Datasets:

BEE-spoke-data
/

bees-v0

Dataset card Viewer Files Files and versions Community

Split (1)

train · 48.6k rows

text stringlengths 1 16.9k
Another method followed to some extent is to put some of the colonies out during an evening when all appearances indicate that it will be warm and bright the next day. A third of them, perhaps, are taken out, and these fly quite well the next day. The next evening another third is removed, and the last third the night following. The great trouble with this plan is that the bees removed first get to flying well and then start to rob colonies taken out later, thus making a fearful uproar.
Mr. E. W. Alexander, in _Glenings in Bee Culture_, page \(\geq\)30,Vol. XXX1V., gave a plan open to none of these objections. In his own words it is as follows:
"First get every thing all ready for a big job, and watch the weather closely, especially after a few nice days, for it is quite changeable at this time of the year. Then when the wind gets around in the east, and it commences to become overcast with heavy clouds, and has every appearance of bad weather for the marrow, we commence about sundown and carry out all our bees--yes, even if it takes not only all night but into the next day; and if it commences to rain before we are done, all the better, for we don't want any to try to fly until they have been out two or three days if we can help it. By this time they will have become nice and quiet; and when a fair day arrives they will commence to fly, only a few at a time, and get their location marked, so there will be no mixing up or robbing, because they all have their first fly together. Then when the day is over we find by examining our hives that nearly every one has apparently retained all its bees."
shall we put the colonies back on the old stands in spring?
There is this advantage in putting the colonies back : Mr. H. R. Boardman letters each row in his apiary, and numbers every hive, each body and bottom-board bearing the number and the letter of its respective position. In the spring, in carrying bees out he is able to deposit his hive right where it was the preceding fall. "C6," we will say, is to go directly to the C row, and on arrival it is replaced on bottom No. 6. Mr. Boardman does not attach very much importance to bees being put back uproent at once. The great trouble with conveniently, he prefers doing so, because some old bees will go back to where they were the previous fall.
carriers for hives.
A wheeled vehicle is not as good for moving bees in and out of a cellar as some sort of carrier. There are several good ones and we here show a few.
For hives without projections a pair of U-shaped wires bent to form a sort of ball an
## Wintering
### Wintering
swers nicely. The bottom hooks catch on to the bottom of the hive as shown.
Dr. Miller uses a rope as seen in the next cut. Of course, it can be used only when the hives are cleated at the ends.
Where hives are carried any distance, and help is scarce, the yoke would be better. One man can carry two heavy hives quite easily; descendellar-steps, and go through doors. The
only objection is the rigging, and loaling and unloading.
### Wintering
G. C. Greiner and several others in _Glenings in Bee Culture_. This is presented in the following illustrations.
Two men can easily carry as many as five hives in this way. Where the cellar is loeat-
or
other's hive-carrier.
ed some little distance from the apiary we believe this to be the most convenient method yet devised.
Instead of constructing a regular hive-carrier as shown, it is possible to get along quite well by the use of two poles. See illustrations, next page. These should be about two inches square and six or eight feet long. They are placed on the ground in a parallel position, and as many hives placed on them as can be carried; perhaps three hives would be all that could be managed easily with the poles. It is much more satisfactory, however, to have the poles nailed together with a framework, making a regular hive-carrier.
### Itow and Winter to Feed Bees during Mid-Vinter
It is advisable to avoid feeding any syrup during mid-winter, because it has a tendency to stir up the bees, causing then to consume too largely of their stores; and, as they can not take a cleansing flight, dysenery is likely to follow. Moreover, the feeding of a single colony in a cellar is apt to stir up, by its roar, the other colonies near it.
When an outdoor colony is running short it should be given a comb of sealed stores. To avoid disturbing the winter nest this should be given directly on top of the broodaries laid upon a couple of sticks. On top of the comb should be placed two other strips and then the packing-material. A comb may be given in the same way in the cellar, but it would be more practieable to take out an empty frame and put the one containing the stores in its place.
If one does not have any combs of honey he may give rock candy, or any kind of beecandy (Good candy), by putting the same in a wooden tray on top of the brood-frames. In putting the packing-material back, careshould be taken not to cover the try so that the bees fail to get at the food.
Some have advised putting the candy right on top of the frames without the dish. But there is some danger that it may be dissolved by moisture from the cluster, and run down between the combs, destroying a good many bees if not the whole colony. So the candy should always be put in some sort of receep-tacle where, if it melts, it can not do any damage.
Where good hard candy can not be obtained, lumps of loaf sugar may be used; but these should first be moistened with a little water. Great care should be taken not to overdo the wetting-down, as the slightest amount of moisture will be sufficient to make the sugar available to the bees.
_BEE - CELLAARS VARIOUSLY CONSTRUCTED._
Having stated the general principles of cellular-wintering, we give views and descriptions of some of those used by men who are very successful in wintering.
Mr. N. D. West, of Middleburgh, N. Y., has been very successful in wintering bees in ordinary cellars under dwellinghouses.
## Wintering.
He prefers to have the bee-room separated from the outside door by another room, possibly a vegetable-room, so that the temperature may be controlled more easily.
keep out the rain and snow, but still allow some for foul or warm air to escape from the bee-room. Any openings that would admit light are closed so as to make the room dark and warm. Mr. West thinks it is advisable to have a spring of running water in one corner, if possible, that the temperature may be kept constant.
In placing his hives in the cellar, Mr. West does not remove the bottomboards. Ile makes a platform about four inches above the cellar-floor, and puts one row of hives on this with the back ends resting on a x 5, so that they are four inches higher than the front ends. The next row of hives is placed on top of this row, although set back just a little so that the tiers will not fall over. As will be seen, all the hives will be so placed with the entrances at least four inches lower than the back ends of the hives, so that any dead bees may be easily cleaned out. See illustration.
Harry Lathrop, of Bridgeport, Wisconsin, uses a stone bee-cellar built in a side hill. There are two rooms in the cellar, or, more properly speaking, a main room for the bees ground, is then covered in such a way as to
and a smaller one used as a vestibule. Ile
## Wintering.
The cellar is made wholly of concrete, and, what is of particular interest to beekeeny, has a scheme of ventilation that is almost ideal. It is not only theoretically perfect, but practically gives results in wintering that can scarcely be surpassed.
The authors have seen this cellar, and, notwithstanding there were about 500 powerful colonies in it at the time, there was perfect quiet and apparently perfect wintering. The temperature was about 43, and the air was pure and sweet. Scarely any dead bees were found on the cellar bottom.
The bottom illustration, previous page, shows how his big twelve-frame colonies are piled up, having the ordinary entrance and a honey-board on top.
The sub-earth ventilator, in the diagram opposite, extends under ground several hundred feet away from the building where it comes to the surface. At the other end it passes under the floor of the cellar, then up into a small room in which is placed a stove. From this compartment or room the air is distributed all around the cellar by means of a large square wooden pipe suspended from the ceiling. Foul air is taken out at the bottom of the cellar by means of lines reaching down from the roof of the building to within a foot of the cellar floor. The upper story of the building is filled with hives and supers, being, in fact, the place where general shopwork connected with the yard is done.
Right here we can not do better than to give Mr. Holtermann's description and diagrams.
The best-house is of concrete--even to the chimney. This has a cowl on top, which veers its back to the wind to assist in getting a draft. On each side of the chimney is a box ventilator projecting through the peak of the roof. This is 12 in square, with a slide to regulate the amount of air passing through. These shafts enter the cellar at the ceiling above, and are for warm weather. The building is 50 ft, long by 25 wide. The cellar walls are below the level of the ground, in order to get a more uniform temperature from the earth, and less liability for moisture to confines on its walls.
The cellar-ceiling, to secure uniformity of temperature and prevent condensation, has, as seen in the perpendicular-elevation plan, Fig. 2, G, a tongue-and-groove floor; C, E, felt paper; D, air-space; C, tongue-and-groove floor; F, floor of the cellar, is concrete. The only openings from the outside into the cellar are seen in Fig. 1. From B to A are two glazed watertime-jointed filling, coming above ground just outside of the bee-house at B, the wall going down 8 ft, into the ground; then passing under the cellar-wall and floor, entering the cellar at points A. Then there is a stairway, C, which is covered by two doors at the level of the ground, and again closed from the cellar by two doors. Through these doors the bees are brought in and out,
D is a 12-inch glazed pipe with waterline joints 8 ft, under ground. This enters the cellar in the compartment E, a con-stove standing over this opening. In this compartment, if the air is not sufficiently tempered by its passage under the ground it can be warmed before it passes into the cellar.
In Fig. 3 the system of distributing fresh air is shown. The illustration is not quite correct as to the central compartment, however. B is supposed to be the same central compartment as B in Fig. 1, and the distance between it and the west wall should be greater. At the top of this compartment, on the west side, are pipes, D, D, which carry the fresh air to the north and south end of the cellar, E B respectively boring the north and south ends. From there through many one-inch openings (see arrows also, in B, Fig. 2, and the method of turning the cor
# Wintering.
air passing through all the air-passages, yet have kept up a sufficiently high temperature half the time without free.
Two years ago 1 darkened all the windows in the bee-house above, and partially opened a trap-door which leads by means of a stairway alongside of the trenches dug in the ground. These are about 1S inches deep, large enough to hold two rows of ten hives each. The hives are set upon 2 x 4's to keep them off the ground. Three of these are used, one at each side and one in the middle, with the flat or wide side down. The bottoms are removed from the hives, and the covers raised half an inch or so to provide upward ventilation. About 1S inches of straw is thrown over the hives, and then the dirt shoveled on. The engravings shown on next page illustrate the plan as practiced by E. D. Townsend, of Heuns. Michigan. The first engraving shows the dirt partly shoveled away and some of the hives removed. The next illustration shows all of the hives removed in the spring from the pits or clamps and set on their summer stands. It would seem as though there ought to be some provision made for ventilation; but when it is remembered that the soil is sandy and very porous, it is seen that this is not necessary. This plan can not be made use of in a location where the soil is composed largely of clay. Mr. Townsend thinks that it is well to have surface drains along each side of the pits to carry off any water that may come that way.
_WHAT TO DO WHEN JEES SPRING DWINDLE OUTDOORS._
In the spring, especially when cold and backward, many weaker colonies begin to dwindle, and so rapidly that some will have only about a dozen bees or so with theirqueen. It would seem to be goo l policy to unite all these weak colonies into one good strong one; but experience shows that but very little good comes from so doing--mainly because most of the bees from the several forces go back to their old stands and perish. Better than a cure for spring dwindling is prevention, by having a large force of young bees early in the fall; then just about the time they are taken out of the cellar, when indoor wintering is practiced, weak colonies may be united on the "Alexander plan" by putting them on top of strong ones. See Uniting. If practiced early enough it will anticipate and prevent spring dwindling.
One who has outyards can unite several nuclei into one strong colony, then move that whole aggregation to another yard, where, of course, the united forces will remain in the new location.
Wiat to do with coins from hives where the bees have died.
Put them safely out of the way of bees, either in tight hives or in a bee-proof room ; and if you have not bees enough to cover them by the middle of June, or at such a time as you shall find moth-worms at work among them, be sure that all the combs are spread at least two inches apart, as recommended under Bee-motil. Now, whatever other precautions you take, you _must_ look after these empty combs occasionally. They are very valuable, and should not be allowed to be destroyed. A very good way is to keep them in regular hives, piled one over the other. This keeps them perfectly protected, and yet you can quickly look them all over as often as once a week at least, until they are used.
\(WINTERING\) _1N THE SOUTHERN STATES._
The directions so far given apply particularly to localities that are subject to zero weather at times, that have more or less of snow, and, during the greater portion of the year, a large amount of frost in the ground, extending down perhaps two feet.
Where bees can fly almost every day in the year, and for ten months are able to gather a little honey or pollen, outdoor wintering in single-walled hives is recommended. Double-walled hives would do no harm, and might, during the coldest of the weather, save a little brood; but it is doubtful whether the added expense for the extra walls and packing will compensate for the possible slight loss of brood and bees during a few cold days. While we recommend single hives for the southern portions of our country, and for some parts of the West, we always urge that the same be located in an inclosure of trees, a tight high board fence, a hedge, or any thing in the way of buildings that will break the prevailing winds. To establish windbreaks is one of the most important requisites in either the northern or southern portions of the country.
While no great skill is needed to winter bees in such localities as are found in Florida, South Carolina, Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, and Southern California, yet one must be careful to see that his bees do not run short of stores, as it seems to be a generally acknowledged fact that bees vintered in the South consume much more stores, according to the size of the colony, than in the North. Those in cold climates are compelled to contract into a very small ball for the purpose of concentrating the animal heat; and while in that condition they are in a semi-dormant state, and consume a comparatively small quantity of food. On the other hand, bees in the South, especially in the warmest portions, can have access to all parts of the hive, rear more or less brood, and, as a consequence, when natural flora does not secrete nectar they are liable to run short of stores, and starve. To the Southlander let us urge that the greatest danger is starvation, and the next greatest is more or less of robbing during a dearth of honey. Indeed, all things considered, we believe Southern bees require more watching than those of the North.
In localities like Virginia, Tennessee, and other States lying in about the same latitude, it might be advisable to use double-walled hives; yet we know that the majority of bee-keepers in that latitude winter their bees successfully in single-walled hives; but we believe it is the general practice to place on top of the hive a super containing chaff, leaves, planer-shavings, or some good warm packing-material; moreover, when the colony is not very strong it is advisable to place a chaff division-board on each side of the cluster. In all cases there should not be given a larger cubic capacity than the bees can comfortably fill, spread out as they usually are on a day when the temperature is not below 70 F.
In colorado it is customary to winter in single-walled hives. A shallow cap or tray containing a few inches of packing is placed on top of the hive. Very often, for further protection, a sort of shed or roof, with its back to the prevailing winds, is built over a
## Wintering.
How of hives. The Colorado bee-keepers are troubled with sandstorms and aeree piercing winds; while the temperature may go down below zero, it is not likely to remain so for more than a few hours, when one extreme will change to a temperature of 60 or 70 F., and the bees flying. For such conditions double-walled hives and an excess of packing-material have been found to be not at all necessary.
_DO BEES IIIBERNATE?_
In the foregoing pages, under the general subject of Wintering we have spoken of the quiescent state or sleep into which bees enter when the wintering conditions are
## Wintering.
Flies, as is well known, will secrete themselves in window-frames and other hiding-places, subject to cold atmosphere, for weeks at a time, and yet revive on exposure to warmth. \(\Delta\)s is well known, also, ants have been repeatedly dug out of logs, frozen solid --in fact, fairly enveloped in frost; yet on exposure to warmth they will come to. Some hibernators can endure a freezing temperature, while others, like the bear, woodchuek, and the like, can not. Other very interesting incidents may be taken from natural history; but the purpose of this article is to consider whether bees go into a quiescent state that _approrocks_ hibernation, in which there is low respiration and a small consumption of stores.
Two or three years ago we put a number of cages of bees with some queens (laying the cages down on eakes of ice) in a refrigerator. The bees were chilled to absolute stiffness. Every day we would take out a cage, and each time the bees would revive, including the queen. This thing was continued for several days, and yet the bees would "come to" each time.
The strange part of it was, that the queens went on laying normally when put back in the hives, instead of laying drone eggs as we expected. Just what the temperature to which these bees were subjected was we can not say -- probably something below 40 and something above 35, for the doors of the refrigerator were frequently opened, and the ice was constantly melting.
During one winter, when a very cold snap came on--the temperature going down to zero--we put out some cages of bees, exposing them to the cold wind, which was then blowing a pretty good gale, when the temperature was 5 above zero. We had expected that the bees possibly might be able to survive the shock for a number of hours, and yet revive; but 20 minutes of zero freezing was sufficient to kill them outright. If we had taken the bees and gradually acclimatized them to the cold, first subjecting them to 40, then to 35, and gradually down to the zero point, they would possibly have withstood the shock.
When the weather warmed up a little we took several cages of bees and buried them in the snow, leaving with them a thermometer so that we might know the absolute temperature. We went out and got a cage of bees about every two or three hours, and we found that we could revive then without difficulty; but at the end of 24 hours the bees, when they " came to," seemed somewhat to be the same.
What the worse for the experience. The temperature in the snow played around the 32 mark. But the experiments conducted during the summer would seem to show that bees might stand a temperature of 3s for a number of days.
We know it to be a fact that the bees on the outside of the ball or cluster, in an outdoor-wintered colony, will often be chilled stiff while those inside have almost a blood temperature. It has occurred to us that, during very severe weather, the outside bees may be gradually replaced by those within the cluster; for we know the bees are in constant movement. Experiments show that a starved bee will not stand as much cold as one that is well filled. Bee-keepers who have had any experience in wintering outdoors know how repeatedly thay have taken clusters of bees that seemed to be frozen stiff, yet when warmed up before a good fire would revive and appear as lively as ever.
In view of the experiments we have thus far conducted, it would appear that bees might be able to stand a temperature of 40, or slightly below that, for a number of days; but if a warm spell does not come within a week, or less, those bees in their chilled condition may starve to death. But if it warms up,the cluster will unfold and the bees take food, and so be ready for another "freeze." The authors have repeatedly seen clusters of bees, after a zero spell, lasting a couple of weeks, that were stone dead; but the honey had been eaten from all around them within a radius of an inch or more. If a zero spell of weather continues more than a week or ten days, we always find some of the weaker colonies frozen to death in the spring.
There are some interesting phenomena in connection with chilled bees--their quiescent sleep, their low respiration, their light consumption of stores--that simulates a condition of semi-hibernation. The bee in a chilled condition can go only a few days without food, while a bear, a true hibernator, may go all winter. When the temperature of a bee-cellular goes up to 50 or 60 the bees are active. Their respiration is normal. They must have ventilation, or die in large numbers. If we can maintain a temperature down to 45, with slight variation, there is a state of sleep where the respiration is ver low, food consumption slight, and consequently fresh air is not needed, or not more than what will percolate through the walls of the repository.
There is a practical side to this matter; for if we can induce semi-hibernation or ## Wintering.
torpor we cut down the consumption of stores.
bees flying out on childy oil cold days and apparently flying on the ground.
In this connection there are a few other interesting facts that are worth recording here. In early winter or early spring, bees will very often fly out on a bright day, whether it is very warm or not. They might on the ground or some object, become childed, and apparently die. Cases are on record where bees have flown out, alighted on the ground, become stiff and cold, and were apparently dead. There was one instance in particular of this kind where thousands of bees had flown out and lay on the ground apparently never to return. A cold rain set in and then it began to freeze, followed by some snow. This freezing weather lasted for a couple of days. This was followed by warm sunshine, when, wonderful to relate, those dead (?) bees came to life, took wing, and flew back to their hives. Other authentic reports, showing something similar to this have been sent in. It seems almost unbelievable, but the facts are, that bees can fly out, alight in the snow, chill through, and seem to be dead. If the snow is not too deep it melts away so that the bodies of the bees can become warmed up, when they will often revive; they always revive, if it is warm enough, and they have not been chillied too long.
Jiee keepers have written in at many different times, fearing that their bees had flown out in late fall, and, becoming chilled on the ground, were utterly lost; but, when a warm day comes on a little later, these bees, if it has not been too cold, will return to their hives.
Old Dame Nature seems to have made some wonderful provisions to preserve beef. We are therefore constrained to believe that bees can stand, under some conditions, chilling cold for some days without killing them.
WOMEN AS BEE-KEEPERS. See Bereening for Women.
WIRING FRAMES. See Coib Foundation.
## X Y Z.
This is the scientific name of the genus to which the carpenter bees belong. Of course they do not gather honey, but we frequently receive large bees from readers which they suppose are some giant form of our own honey-bees. The largest and finest-looking bees in the world belong to the genus _Xylocopa_. There are possibly 10,000 species of bees in the world, of which believable, but the facts are, that bees can fly out, alight in the snow, chill through, and seem to be dead. If the snow is not too deep it melts away so that the bodies of the bees can become warmed up, when they will often revive; they always revive, if it is warm enough, and they have not been chillied too long.
Jiee keepers have written in at many different times, fearing that their bees had flown out in late fall, and, becoming chilled on the ground, were utterly lost; but, when a warm day comes on a little later, these bees, if it has not been too cold, will return to their hives.
Old Dame Nature seems to have made some wonderful provisions to preserve beef. We are therefore constrained to believe that bees can stand, under some conditions, chilling cold for some days without killing them.
WOMEN AS BEE-KEEPERS. See Bereening for Women.
WIRING FRAMES. See Coib Foundation.
## X Y Z.
This is the scientific name of the genus to which the carpenter bees belong. Of course they do not gather honey, but we frequently receive large bees from readers which they suppose are some giant form of our own honey-bees. The largest and finest-looking bees in the world belong to the genus _Xylocopa_. There are possibly 10,000 species of bees in the world, of which believable, but the facts are, that bees can fly out, alight in the snow, chill through, and seem to be dead. If the snow is not too deep it melts away so that the bodies of the bees can become warmed up, when they will often revive; they always revive, if it is warm enough, and they have not been chillied too long.
Jiee keepers have written in at many different times, fearing that their bees had flown out in late fall, and, becoming chilled on the ground, were utterly lost; but, when a warm day comes on a little later, these bees, if it has not been too cold, will return to their hives.
Old Dame Nature seems to have made some wonderful provisions to preserve beef. We are therefore constrained to believe that bees can stand, under some conditions, chilling cold for some days without killing them.
WOMEN AS BEE-KEEPERS. See Bereening for Women.
WIRING FRAMES. See Coib Foundation.
## X Y Z.
This is the scientific name of the genus to which the carpenter bees belong. Of course they do not gather honey, but we frequently receive large bees from readers which they suppose are some giant form of our own honey-bees. The largest and finest-looking bees in the world belong to the genus _Xylocopa_. There are possibly 10,000 species of bees in the world, of which only eight are regarded as _Ayls_. The latter, though small and humble-looking, occupies the top of the class on account of its higher development.
YELLOW SWET CLOVER. See Clover, sub-head Sweet Clover.
ZINC, Perforated. See Drones and Extracted Honey.
Appendix
[The following article came too late to be inserted in its regular place in the body of the work.]