ADVANCED BEE -CULTURE. 



Care of Bees in Winter. 



■ -7 F THEY were properly prepared for 

 winter the preceding autumn, giv- 

 en plenty of good stores, properly 

 ^-^ protected out of doors, or placed in 

 a cellar or other repository having the 

 proper temperature, and precautions tak- 

 en against depredations by mice, bees re- 

 quire almost no care in winter. 



No bee-keeper worthy of the name will 

 allow his bees to go into winter quarters 

 short of stores. They ought, at least, to 

 have enough to last them until the first 

 warm days of spring, when they may be 

 handled upon their summer stands, and 

 fed if necessary. A very disagreeable 

 job, indeed, is that pf handling bees in 

 the cellar, to learn if they are in need of 

 stores. Instead of flying to any great 

 extent, they crawl, up the operator's 

 sleeves, up his trouser's legs, from where 

 they have dropped upon the floor, and 

 down his collar and under his coat. They 

 buzz around the light, and, if an ordinary 

 lamp is used, many go down the chimney 

 never to return. Quite a good many drop 

 off on the floor, and are lost. If the bees 

 are wintered upon their summer stands, 

 and there comes a day warm enough for 

 them to fly, it is but little trouble to ex- 

 amine them for the purpose of learning 

 the amount of stores on hand. As a rule, 

 but little honey is used during the winter, 



but when breeding commences towards 

 spring, stores disappear as by magic. 



If by any hook or crook the bees have 

 gone into winter quarters short of stores, 

 and there are fears that some may be 

 starving, it is better that they be examin- 

 ed, and fed if needed, even though the 

 task is unpleasant. There need be no 

 hesitancy in thus disturbing the bees for 

 fear that it may do them some injuryj 

 for, as a rule, it will not. Probably the 

 best method of feeding bees in winter is 

 to give them a frame of honey. Perhaps 

 all the honey is in the hives, what shall 

 be done then ? It is we)i known that all 

 colonies do not consume the same 

 amount of stores. The variation is very 

 great, and by examining all of the colo- 

 nies, or a large number of them, the bee- 

 keeper can usually find combs of honey 

 that may be spared to furnish needy col- 

 onies with stores. 



If some colonies must be fed, and no 

 honey is available, the best substitute for 

 honey is candy made of granulated 

 sugar. Put in sufficient water to dissolve 

 the sugar, then boil the syrup until it will 

 harden in cooling. To learn when to re- 

 move the candy from the fire, take out a 

 spoonful every few minutes and allow it 

 to cool. As soon as it begins to show 

 signs of hardening, draw the vessel con- 



