32 



amon g bee-keepers. The temperature of the bee-cluster during 

 winter is sometimes just as high as the temperature of the hive in 

 summer aecording to the findings of Phillips and Demuth (see 

 Hering 24). Outside the cluster it may not be higher than the 

 temperature of the air. However, if bees are wintered in hives 

 having double walls well packed, with warm cushions on top etc. 

 considerable quantities of heat are retained in the hive. As to the 

 moisture that tends to collect in the hive Dehlinger (6) quite correctly 

 remarks that most of it arises from the open brood in the nest. 

 The removal of this moisture would do harm to the brood as some 

 moisture is necessaiy for its development. Precautions, however, 

 should be taken to remove the moisture that collects in the zone 

 where the warm and moist air from the bee-cluster meets the in- 

 coming cold air. The cold side walls are apparently the places 

 where the moisture collects and where consequently moulds get a 

 start. If dysentery has weakened the colony during the winter or 

 spring paralysis often appears låter on due to the abundance of 

 moisture which follows upon the voiding of the excrements in the 

 hive etc, allowing masses of moulds to flourish on the combs and 

 1 råmes. 



The cardinal point in combatling the growth of moulds in the 

 bee-hive is proper ventilation, and the problem of keeping out the 

 moulds depends, therefore, largely upon the construction of the hive, 

 more partieularly on the construction of the side walls. A com- 

 l)inalion of wood and straw is advocated by Gerstung (11), and 

 further informations on the subject can be found in Root and Root 

 (21). Combs near the entrance of the hive are very seldom mouldy 

 because of better ventilation here while combs back of the winter 

 nest and close to the bottom board very often are covered with 

 moulds. Holes made in the walls, which allow the moisture to 

 escape, do not seem to harm the bees even if the winter is severe. 



While for instance during rainy winters the appearance and 

 development of moulds becomes almost inevitable even in good 

 hives careful treatment under normal conditions would probably 

 wholly exclude growth of moulds within the hive. Late feeding 

 with thin sugar syrup must be avoided since this practice always 

 leads to an accumulation of moisture in the hive. Furthermore, 

 honey stored late in the fall in the outer combs (those hanging 

 outside of the winter nest proper) and remaining unsealed takes up 

 moisture and overflows the combs, which towards spring become 



