452 
HIVES 
to adapt it to the dimensions of whatever 
frame he is using. 
The space between the walls is filled 
with some porous material like dry leaves, 
planer shavings, cut straw or hay, ground 
cork, or any material that is light, loose, 
and porous. An examination of the fol- 
. lowing illustrations will show how this 
warm ideal hive differs from the others. 
Bees are essentially warm-blooded ani¬ 
mals, and if they are not warmly housed in 
our northern climates they will die during 
winter. 
Careful observations have shown that 
these double-walled packed hives will yield 
But this is not all. While bees in single- 
walled hives often do come thru the winter 
successfully, the result is attained at a con¬ 
siderable loss in stores. Overfeeding on the 
part of the bees, in order to keep up the 
temperature of the cluster, causes over¬ 
loading of the intestines, and this sooner 
or later brings on the fatal disease known 
as dysentery. (See Dysentery.) Nothing 
will use up a colony’s vitality in the spring 
more than this. On the other hand, bees 
in double-walled packed hives unless the 
winter is severe will rarely have it. They 
come thru stronger, cleaner, and better 
with a larger stock of stores in reserve to 
Root double-walled hive with removable bottom. 
larger returns in honey. For it is a well- 
known fact in the domestic economy of a 
hive that comb-building cannot progress 
unless a temperature of 98 degrees is main¬ 
tained. Frequently in good honey-gather¬ 
ing weather the nights are cold enough so 
that the inside of the hive will be chilled, 
and comb-building will stop; for the bees 
are compelled to leave that work to hover 
around their brood to keep it warm. In 
the double-walled packed hive brood-rear¬ 
ing and comb-building can continue, dur¬ 
ing ordinary summer weather, no matter 
what the temperature may be outside. 
take care of the necessary brood-rearing 
that takes place as soon as warm weather 
opens up. 
The'reason for this is plain: Experi¬ 
ments show that the internal temperature 
of a single-walled hive outdoors during 
winter is only slightly higher than that 
outdoors. On the other hand, the internal 
temperature of a double-walled packed 
hive is at least 25 to 50 degrees higher 
than the outside temperature. (See Glean¬ 
ings in Bee Culture, page 78, for 1912.) 
The colder the atmosphere in which the 
bees are kept, the more they have to eat. 
