The Preparation of Bees for Outdoor Wintering

The Preparation of BEES for OUTDOOR WINTERING Farmers' Bulletin 1012 United States Department of Agriculture

ONE OF THE MOST VITAL parts of the beekeeper's work is the preparation of bees for outdoor wintering. No other phase of beekeeping has so direct an influence on the honey crop of the following season.
The apiary should be located in a protected place and the colonies should not be moved at the time of packing. Directions are given in this bulletin for the proper arrangement of the apiary to prevent confusion due to the shifting of hives.
The amount and character of the packing materials and the most economical type of packing cases are discussed.
A schedule of dates for packing and unpacking the hives is presented for all parts of the United States, and the amount and character of winter stores are indicated.
It is important that none of the factors of good wintering be omitted, and several tests are given so that the beekeeper may determine whether his bees are wintering properly.
Contribution from the Bureau of Entomology L. O. HOWARD, Chief Washington, D. C. September, 1918

NO PROBLEM confronting the beekeeper in most parts of the United States is of more importance than the proper wintering of bees, yet it is one which is sadly neglected. It is urged that before attempting to make packing cases for the wintering of bees the beekeeper study Department Bulletin 93, Temperature of the Honeybee Cluster in Winter, and Farmers' Bulletin 695, Outdoor Wintering of Bees.
The essentials to success in caring for a normal colony of bees from the end of one season's honey-flow to the beginning of the next lie in providing three things in abundance: (1) Stores of good quality, (2) protection from wind and cold, and (3) room for the rearing of brood at appropriate times. These factors are all of the greatest importance, and an omission of any one of them may prevent completely the gathering of the honey crop of the following year, and if any of the factors are given in less degree the honey crop invariably is reduced. The importance of these essentials does not apply equally at all times from the end of one season to the beginning of the next, but at some time they are all vitally essential; and it is the purpose of this bulletin to show how all three may be given in the early fall, so that, without further handling, the colonies will come through the spring with the maximum population. If, for example, the room for breeding is not provided in the fall, it becomes necessary to handle the colony early in the spring, and this may be detrimental. Similarly, it is the practice of some beekeepers to add to the stores of the colony in the spring, rather than to leave enough in the fall to last until new honey comes in. This is dangerous for two reasons: Too often the stores are not given on time or in adequate quantity, and frequently they can not be given without exposing the colony too greatly. It is therefore the best practice by far to provide all of these factors in the fall, and no other methods are so safe and certain of success. By practicing the methods here given the enormous annual loss of colonies in winter may be almost entirely eliminated, and, what is more important, much stronger colonies may be obtained for the early sources of honey.