June, ’23] 
king: wintering honey bees 
321 
material liable to contain corn borers may be safeguarded by fumigation. 
It is seldom that material arrives when the temperature is above 75 or 80 
degrees Fahr. as would be necessary for certain results against the corn 
borers. 
A STUDY OF THE FACTORS AFFECTING THE OUTDOOR 
WINTERING OF HONEY BEES 
By George E. King, Department of Entomology , Univ. of III. 
Abstract 
This investigation was carried on under regular apiary conditions to study the 
variable factors entering into the outdoor wintering problem. 
During a severe winter strong colonies with heavy, medium, and light winter¬ 
packing and ample stores suffered a loss in their population in an invesre ratio to 
the degree of protection given them. Populous colonies slightly protected consumed 
per unit of population much less stores than weak colonies. Those having a mini¬ 
mum of stores, regardless of packing or population, failed to winter as well as those 
having ample stores. 
Synopsis of Results 
This investigation was undertaken for the purpose of studying some 
of the more obvious principles underlying the successful outdoor winter¬ 
ing of honey bees. It was carried out under regular apiary conditions at 
the Utah Agricultural College, as an investigation under project No. 50 
of the Utah Agr. Experiment Station. 
The wintering problem is one of great complexity, the solution of 
which lies in the determination of the resultant of a number of interacting 
variables. The most obvious of these variables are such factors as: 
strength of the colony, age of the bees, quality and age of queens, the 
quality and quantity of stores for winter, temperature and humidity 
relations, housing and protection, light relations, etc. 
A colony of bees is a complex dynamic unit composed of individuals 
that are constantly changing. Since the changes taking place in the 
colony are so varied and rapid, there is little possibility of reducing the 
technique of investigation to more than a fairly accurate approximation. 
The aim has been to obtain the desired data by direct and simple methods 
and through uniformity of procedure rather than by elaborate processes 
so as to carry the work on under the actual working conditions of the 
bees. 
The twenty-six colonies of bees used in this work were numbered and 
divided into four groups. The quantity of stores and condition of each 
colony as regards the number of bees and their relative vigor and age 
