Great confusion has existed among beekeepers as to the right time to pack the bees for winter, and especially as to the right time to remove the packing in the spring. It is quite possible to give definite directions for both procedures and to place the recommendations on a firm foundation by basing them on weather phenomena. The maps (figs. 5 and 6), showing the time of the first average killing frost in the fall, serve as a basis for the recommendations for each of the zones into which the map of the eastern United States is divided. Perhaps it will be a matter of surprise to beekeepers in parts of the South to see that, so far as the wintering of the bees is concerned, they are as far north as beekeepers who live many miles farther toward the pole.

The lines on figure 5 indicate the average dates of the first killing frost in the fall, and these dates, given at the ends of the heavy lines, are of direct value to the beekeeper as giving the proper time for putting on the winter cases. The average dates of the last killing frost in the spring do not show exactly the same lines on the maps, but the differences are not sufficiently great to justify the use of a separate map for this purpose. The authors have chosen therefore to divide the country into the zones indicated, and the recommendations given below apply to each of the zones shown.

On account of the variations in elevation, it is impossible to carry these lines into the Rocky Mountain region, but as packing is just as necessary in the West as in the East, figure 6 is inserted to indicate roughly the time for the putting on of the packing in the fall. The dates in this map are the average dates of the first killing frost. By consulting Table I the beekeeper of the West may learn the time advised for the removal of the packing, by placing his locality in its proper zone, on the basis of the first killing frost.

Table I.—Dates for the packing and unpacking of been in the various parts of the United States, board on data furnished by the Weather Bureau for the average dates of the first and last killing frosts. The amount of packing recommended for each zone is included.

TIME FOR PUTTING ON THE WINTER PACKING.

Frequently great loss of colony strength is due to delay in putting on the packing. Perhaps this is the most common source of loss in outdoor wintering aside from that due to a failure to pack the bees at all. Packing should not be deferred after the flowers furnishing the last honey are killed by frost. In case the late fall flowers furnish honey that is to be removed, then it is necessary to wait until nectar is no longer coming in before applying the packing, but it is indeed rare that the last honey should be taken away, and it is good beekeeping to apply the packing even before there is any frost at all. The determining factor is the necessity for handling the bees. If more stores must be given them or if some of the late honey is to be removed in order that it may be replaced by better honey or by sugar sirup, then handling of the bees after frost may be needed, but after the last essential handling it is much the best plan to pack the bees. In pints of the country where bees are wintered outdoors it is quite customary to delay packing until Thanksgiving Day, but this is too late by far except in the extreme South (zone C).

It is safe, therefore, for the beekeeper to use the dates shown in figures 5 and 6 and the data given in Table I as a guide to the time of packing. He may be assured that if he delays packing later than the dates shown therein the bees will suffer by a loss of colony strength and vitality at a season of the year when they can ill afford to be weakened by neglect. Under no circumstances should packing be delayed more, than two weeks after the date given for each zone. Further, if packing is delayed until after cold weather begins, the disturbance of the colony may induce the beginning of brood-rearing, find this in turn may result in the death of the colony. If by chance a colony has been left unpacked until after the bees have been confined by cold weather for three or four weeks, the packing may do more harm than good.

TIME FOR THE REMOVAL OF PACKING.

If bees are given the right amount of room, stores, and protection early in the fall, nothing that the beekeeper can do will benefit them until it is necessary to handle them because of preparations for swarming or because of the incoming nectar. Of course if bees are well packed they get so strong in the spring that if crowded they begin preparations for swarming earlier than do colonies which have been neglected during the winter. By following the methods here described the season for swarm control is advanced, so that usually it is entirely passed before the honey-flow begins.

In the region of Washington it has been found best not to remove the packing until at least May 1. Further south or in warmer regions it may be well to remove the packing earlier, but in localities such as New York or Wisconsin (zone F) the packing should be left in place until at least May 20, and usually until June 1. Obviously this will be impossible unless two hive bodies are left on the bees all winter, or unless more room is given in the early spring, before unpacking. It has been found that if the bees are allowed to remain in the cases until the dates named they may then be taken out ready for whatever nectar may come. By that time they should have 12 frames of brood—far more than is found in the average colony throughout the country oven in the midst of the honey-flow. Such colonies are so strong that if cooler weather comes after they are unpacked, as it sometimes does, they are not injured by it. Of course the bees would be as well of even better off if the packing could be left on throughout the year, but as yet no practicable way has been devised for giving the bees enough packing during the winter and then leaving it on throughout the summer. The commercial double-walled hives which have been devised for this purpose are all too scant in packing material for good results, and none of them can be recommended.

The dates given for the removal of packing in the spring follow approximately the average dates of the last killing frost in the spring for each locality. In case local conditions make the removal of the packing unnecessary as early as the dates indicated, it is entirely safe to leave the packing on until some manipulation makes it desirable to handle the combs, as this can not well be done while the hives are heavily packed.