356 
Beekeeping 
cool weather, and if bees go into the cellar after being with¬ 
out a flight for a couple of weeks they are poorly prepared 
for the winter confinement. With improved cellar condi¬ 
tions and with the proper food, bees may be put in earlier 
without detriment. 
It is often equally difficult to decide when bees should 
be put back on their summer stands. They should not 
be taken out until fresh pollen and nectar are available, 
unless they show pronounced signs of dysentery, as indicated 
by spotting of the hive or by undue excitement. If the 
cellar temperature and humidity are right, they may prof¬ 
itably be left in until danger of severe cold is practically past. 
After colonies are removed from the cellar, they may 
profitably be given protection to aid in the conservation 
of heat. The elaborate packing used on colonies wintered 
outdoors is not practical for the spring, but the more colonies 
are protected from the wind and the more insulation that is 
given to conserve heat, the better the bees are able to build 
up rapidly to full strength. 
Effects of confinement. 
Bees normally do not eject their feces in the hive, and if 
confined there for a time, either outdoors or in the bee cellar, 
feces may so accumulate that the bees are unable to hold 
them. The hive and combs are then spotted and this con¬ 
dition the beekeeper knows as dysentery. The feces are 
composed of the parts of the food which cannot be digested 
and assimilated and of the excreted products. Therefore, 
a food which contains an unusual amount of indigestible 
material is ill suited for food during a period of confinement. 
Honey-dew honey is specially bad, since it contains a rela¬ 
tively large percentage of gums, and sugar syrup is ideal in 
so far as the prevention of dysentery is concerned. 
It has been shown in the paper previously mentioned that 
the accumulation of feces causes the bees to become more 
active, and this in turn causes an increase in the tempera¬ 
ture of the cluster (Fig. 145). The temperature may finally 
