Hi all
It is a persistent myth that beekeepers lost few hives in the past. For example:

The winter of 1917-18 was very severe in Connecticut and many bees died. Some beekeepers lost all their colonies, others only a part. Not only were honey bees killed, but the native bees of Andrena, Halictus and allied genera are believed to have winter-killed as they were extremely scarce the first part of the summer of 1918. In addition to the scarcity of bees in orchard blooming time, the temperature was so low that the few bees surviving the winter could not work the flowers. Consequently, except in a few localities, there was a poor set of fruit, especially apples. The peach buds were nearly all killed anyway.

As the effect of the winter was so severe on bees, all beekeepers were urged to protect the hives during the following winter, 1918-19, which as you know, was very mild and bees would have wintered nicely without protection. Nevertheless, after the protective covers have once been made it costs very little to put them on and they should be applied every season as an insurance. It is always advisable to safeguard the welfare of each colony.

from: SOME PHASES OF BEEKEEPING IN CONNECTICUT, By W. E. Britton, State Entomologist, New Haven, Conn. Journal of Economic Entomology, Volume 13 (1920)

Pete 🐝

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