THOUSAND ANSWERS 251 



winter stores? I haven't had time to experiment in this, and this 

 fall I followed Prof. Cook's advice, according to his book and 

 put an even teaspoonful of tartaric acid into IS pounds of syrup. 

 I think this amount of acid is altogether too much for the amount 

 of syrup. I believe much less acid in proportion would keep the 

 syrup from crystallizing. The bees evidently do not like it. 



A. Some years ago I had considerable experience in feeding 

 up for several winters with tartaric acid in syrup. I used an even 

 teaspoonful of acid for 20 pounds of sugar. I think it worked 

 all right. How much acid that would be to a given weight of 

 syrup depends on the strength of the syrup. For winter feeding I 

 used five pounds of sugar to two of water, and that made a tea- 

 spoonful of acid to 28 pounds of syrup. Prof. Cook's teaspoonful 

 of acid to 15 pounds of syxup looks just at first glance as if he 

 made it about twice as strong with acid as I did. Whether he 

 really did so depends upon the strength of the syrup. Referring 

 to Cook's Manual, edition of 1902, page 266, where he mentions an 

 even teaspoonful of acid to 15 pounds of syrup, it will be seen 

 that he says : "We use equal parts of sugar and water." \\'ith the 

 proportion of a teaspoonful to 20 pounds of sugar there would be 

 a teaspoonful to 40 pounds of half-and-half syrup. That, against 

 this 15 pounds of syrup, shows that he made it two and two-thirds 

 times as strong as I did. Mine seemed to be strong enough. Of 

 late years I have used no acid. If I fed at all I gave them half- 

 and-half syrup in August or early September, and the bees made 

 it all right without any acid. I cannot help thinking this is better 

 than later feeding with acid. Aly feeders are becoming idle capi- 

 tal, as the pasturage has so changed that a fall flow may always 

 be counted on. 



Q. Yesterday (Dec. 30.) I was examining the colonies I am 

 wintering in the cellar, and I found one that I concluded had 

 starved. There was about 12 pounds of sugar in the combs can- 

 died hard. My record shows that on September 20 this colony had 

 about 15 pounds of honey. I fed them 20 pounds of sugar syrup 

 with one ounce of tartaric acid to each 10 pounds of sugar. I am 

 afraid some of the rest of my bees will go the same route. One 

 dislikes to lose them after feeding and giving them the best care 

 one can. I have read of some who feed sugar syrup without using 

 acid, and do not have any trouble, and it seems that there is 

 little or no trouble where acid is used. Last fall some of my 

 bees were carrying out candied sugar a week after I fed them. Is 

 it possible that I have not been making my syrup right. The way 

 I made it was to place a boiler of water on the stove and let it 

 come to a boil, then add the acid and stir it well. I then set the 



