60 WINTER 



of life as anything could well be. It seems to 

 matter little how low the temperature goes, 

 nor how much it snows. An old bee-keeping 

 friend of mine told me that in the severe winter 

 of 1 88 1 he had hives buried completely in the 

 snow. In one case the roof had blown off and 

 the snow was falling between the frames. Yet 

 they suffered no harm, and came out strong 

 colonies in the spring. 



One enemy is very active at this time. The 

 Blue Tit and the Great Tit are very fond of bees, 

 when they can get them, and they are cunning 

 enough to tap at the entrance to a hive until a 

 bee comes out to see what is the matter, when it 

 is promptly despatched. 



Of course, all this procedure is only approxi- 

 mate. In very long severe winters, bees, providing 

 they are strong in numbers, winter better and on 

 less stores than when the weather is open and 

 mild. In mild damp winters there is a strong 

 tendency to dysenteric conditions, consequent on 

 the greater activity which prevails. They also 

 require much more food to last them through 

 a mild winter. Weak colonies winter badly, 

 unless they are in a very small space and have 

 abundance of good food. They eat more in 

 proportion than strong colonies. 



In mild winters it is no unusual thing for 

 breeding to commence very early in the new year 

 on a small scale. Some writers think it only 



