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1 
MANAGEMENT OF HIVES DURING WINTER. 
It has long been a custom for the apiarian, to 
select a certain number of hives from his apiary, 
for wintering, and to suffocate the remainder. 
This practice should be abandoned. It is like 
killing a favorite horse for his skin; for the bees 
are usually worth four times as much as the honey 
obtained. If you have late swarms that do not 
obtain honey sufficient for wintering, feed them 
by inserting a drawer of honey, in October, that 
they may learn a passage to it, before the setting 
in of winter. A late swarm, if wintered, will the 
second season fill up their hive and make double 
the amount of surplus honey that would have been 
obtained, had the bees been suffocated the first sea- 
son, besides a good stock of bees, and perhaps one 
or two swarms. 
It is not only a disagreeable job to suffocate 
bees, but certainly a great waste of property. 
Various notions prevail with regard to the win- 
tering of bees. Some prefer to have them remain 
in the same situation in winter, as they have done 
through the summer ; some bury them by digging 
a hole in the side of a sand bank, below frost, then 
placing a plank in the bottom for the hives to 
stand upon, carefully covering them with straw, 
and last of all, thoroughly covering them with 
dirt. The bees remain in this situation until 
spring, when they are uncovered, taken out, and 
placed in the apiary. Bees will undoubtedly live, 
and consume but very little honey, in this situa- 
tion ; but the comb is apt to mould and often in- 
jure the bees. But a much better plan is to take 
your bees from their hanging frame, carry them 
to some spare room in your house, place your 
