June, 1921] BEEKEEPING FOB NEW HAMPSHIRE 15 



maples are in bloom. Cellar wintering calls for the use of a moderately dry cellar in 

 which the temperature is fairly constant, ranging from 45° to 55°. The cellar must also 

 be absolutely dark, and there must be no jarring or vibration of the hives. Entrances 

 to hives are left open, but may be screened with quarter-inch mesh wire to prevent 

 mice from entering. 



Cellar wintering is the best for the severe months, provided a suitable cellar and 

 good stores are at hand. The practice falls short, usually, in that neither in the fall 

 prior to the time the colonies can be put in the cellar, nor in the early spring does it provide 

 sufficient protection to colonies. The incubation temperature for eggs and young bees 

 is about 95° P., and the single wall hive loses heat so rapidly that tins temperature can- 

 not be easily maintained during the cold nights of late fall and early spring. For the 

 best interest of the colony and the beekeeper, brood rearing should go on at both these 

 seasons. 



Therefore, the plan of wintering colonies out of doors in well-insulated hives is increas- 

 ing in favor. The hives are placed in large cases with eight to twelve inches of packed 

 dried forest leaves or shavings between the bottom, sides, and top of the hives and the 

 outer case. A tunnel entrance is provided for each hive through the packing to the 

 outside air. Each hive may be given its own winter case, or they may be packed in 

 large cases of two or four. 



Careful investigations have shown that the best of insulation is of Uttle value if the 

 hives are placed in wind-swept locations, again emphasizing the necessity of selecting 

 at the start a well-sheltered apiary site. 



BEE DISEASES 



The two more or less common and important infectious diseases of bees are bacterial 

 in their nature, and are known technically as American Foulbrood and European Fo\;d- 

 brood. As the names indicate, both these diseases attack and kill the brood, or unde- 

 veloped bees, and so prevent these hatching out to take the place of older ones which die 

 off from natural causes. Thus the strength of the colony is quickly reduced, and fre- 

 quently it then becomes an easy prey to bee-moth, which soon completes the work of 

 destruction. Incidentally it may be noted that bee-moth or wax-moth can make no 

 progress in healthy colonies of Italian bees. 



Symptoms and major characters of both these diseases are here given. In case one 

 suspects disease but is not able to identify the same with certainty, he should write the 

 Division of Entomology, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C, stating the 

 facts as he observes them. The Department will send a free shipping case for a sample 

 of diseased brood and will, where possible, identify the disease. The Department of 

 Agriculture bulletins Nos. 975 and 1084 deal with these diseases, and should be owned 

 and studied by every bee-keeper. 



Characteristics of American Foulbrood 

 (After PhiUips) 



1. The hive emits a strong odor corresponding to that of cooking glue. 



2. American Foulbrood more frequently kills the young bees after they are capped 

 over, and the cappings are often later removed. Scattered cells wiU often not be affected, 

 and the bees in them will hatch out, giving rise to a patched appearance of the brood 

 comb. 



3. The diseased larvae are first a light brown, later changing to a dark or coffee brown. 



4. In the later stages the contents of the dead larvae become glue-like, and the putrefy- 

 ing material will string out several inches if a toothpick is pushed into it and gently Ufted. 

 Tms is considered to be the most characteristic feature of the disease. 



5. Larvae and pupae dry down to a brown scale which adheres finally to the base and 

 lower or bottom wall of the cell. 



Symptoms and characters of European Foulbrood 

 (After Phillips) 



1. The disease usually attacks larvae in younger stages of growth than does the Amer- 

 ican Foulbrood disease. 



2. The affected larvae show a slightly yellow or gray shading. They take on a watery 

 consistency and become more or less translucent. The rings of the body segments show 

 plainly, and often the digestive track throughout the body is visible. . 



3. Later the translucency is lost, and the larvae assume a distinct gray or yellow shade 



