CHAPTER VII 



WINTER AND SPRING WORK 



If his bees have been properly prepared for winter the out- 

 apiarist will have little to occupy him in the apiary except to see 

 that bees in cellars are wintering properly or that entrances are 

 free from ice if he practices out-of-door wintering. This 

 can usually be arranged in co-operation with the farmer at whose 

 place the bees are kept so that numerous trips to the outapiary 

 will hardly be necessary. 



First Examination 



As soon as the bees have a good cleansing flight in spring 

 and a moderate spell of weather seems inuninent, it will be well 

 for the beekeeper to make the first round of his outyards. En- 

 trances should be freed of the accumulations of winter, dead bees 

 if any cleaned out, alighting boards made clear, and all dead 

 colonies carefully closed so as to prevent the robbing of their 

 honey. 



It is to be hoped that the outapiarist does not have American 

 foulbrood to fight, but if he has, and a case has, through oversight or 

 neglect, been allowed to go into winter quarters, the colony's death 

 during winter without consequent closing up in early spring will 

 in all probabilitj' give the beekeeper much trouble through spread 

 of the infection by robbing. 



It is true that these same combs may be used later 

 by the beekeeper in making divisions, but in such instances they 

 will only be given to one or two colonies and if proper records 

 are kept such disease may be easily traced. 



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