WINTERING BEES 33 



ARRANGEMENT OF HIVES IN A BEE-CELLAR. 



They may be piled up one on top of another in such a 

 way that any one can be removed without disturbing more 

 than the one or two above it. The reason for this will be 

 apparent later. Strong colonies should be put in first, and 

 placed on a 2 X 4 scantling. On top of these may then be 

 placed the weaker ones. This has no special advantage 

 except the convenience of having the heavy ones at the 

 bottom and the light ones on top. The entrances of the 

 hives should be left about the same as they were during the 

 late faU — % deep by 8 inches wide. Some consider it es- 

 sential to remove the bottom of the hives entirely. Others 

 consider it good practice to have a deep space under the 

 frames by raising the hive off the bottom in front and. sup- 

 porting it there by a couple of blocks. But some disastrous 

 results in wintering seem to show us, at least, that too much 

 bottom ventilation js bad unless the cellar is kept at a tem- 

 perature of about 60 and thoroughly ventilated. The bee is 

 essentially a warm-blooded animal. We have uniformly 

 secured the best results with a reasonably small entrance, or 

 one about the size used during the fall or late spring. The 

 larger the colony, of course the larger the entrance that will 

 be required. In the case of a strong populous colony we 

 would have the entrance % deep by the full width of the 

 hive. The colonies of medium strength should have the 

 entrance reduced accordingly. 



INSPECTING THE BEES DURING MID-WINTEE ; AND DEAD BEES 

 ON THE CELLAR BOTTOM. 



Experience has proven that, when the temperature is 

 maintained at 45 degrees, very little attention need be paid 

 to the bees, especially in the fore part of the winter. But 

 during the last month or two of confinement the bees require 

 watching more carefully; for if they get to roaring many 

 of them will be lost. It then becomes necessary to make 

 frequent examination to determine the temperature and the 

 quality of the air. It will also be found, perhaps, that a 



