4 



good substitute for honey for wintering. The syrup should be 

 made very thick, to save the bees the tax of evaporating unnec- 

 essary moisture. Equal parts of sugar and water are frequently 

 used, although some use less water. When it becomes necessary 

 to feed from lack of sufficient stores, or to replace unsuitable 

 stores, it should be done as soon as possible after the close of the 

 honey flow, to give the bees time to get things in readiness for 

 winter before cold weather begins. 



FEEDING. 



Where only a small quantity of feed is to be given, about the 

 simplest way to do it is to set an empty super on top of the hive, 

 and place a pan of syrup in it. Over the syrup should be 

 placed a thin, white, cotton cloth large enough for the edges to 

 drop down around the pan. The bees can crawl over the syrup 

 and suck it through the cloth without danger of drowning. The 

 cloth should be left loose enough to settle to the center of the 

 pan as the syrup is removed, thus enabling the bees to take it all. 

 In favorable weather, a pan of syrup will be emptied in a few 

 hours. If the weather is frosty and the bees are slow in taking 

 it, place the super under the hive, instead of on top. As soon 

 as a sufficient quantity has been fed, remove the empty super and 

 replace the cover so that it may be sealed down tight before the 

 coming of cold nights. 



Where many colonies are to be fed, or a large quantity of 

 feeding is to be done, some of the special feeders are usually pre- 

 ferred. The Doolittle division hoard feeder is one of the most 

 popular. It is placed in the hive in the same manner as a brood 

 frame, and filled from the top from the snout of a tea kettle or 

 similar vessel. 



There are numerous other kinds of feeders on the market each 

 having its advantages and advocates, who would use no other. 

 The style of feeder is unimportant, so long as the feeding is done 

 at the proper time. Pew of those in common use are patented 

 and they may lie made at home. 



FAILING QUEENS. 



It often happens that a colony which has been strong all sum- 

 mer and perhaps has stored a large surplus, will die during the 

 the winter or early spring from the failure of the old queen. It 

 is important that the bee keeper see that all colonies have vig- 

 orous queens at the time of preparing for winter. All colonies 

 that cast swarms during the season will have young queens, if 

 they have any at all, as the old queen always leaves the hive to 

 go with the swarm. For this reason it frequently happens that 

 one will get a new swarm only to find it dead or worthless the 

 following spring. The bees usually replace a failing queen, but 

 not always. When the queen begins to fail late in the fall or 



