Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 July 1876 — What to Remember. [ARTICLE]

What to Remember.

We may assume that there is an average consumption of honey by each colony of bees for every month in the year; and this may vary in reference to the size of t the colony , temperature and brood raising. In this we have some important items that every beekeeper must notice. If the bees are stinted in this average supply of honey during the breeding months, as from March to September in the North, or February to Octobef in the South, brood raising will be checked, or entirely suspended,' aMtl the prosperity of the icoiony seriously interfered with if not properly cared for by feeding, which will be essential to restore, them to prosperity and prevent starvation. In the next place if the average supply of honey is very short it may be the cause of many colonies swarming out and leaving their hives in the fall and spring, and even is winter if the days are warm enough for them to take a general fly. To prevent them from thus deserting their hives feed them sufficiently to supply all their wants, and that too before they become impressed with the certainty that they must leave or perish. Instinct leads them to gather a bountiful supply, if they can find it in the flowers. It also leads them to cease rearing brood when the supply is short; and hence colonies that are so situated maybecome lessened in numbers and ultimately •leave the hive and perish. Where an increase of pasturage will not furnish the amount of honey required to keep them in good condition, the only alternative is to feed sugar, syrup, or honey from other colonies. But provision should be made for all this, in the cultivation of a greater amount of honey-yielding plants and trees, and more of the deep-rooting plants, which yield honey in the driest seasons of the year. There is a difference in this respect, as well as in the atmospher, ic chaages above them. When breeding is discontinued the stock becomes depopulated as fast as the bees die or are lost while out hunting for honey, and therefore will perish in winter from an insufficient number to generate the required heat, or lack of food, or both combined. Only colonies with a full supply of bees and honey are safe in these northern reS'ons, but they may not require either of ose so nicely balanced in the South. In the cold regions there should never be less than four quarts pf bees for winterng safely, and a large proportion of these should not be very old, for, if too old, this too may be the source of an unexpected loss of many'stands of bees. If there is

one gallon of bees a good cluster will be made and tlie required amount of heat generated, provided they have sufficient honey always within their reach, even in very cold weather, and are protected above by some warm, protecting absorbants, such as quilts or articles that take up tlie moisture, keeping the combs clear of dampness and mold. Never let a current of air pass through the hive during the cool season of the year.— JetoeU Davit, in the Bee World.