WINTERING. 331 
this food when not confined to their hives. The same may 
be said of inferior or unripe honey (261). 
Much unsealed honey in the comb is injurious for Win- 
ter, even if the honey is ripe. This unsealed honey gathers 
moisture on account of its hygrometric properties, and be- 
comes thin and watery. In addition to this peculiarity, 
honey, when cold, condenses the moisture or steam of the 
bees, in the same manner that a pitcher of cold water con- 
denses the moisture of the airin a warm room. In some 
Winters, we have seen unsealed honey gather so much of 
the moisture of the bees that it overflowed, and ran out of 
the cells to the bottom-board. Luckily the bees usually 
consume this honey first, before Winter begins. 
G29. To avoid the accidents’ caused by poor honey, 
some Apiarists have suggested that all the honey might be 
extracted every Fall, and sugar-syrup fed in its place. 
This system is even carried farther by the inverting 
process, which (726) compels the bees to place all their 
honey in the surplus sections (721), leaving dry all the 
combs of the brood-chamber. At the first glance, this 
course seems profitable, when the difference between the 
price of comb-honey (783) and the cost of sugar-syrup is 
considered, but when we take into acccount the trouble 
of feeding, and the poor results obtained in wintering 
the bees, we see much labor for a small profit. Having 
ascertained that bees winter better on Spring or light-col- 
ored honey (782), we no longer extract from the brood- 
chamber, avoiding the annoyance and the extra labor of 
feeding. Our experience has convinced us that, unless the 
Spring crop has failed, or the food is decidedly bad, such 
as unripe honey (249), or honey-dew (255), or fruit-juice 
(877), it is cheaper to winter bees on natural stores. 
When sugar-syrup is needed, none but the best sugar 
should be used. (See Feeding, 605.) 
630. All empty combs, whether brood-combs or surplus- 
