Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1927-11-18
WINTERING OF BEES
PRESENTS TASK
(From Montana State College)

BRING colonies of bees safely
through the winter they should
have ample protection, plenty of
honey for food and strong, vigorous
queens. advises o.. A. Supple. state apiarist
for the Montana Department of Agricul-
ture and instructor of agriculture at Mon
tana State college.
on the matter of protection Mr.. Sipple
says: Bees, unlike warm blooded animals,
are unable to keep themselves warm indi-
yidually. Once h temperature drops
below 81 degrees, bees inside the colony
are forced to cluster in order to produce
and conserve heat. The colder the
weather the more heat the bees must
generate and the closer they crowd to-
gether to maintain this heat. Since 1t is
generally understood that the life of a
bee is dependent on the amoun of work
the zee does, II since the heat OF the
colon..' is produced only by the muscular
activity OF the individual bee, 1t is nee
essary for the beekeeper to do all he can
to help the bees conserve their energy
and heat. When going into the winter
bees should be protected by careful pack
ing TO prevent cold from penetrating to
the inside of the hive and they should
be supplied with plenty of honey for food
since honey is the fuel which furnishes
the heat. Moisture is given off by the
bees In h process OF breathing, and
provisions should be made for absorbing
or removing this. A chaff tray placed
or top Of the hive or a porous coved
placed on the hive directly over the
frame and underneath the packing ma
terial VIII accomplish the purpose. A
tunnel should be provided through the
packing SO that bees can get in and out
on warm days. Care should be taken to
see that packing material does not drop
TO close up the entrance or
bees when they are going in
or out.
The amount of packing depends some
hat on the kind used as well as the
Whens straw is used there should
be at least eight inches of covering to
protect the bottom. sides and top. Bur
lap and taxpayer are often used. In this
case there should be no skimping in the
amount OF burlap, and the taxpayer
should be SO folded that rain and snow
penetrate. Dirt should be banked
around the sides of the colony to keep
old air from getting underneath. Of
course. 1t is necessary to provide an en-
trance through the taxpayer and burlap.
Colonies should be provided with pack
ing as early in the fall as possible, and
1t should not be removed until we'll
along in the spring. 1t is well to have
the bees in a sheltered place.
Beekeepers should not attempt to win
Ter weak colonies. Eliminate the weak
colonies by combining them with the
strong ones. A colony should cover at
least seven or eight frames If it is to
come through the winter properly.
Since bees require food during the
winter it Is essential to supply liberal
supplies of honey. Each colony should
at least so pounds of well-ripened
and sealed honey. Ordinarily the colony
consumes little food during the winter,
heavy consumption starts in the
when the new brood is coming on.
Colonies thai do not have q sufficient
amount of honey should be fed a sugar
syrup made of two parts sugar and one
part water. This syrup should be fed
early in the season before it gets too
cold.
All colonies should be headed by a
young, vigorous queen. Queens over two
old, unless doing exceptionally well.
be replaced early in the fall, pre-
ferably not later than Aug. /. Young
queens will lay heavier and will con-
laying longer in the fall than old
ones, thus insuring a larger number of
young bees to go through the winter.
Young queens also will start laying ear
lier in the spring. thus providing a higher
for those lost during the
winter.