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._
------+-------------+-----------+----------------+-----------------
| Date for | Date for | Packing |
Zone.| packing. | unpacking.| recommended.[1]| Remarks.
------+-------------+-----------+----------------+-----------------
A | ..... | ..... | ..... | None needed.
B | ..... | ..... | ..... | Do.
C | November 25 | March 15 | 2-4- 6 |
D | November 10 | April 10 | 4-6- 8 |
E | October 25 | May 1 | 4-6- 8 |
F | October 1 | May 20 | 4-8-12 |
G | September 15| June 1 | 4-8-12 | Cellar wintering
| | | | much safer.
------+-------------+-----------+----------------+-----------------
[1] In this column the first figure represents in inches the amount of
packing needed below the bottom boards, the second the amount of side
packing, and the last the amount needed on top.