Bee-leepivc/ in Victoria. 73 



Starvation Feeding. 



This is done to tide the bees over a period of complete deartli of 

 nectar such as sometimes occurs even in midsummer, caused by a break 

 in the succession of flowering eucalyptus, or by a spell of cold weather 

 extending over many days. Under these conditions bees will cease 

 breeding altogether, and may even throw out all young brood unless 

 promptly given food. 



The generations of bees missed through a stoppage of brood-rearing 

 or destroyed for lack of stores will be badly missed in a honey flow a 

 month later. The remedy is to give each colony one comb of honey 

 if such has been kept on hand for such an emergency; if not, to give 

 each a dose of sugar syrup, | pint to 1 pint, according to the strength 

 of the stock. 



Feeding for Winter Stores. 



As indicated before, it does not often become necessary to supply 

 artificially the amount of stores of honey necessary to safely bring the 

 colonies through the winter and ensure their normal development in 

 spring. The wintering problem as found in most parts of the northern 

 hemisphere does not exist here; still, a certain amount of attention is 

 required at the end of the season, which, unfortunately, is too often 

 not given, with the result that, although the bees in most instances 

 struggle through somehow, the development of the colonies in the 

 following spring is greatly retarded and interfered with, by the absence 

 of sufficient good stores, by too much space and the scattering of the 

 stores (often of watery honey) in too many combs. 



The ideal condition for winter is to have each colony in a single 

 story, on just as many combs as the bees can cover, and these combs 

 well filled with sealed honey or syrup. In seasons when the honey 

 flow declines gradually, this condition is obtained by taking all supers 

 off before the flow is quite over, when the usually thm nectar will be 

 stored in the combs covered by the bees, and there ripened and sealed, 

 instead of in the super combs, where it would candy or sour during 

 winter, and causing, when consumed later on, dysentery amongst the 

 bees. 



When the honey flow ceases suddenly, the brood combs will often be 

 found with much brood but very little honey when the supers are 

 removed It then becomes necessary to supply the bees with suttioient 

 good winter food to carry them through till spring. The amount will 

 vary, according to the strength of the colony, from 20 to 40 lbs. of 

 sealed honey or syrup. 



If the apiary has been free from foul brood for several seasons 

 any thin honey found in the combs of the supers which were taken off 

 may be extracted, and, after being heated to 170 deg. Fahr f ed I^ack 

 to the colonies till each has enough. Colonies below the average 

 strength, which cannot properly ripen any honey or syrup given them it 

 is best not to feed but to supply them with stored and sealed or partly 

 iSc^mbs^from stronger coFo^rL abundantly fed. ^^^^^^}^Z 

 that foul-brood germs may be present m any of ^^^ /,7^Yv'e nst ad a 

 best not to feed back any of the honey extracted but to give instead a 

 sy mmade by dissolving 2 parts of lA sugar m 1 part (by weight 

 of bailing water. Even^ith sugar at 17s. 6d. a bag, sugar syrup is 



