PREPAEATIONS FOB WINTEEING 177 



European and American bee-keepers experience great 

 difficulty in wintering bees. In some portions of Canada 

 entire apiaries are often covered waist deep in snow; 

 nevertheless bees are successfully wintered on summer 

 stands. Cellar wintering is very popular in the United 

 States of America, Canada, and also among continental 

 apiarists. Bees are sometimes carried through the 

 rigours of the winter by burying in "clamps," or 

 trenches in the ground. A long trench is dug, and two 

 pieces of wood are placed in the bottom for the hives to 

 rest on. After the colonies are in position, a quantity of 

 straw is then thrown over them and afterwards covered 

 with earth. It is an American plan, but it has not become 

 very popular, as certain porous soil is essential to success. 



While the temperate nature of the Australasian 

 climate renders cellars, and earthen "clamps" somewhat 

 superfluous, the author is of the opinion that too little 

 attention is given to the subject of wintering. In many 

 sections of U.S.A. double walled hives are in great 

 demand, and there is a lot to be said in their favour, 

 either as winter or summer hives. As the name denotes, 

 the hive is constructed of an inner, and outer "skin" 

 (formed of thin pine boards) with the intervening space 

 filled with some kind of "packing" material — generally 

 chaff. This is a splendid protection against the cold of 

 winter and the fierce heat of the Australasian summer. 



Uniformity of temperature is a desideratum ; it secures 

 a greater force of working field bees (who would other- 

 wise stay at home to help the "fanners" keep the hive 

 cool) during the summer flow. In winter, the equable 

 temperature permits a decreased consumption of honey 

 while maintaining the animal heat of the cluster. In spite 

 of all these advantages the double- walled hive is almost 

 unknown in the Commonwealth, though fairly common in 

 New Zealand. Doubtless the steadily increasing cost of 

 all wood work will further militate against its adoption. 

 However, there are various cheap packings that in . a 

 lesser degree effect the same purpose, but, strange to 

 relate, they are rarely made use of. 



