the heat of the bees to pass oft" very 

 gradually without permitting any draft of ai- 

 through the hive. 



I have had stocks prepared in this manner thuL 

 reared brood all winter and were in splendid con- 

 dition for the next season's work. There will be no 

 trouble about ••springing" such stocks. When thus 

 prepared I have never lost any colonies in winter- 

 ing, but I have lost them when they were placed iu 

 a cellar or buried in pits, or when they were neg- 

 lected on their summer stands. 



Knoxville, Tenn. Frank Benton. 



BEE-KEEPERS' MAGAZINE. 



Dr. J. P. H. Brown says : 



You can make any sort, style, or shape of frame you 

 wish and will not infringe on any right. The paten: 

 claims of the majority of the so-called patent hive>, 

 are for some small contrivance or feature not worth a 

 sixpence to any practical bee-keeper. 



The constant stream of inquiries in regar-l 

 to patent hives, and the frequent accounts of 

 having been the victims of fraud in this direc- 

 tion, especially in the South, has induced us 

 many times to think seriously of keeping a 

 caution permanently in our journal, in large 



plain letters. 



BRITISH BEE JOURNAL. 



Friend Abbott says : 



In the winter the appearance of an apiary is not oi 

 much consequence, as few visitors care to spend thtir 

 time in viewing what is so uninteresting during the 

 quiet and almost lifeless period: aud, therefore, al- 

 though tidiness is highly to be commended, we use 

 whatever comes to hand to cover up our bees, 



