by Serge LaBesque
NOTE: Depending on the altitude and location of your apiary, you may not experience the conditions mentioned in the following articles. Please take this into consideration and shift to another month which replicates the conditions you are experiencing at your elevation.
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January in the Apiaries:
With the winter solstice behind us, the length of the days is increasing, imperceptibly at first, but more noticeably by the end of the month. Similarly and in spite of the cold temperatures, brood nests begin to develop inside our hives. But in most cases the bee populations are still declining and will not begin to rebound before early February, when young bees begin to replace their older sisters. Yes, a new beekeeping season is starting.
Although it may be tempting to open and inspect hives on a nice sunny day, this should be avoided. There is indeed not much we can do with or for our bees at this time of year, and they are best left undisturbed. The clustered bees are centered on their small brood nests, keeping the developing bees warm and well fed. After slowly moving up on the combs during the past several weeks, the clusters are now reaching areas of bee bread that were stocked during the summer. This is a beautiful mechanism which ensures that the bees have access to nutritious food in the middle of winter. However, there can be great variability between colonies in regard to this overwintering process.
We can keep an eye on our colonies by performing exterior hive inspections. This is when good observational skills become particularly valuable. Indeed, indices about what is going on inside our hives abound: The fronts of the hives, their entrances and the flight paths on nice days provide clues about the strength, brood-rearing and health status of the colonies. Foragers returning with pollen pellets are good signs. Even at this time of year, there are in our area enough plants in bloom to provide a rich and diversified nutrition: Eucalyptus trees, mustard, manzanitas, and bays to name the most obvious. Spotting on the fronts of hives, sick or deformed bees and large numbers of dead bees indicate various health problems. One of the best sources of information is the monitoring trays, as the debris they collect lets us know what is happening inside the hives, and they can be accessed at any moment without perturbing the bees. The size and placement of the nests are clearly visible as areas of denser finely shredded cappings. By the end of the month, these should be elliptical areas that are centered on the trays, extending from three to five frames in width. Placing an ear against the side of the hives when bees are not flying also lets us sense how the colonies are faring. We want to hear soft calm hums.
Towards the end of the month, weather permitting, lifting the hive covers will expose the hive top feeders. When a bee cluster has reached the top of the hive, something that is visible through the center slot of the feeder, a super with a few frames of empty drawn comb and follower boards is immediately placed. This way the nectar that will be collected on favorable days will be stored in these combs and will not choke the developing brood nest. From now on, our goal is to make sure that nothing prevents our colonies from developing freely and fully.
This month:
– Inspect the exterior condition of the hives.
– Verify that hive tops are still properly set and secured.
– Observe the landing boards and the ground in front of the hives.
– Verify that the hive entrances remain unobstructed.
– On nice days, observe the flight paths and the bee activity at the entrances.
– Observe monitoring trays. The clusters should remain centered in order to maintain access to their stores.
– In the latter part of the month, weather permitting, quickly peek into the top of the hives to assess the location of the clusters.
– Place supers where and when warranted.
– Watch for the appearance of drone brood cappings.
– Plant some bee forage!
At home:
– Clean and scorch tools and equipment.
– Build and repair beekeeping equipment for the next season.
– Read and learn more about bees and beekeeping.
– Plan next season.
– Don’t forget your beekeeping New Year’s resolutions and…
– Enjoy some honey.
February in the apiaries:
This transitional period between winter and spring can be tough on bees. It is also a critical time in the development of the colonies. Let’s keep this in mind during our visits to the apiaries, because the colonies are particularly fragile at this season and also because much of what happens this month will determine how well our bees will fare during the spring. However, we should not postpone the removal of any equipment that contained colonies that have died.
Rekindled in most colonies in January, brood production is now accelerating steadily under the stimulating influences of the increasing day length and incoming fresh pollen. Since the bee populations are close to their lowest level, the bees must work hard to take care of the growing mass of their young, to keep it well fed and warm in spite of the unstable and frequently harsh weather. It will be mid-month before new bees begin to noticeably replace the dwindling numbers of winter bees. To make this happen, the colonies consume their stores at a much higher rate than a few weeks earlier, especially when foraging is not rewarding or even possible for several consecutive days. Although vital, this intense feeding not only generates large amounts of in-hive moisture, but also increases the risk of starvation, two of the most prevalent dangers of the season.
Cleansing flights and foraging may happen as soon as the temperature rises above 50°F. Let’s note that, since a healthy bee does not soil her hive, any significant spotting of the front of the hive or its entrance is an indication of possible health problems.
As beekeepers, we obviously want our colonies to come out of winter in good condition. From this point on, their development should be unhampered and rapid. This is particularly important where and when the spring honey flow occurs early. Knowing that it takes five to six weeks for an egg to develop into a forager bee, we can see that the early April foragers are the brood that is developing in February. This is to say that strong spring colonies are made or lost in late winter, if not earlier. Therefore, we must provide good care without disturbing the colonies unnecessarily, especially when they are clustered. Open-hive inspections and manipulations are best kept at the absolute minimum at this time of year. Therefore, exterior hive inspections, entrances, flight paths and monitoring trays are still our best sources of information, as our visits to the apiaries become more frequent. However, any sign of health problems should prompt further investigation. The presence of whole dome-shaped cappings on the monitoring trays will be evidence of the emergence of the first drones. For healthy queenright colonies, this is a forerunner sign of the upcoming time of colony reproduction.
Egg-laying and nectar storage spaces are of prime importance. Because the lower part of the hives is usually empty at the end of winter, our attention is directed at the upper part of the hives. A rapid and non-intrusive peek under the hive tops without accessing the brood nests can determine the appropriateness of supering. It is better to super early rather than too late, although this should not be overdone. Offering a few frames of empty drawn comb between two follower boards to colonies that have reached the top of their hives actually takes less than a minute and effectively achieves satisfactory results. Doing this is good insurance against premature swarming of the colonies, and a positive step towards achieving strong and productive hives in the spring.
However, at this season colonies do not become strong without the presence in the hives of adequate stores. Hefting the back of the hives can provide some clues about their contents. If they feel light, the bees are probably running low on stores. At least twenty pounds of honey should be directly accessible by the clustered bees inside a mature hive, as the honey and pollen flows of the season are not dependable. The beekeeper may then decide if some form of emergency feeding is warranted (This is a controversial topic, to say the least!) When this is the case, we need to ask ourselves how the colony ended up in such a dire condition. An honest answer can be enlightening.
It’s time to prepare for spring, to plan for increases, maybe to consider re-organizing the apiaries, and to prepare and assemble beekeeping equipment. Having plenty of well-built frames on hand will be appreciated in a few weeks.
This month:
– Inspect the exterior condition of the hives:
- Verify that hive tops are still properly set and secured.
- Observe the landing boards and the ground in front of the hives.
- Verify that the hive entrances remain unobstructed.
- On nice days, observe the flight paths and the bee activity at the entrances.
– Examine debris on monitoring trays.
– Lift the back of the hives to feel if the colonies may be running out of stores.
– Take care or dispose of the equipment that held colonies that failed, as appropriate.
– Place supers with a few frames of empty drawn comb and follower boards, where needed.
– Keep the upper ventilation slots open.
– Plant bee forage
At home:
– Build and repair beekeeping equipment.
– Plant more bee forage.
March in the apiaries:
It’s springtime. This is when we finally close the past beekeeping season and enter the new one in earnest.
Let’s begin with the colonies that did not make it through winter. If we have not already done so, we need to figure out why they failed. Then we can discard the equipment or clean it for its re-use in the coming weeks. Certainly these examinations are not pleasurable exercises, and the ensuing clean-up is tedious, but they are opportunities for us to learn something of value. Thanks to our notes, we can compare the status of these hives in the fall to their condition at the time of their demise. It is important not to jump to conclusions too hastily, such as “It’s the mites!” but to look a little more carefully at how the colonies were preparing for winter and what may have disturbed this vital phase in the lives of the bees. Next winter, our bees will undoubtedly benefit from the corrections we will make to our fall hive management practices.
Having done this, let’s look forward. Soon, there will be swarms, splits and new queens in need of good homes.
After the winter hiatus, the temptation to open hives and inspect them is great. But inspections can be extremely taxing for colonies that are barely coming out of winter. We need to be very sensitive to their fragility and inspect them only under favorable conditions. Before we open a hive, we need to be prepared to provide anything that might be necessary and have it at hand.
Our beekeeping goal at this season is to ensure unimpeded colony growth. When the weather and the honey flows are favorable, the development of bee colonies can be astonishing. Sometimes, the queens produce so many eggs that their daughters strain to nurture all the larvae and pupae and keep them warm. This by itself can represent a huge demand on the colonies and they may contract one of the so-called “spring” or “stress” diseases, most often chalkbrood or European foulbrood. Poorly ventilated nest cavities, excess in-hive moisture or old combs can also cause or accentuate such health problems. Besides watching for signs of health problems when we inspect the brood chambers of our hives, let’s not miss noting the egg-laying pattern of our queens. This will tell us a lot about our queens.
The instability of the weather, with cold, wet or windy days, may also challenge the bee clusters, and losses of brood from chilling may happen. In spite of the generous bloom of the season, starvation is another danger for bee colonies in the spring. The bees are consuming their stores at a rapid rate and may not be able to replenish their combs fast enough between storms or cold spells. Knowing these risks and keeping our goal of unimpeded growth in mind, we know that we need to provide adequate space in the brood nests for their expansion. This must be done without separating the brood and nurse bees from their stores. So, when adding supers directly above the brood chambers, baiting with a couple of frames of stores may mean the difference between life or death or stifled development for the colonies.
The placement of additional frames into the brood chambers is to be done carefully. The strength of the colony at hand needs to be considered, as well as the environmental factors and the type of frames we are providing (drawn comb, frame with foundation, or empty frames or bars). It is better to place the new frames alongside the nests, as splitting the nests at this time of year can be particularly dangerous for the bees. Regardless, we need to do something to permit the expansion of the brood nests, or they may rapidly become congested, which could lead to the premature swarming of some colonies.
We are entering the best time of the year for the production of new comb. This opportunity is not to be missed. The introduction of frames with foundation or, better yet, of empty frames or top bars offers the young wax-producing bees the opportunity to build comb. Doing this also helps minimize the building of bridge comb in inconvenient places.
Another aspect of hive management that will effectively help in delaying the onset of swarm preparations at this season is to maintain clustering space for the returning foragers between the brood nests and the hive entrances. Usually, this space appears spontaneously, as the bees move up in the hives during the winter. In these cases, let’s just refrain from reversing the brood chambers. If not, adding a medium super with frames on the hive bottom works remarkably well.
It is time to place supers on the hives. If in doubt, it’s better to do this too early than too late. If there is a time to be ahead of our bees, it’s in the spring!
This month:
- Take care or dispose of the equipment that held colonies that failed, as appropriate.
- Keep the hive tops secured.
- Gradually enlarge the hive entrances, as the colonies develop.
- Inspect hives on nice days, at a time when foragers are out in large numbers.
- Watch for signs of spring diseases and other health problems.
- Make sure the colonies do not run low on stores.
- Provide additional egg-laying space in the brood chambers.
- Place supers.
- Maintain forager clustering space.
- Keep the upper ventilation slots open.
- Prepare hives that have been selected for multiple divisions or for queen rearing.
- Perform the first hive divisions of the season (but only if and when the hives are ready!)
- Place swarm traps.
- Pull weeds from in front of the hives.
- Plant bee forage.
At home:
- Build and repair beekeeping equipment.
- Prepare swarm-catching equipment.
- Plant more bee forage.
- Render wax from discarded frames.
April in the apiaries:
At this time of year, colony life does not allow for any slack in the management of our hives. The queens are laying eggs as fast as they can, the bee populations are exploding and, weather permitting, the foragers are collecting heavy loads of pollen and nectar. To crown this intense bee activity, it’s colony multiplication season, it’s swarm season! If the amount of space available to the bees inside the hives is insufficient to permit the expansion of the brood nests and the storage of nectar, if the young bees that produce wax do not have room to constructively use the wax that comes out of their abdominal glands, if clustering space is inadequate to house all the bees, the hives may very quickly become overcrowded. The consequences? Premature swarming or weakened and unproductive colonies in most cases, diseased hives in extreme cases, and in all instances for us beekeepers the missed opportunities to enjoy thriving colonies.
Besides honey and pollen, strong healthy hives can produce many more bees, more offspring colonies and better queens than weaker hives. They are effective pollinators and it’s a pleasure to work with them. Given the locations of our apiaries, we can help maximize the growth and productivity of our colonies. It is the assistance we offer our bees that makes the difference between managed and feral colonies. We begin by providing sound nesting cavities, and we follow up by manipulating our equipment and the combs to facilitate the work of the bees. This includes fine tuning the volume and contents of the hives and may be as simple as adjusting the size of the entrances.
First, lots of bees have to be produced. This process started almost two months ago, when the colonies were coming out of winter. The foragers that we see now are the result of our early spring hive management. We need to keep at it, by deftly allowing further expansion of the brood nests. This helps the colonies become even stronger and remain healthy. Ultimately, they will send large numbers of foragers to the flowers. It’s only when the colonies have gained sufficient strength and when the weather and the local plants cooperate that surplus honey (the amount of honey that is in excess of the colonies’ needs) may be produced and later harvested. Not to be missed is ensuring that there is adequate clustering space for the foragers below the brood nests. This can be done by allowing the presence of empty combs under the brood nests (refrain from reversing the brood chambers!) or by adding a super with frames between the hive bottoms and the brood nests, if necessary. In horizontal hives the addition of bars or frames between the entrances and the nests may produce similar benefits.
At this season, additional supers should be placed as soon as the previous ones are half full. Baiting bees into these new supers with combs that they are already utilizing makes the added volume immediately acceptable to the bees, maintains continuity between brood and stores, and offers the bees the options of expanding the nests and store areas, as they see fit. No queen excluder is needed. These points should not let us forget that the risks of starvation are very real at this season in spite of the blooms, especially when inclement weather prevents the foragers from replenishing the combs for several days at a time.
Frames with foundation or, better yet, empty frames can be inserted in the brood chambers and in the honey supers. The exact placement of new frames in the brood chambers results from the beekeeper’s judgment calls that are based on the strength of the colonies, the type of frames offered, and the weather. Splitting the nests should be avoided early in the spring and in colonies that are not very strong. With large quantities of young wax-producing bees, comb building can proceed rapidly and beautifully. Furthermore, these actions help delay swarming and reduce the construction of bridge comb and other undesirable structures.
Although this year again the bees gave signs that the conditions would not be favorable for colony multiplication and queen rearing before the middle of the month or even later, we have entered the season of colony reproduction. The inspection of the brood nests will indicate when colonies reach maturity and when they begin to prepare for swarming. We will notice first a decrease in the open-to-sealed brood ratio and finally the construction of queen cells. At such times, the in-hive conditions are at their optimum to divide our colonies and to produce nucs and queens. We need to be ready for this, keeping the necessary equipment at hand. And of course let’s also have our swarm-catching equipment nearby!
This month:
– Let’s inspect our hives regularly, when foragers are out in large numbers.
– Make sure that there is enough food stored in the hives and as always, keep an eye on the health of the colonies and on honey supers.
– Watch for signs of spring diseases.
– Avoid congestion of the brood nests, and honey-bound conditions.
– Ensure unimpeded development of the brood nests, adding frames to provide egg-laying space.
– Offer comb-building opportunities.
– Add clustering space or refrain from reversing brood chambers.
– Add supers to provide nectar storage space.
– Ensure adequate air circulation through the hives.
– Open the entrances of hives to match the increasing forager activity.
– Place swarm traps.
– Perform hive divisions (but only if and when the hives are ready).
– Keep some equipment at the ready to catch the occasional swarm.
– Rear queens.
– Pull weeds from in front of the hives.
– Discard old and misshapen combs.
At home:
– Keep swarm-catching gear ready, including a nuc box and pruning shears.
– Prepare equipment for apiary expansions.
– Render wax from discarded frames.
– Routinely clean and scorch tools and equipment.
May in the apiaries:
This time of year brings us the best of beekeeping: Large strong productive colonies, young ones that grow like teenagers, swarms, young queens, the spring honey flow, pleasant conditions among gentle busy bees, and the hum and sweet fragrance of the hives. Everything seems to be working like a charm and the bees are wonderful. Even the varroa mites seem to oblige! This is the right recipe to get new beekeepers to fall in love with their winged charges, and the more experienced ones to return home from the apiaries with wide smiles on their faces. Let’s enjoy it all without restraint.
Nevertheless, this is not a time to become complacent or negligent. The bees remind us of this, as their brood nests are now growing very rapidly. To compound this high rate of expansion, newborn bees occupy three times as much volume once they move on the combs as when they were immobile pupae, tightly confined to their cells. For this reason and to allow our colonies to gain great strength and to develop large populations, we need to keep providing additional space in the brood chambers. This supplemental space, along with the addition of nectar storage space, is necessary to avoid congestion of the brood nests and honey-bound conditions, and to maintain good colony development. Not to be forgotten is to maintain some clustering space for the foragers, between the brood nests and the hive entrances. All this attention helps minimize or delay swarming and keeps the colonies strong, healthy and productive. Queen excluders certainly do not help here!
As we regularly inspect the brood nests of our hives, noticing in a healthy queenright colony a sudden slow-down in the production of brood warns us that the colony may be preparing to swarm. This precursor sign, which precedes the appearance of queen cells, is very obvious, as the nest then contains mostly sealed brood. When this happens, dividing the colony is a simple measure that satisfies the natural urge of the colony. This practice produces young colonies and queens, and saves swarming bees from the risks they are exposed to nowadays. Inspecting hives at least every ten days at this time of year allows us find out when the best time is to perform these interventions.
By the end of the month, the brood nests of most mature colonies will have reached their maximum size. The adult bee populations will still be increasing though, offering us the exhilarating show of their foragers. The hive entrances are wide open to accommodate this intense traffic and to provide adequate ventilation.
The honey supers are getting heavier every day the weather permits foraging. New combs are built and white wax is blooming even on the dark older combs. Additional supers or top bars should be placed as soon as those we provide earlier are half full. Comb-building opportunities (empty frames, frames with foundation, or top bars) should be offered throughout the hives. The bees will respond by producing beautiful combs and will reduce the construction of undesirable bridge combs.
These are the best conditions to produce young colonies and queens from our hives. Dividing hives may be performed by anyone of us, regardless of the size of our apiaries. There are also very simple queen-rearing procedures (see last August To-Do List) that allow us to produce queens from our best colonies without specialized tools or equipment, and with very little brood. These queens can be used to requeen hives that are headed by failing or ill-adapted queens, and this is one of the best ways to improve the overall quality of our colonies.
All this exciting beekeeping activity should not let us forget that the health and strength of our colonies may be challenged. Among the health problems that are most frequently encountered at this season are the so-called spring diseases: chalkbrood, European foulbrood and nosema. Also, the risk of poisoning from pollen produced by California buckeye trees and the exposure to fungicides are significant in some locations.
This month:
– Let’s inspect our hives regularly, when foragers are out in large numbers.
– Watch for signs of spring diseases.
– Avoid congestion of the brood nests, and honey-bound conditions.
– Ensure unimpeded development of the brood nests, adding frames to provide egg-laying space.
– Offer comb-building opportunities.
– Add supers to provide nectar storage space.
– Ensure adequate air circulation through the hives.
– Open the entrances of hives to match the increasing forager activity.
– Place swarm traps.
– Perform hive divisions.
– Follow up on earlier hive divisions.
– Keep some equipment at the ready to catch the occasional swarm.
– Rear queens.
– Pull weeds from in front of the hives.
– Harvest surplus early spring honey.
– Discard old and misshapen combs.
At home:
– Keep swarm-catching gear ready.
– Render wax from discarded frames.
Routinely clean and scorch tools and equipment.
June in the apiaries:
Compared to the past two cold and rainy springs our bees experienced, this one is wonderful. The colonies are large, strong and healthy. Delicious honey is coming out of the hives. Young colonies and queens are developing superbly. If there are problems, they are the ones we like to have: Where can we find more equipment for more bees and more honey?
The brood nests are now as large as they will be this year, but the adult bee populations will still be growing for a few more weeks. The foragers are exploiting the end of the spring honey flow. After the blackberry bloom, early summer typically brings dearth and hot conditions in my apiaries. Many forager bees turn to water collection to cool the hives and to maintain an adequate level of relative humidity around the brood. This is when the hives benefit from afternoon summer shade and from the proximity of safe water sources. In some cases, it is necessary to provide these amenities.
The development of our new colonies needs to be monitored to ensure that they will be able to adequately prepare for winter. Although we always need to keep an eye on the health and condition of our colonies, our inspections may be less frequent and their focus shifts to the honey supers. The hives need to be configured to provide adequate ventilation. Water sources should be constantly accessible by the bees within a few hundred yards of the hives. With spring turning to summer, the intensity of swarming subsides.
It’s time to harvest nicely capped spring honey and to rapidly return the wet frames to the hives. But let’s leave enough in the hives for the bees, especially in the areas where summer brings a long nectar dearth.
The bloom of California buckeye trees straddles May and June in our area, at the time when the spring honey flow is ending. The pollen of these trees is known to be toxic to honey bees, but there are differing opinions about the toxicity of the nectar. If there is nothing else in bloom around the apiaries when California buckeye trees are flowering, bees are forced to forage on them, and the consequences can be disastrous for their colonies. In some locales, blackberries may provide a welcome alternative source of nutrients with their greenish gray pollen and light nectar.
The memory of hives affected by buckeye trees makes me look at these otherwise beautiful plants with a different eye. When bees feed on California buckeye pollen, their brood nests deteriorate rapidly. The brood patterns become spotty and the open brood disappears. Most striking is the sight of large masses of nearly white immature bees that cover the landing boards and the ground in front of the hives in early mornings. Most of them seem dead, but, as the sun warms them up, some still try to walk away from their hives. At times, these signs of buckeye poisoning can show up much later in the season, when bees consume the toxic pollen they had stored.
I know of only two ways to avoid this problem. One is to move the hives to different locations, where the bees will have access to other food sources. The other is to feed the colonies with light sugar syrup while the buckeye trees are blooming. Another possibility might be to secure bees that know not to forage on the hazardous flowers (bees adapted to the local conditions). Here is a suggestion: If you are ever tempted to plant a California buckeye tree, think again and plant a catalpa tree instead. It will produce a gorgeous and safe bloom at the same period of time.
As the best of the colony-propagation and queen-rearing season is coming to a close, I am elated by the results of my experiments in queen-rearing. Pursuing last year’s forays in simple queen-rearing methods, I have arrived at a procedure that requires no grafting and no special tools or equipment. It is very predictable and produces quality queens in any number I wish without my intervention during the queen-rearing process. It consists of setting up small nucs that do all the work from raising the queens from small amounts of selected brood through the mating of the young queens and beyond. This technique is usable regardless of the number of colonies one keeps and may be utilized in any type of hives.
This month:
– Keep an eye on the health of the colonies.
– Manage honey supers (less space is needed as the nectar flow decreases).
– Harvest surplus spring honey.
– Provide adequate air circulation through the hives.
– Ensure that water is available to the bees.
– Follow up on the development of the colonies (keep notes!). Some colonies may have to be combined.
– Evaluate the quality of young queens.
– Replace failing or undesirable queens.
– Keep some equipment at the ready to catch an occasional swarm.
– Perform hive divisions.
– Raise queens.
– Discard old and misshapen combs.
– Beware of incidences of robbing at the end of the nectar flow.
At home:
– Extract and bottle spring honey.
– Render wax from discarded frames and from cappings (separately).
– Routinely clean and scorch tools and equipment.
July in the apiaries:
What a nice spring this was for our bees! Now, summer is ahead, and we need to adjust to a different set of conditions. This year’s spring honey flow is extending into an early summer flow, which is quite rare but very welcome in my apiaries.
In early July, the hive populations reach their maximum whereas the size of the brood nests keeps on decreasing steadily. As the nectar flow ends, many of the foragers become idle. They can be seen “washboarding” at the entrance of the hives. Others still keep looking for something to bring back to their hives. Attracted by the sweet fragrance of honey that emanates from neighboring hives, they attempt to enter the weaker ones. When they succeed, they return to their own hives and recruit additional foragers and large numbers of bees arrive at the target hives. A robbing situation has been created. It is important to recognize when this is happening and to quickly act in order to defuse the dangerous condition. If nothing is done to protect the hives that are under assault, they may be destroyed within little time. Reducing the entrances, using anti-robber screens, overhead sprinklers or moving the hives to other locations are some of the remedies beekeepers can use to attempt to protect the threatened colonies. Better yet is to avoid triggering robbing in the first place. To do this, hives should not be left open for lengthy inspection, and feeding, if at all necessary, or returning extracted wet frames to the hives should be done in the evenings.
Between the heat, the nectar dearth, the threat of robber bees, and the greater proportion of older bees in the hives, it is not surprising to experience a drastic change in the mood of our colonies at this time of year. We need to choose carefully when to visit them. In summer, the middle of the afternoon seems to be the worst time of the day to perform open hive inspections or to harvest honey.
During the summer, our hive inspections can be less frequent than during the spring. Often, they may be limited to checking the honey super, unless there is a reason that prompts us to examine the brood nests. The observation of the entrances, fronts of the hives and monitoring trays may provide such clues. Hives that show signs of weakness, disease or mite overload require our attention. Neglecting them is not an option. In addition, we need to follow up on the new colonies we produced in the spring, and we need to manage them as warranted. Some may need more space, while others, less successful, may have to be requeened or combined. We also want to assess the quality of the young queens.
Harvesting honey is one of our rewards for keeping bees. Nicely capped frames can be removed, as long as we leave enough stores for the bees. This is particularly important in areas that endure nectar dearth in the summer. In areas that enjoy a summer flow, it is usually better to super when the previous supers are almost full. Where the honey flow is over, it is preferable to remove the frames of beeswax foundation that have not been drawn by the bees. Otherwise, they will be destroyed.
On hot days, the bustling activity we observe in the flight paths may be due to bees bringing water to cool their hives and to maintain an adequate level of humidity around the brood. The availability of water within a few hundred yards of the hives is crucial for the bees. Providing our hives with some shade in the afternoons can also help reduce the demand for water, and any effective way to ensure safe ventilation of the hives is beneficial.
Along with the hot dry conditions of the season, comes the increased risk of fire. Let’s be careful with our smokers!
Swarms? “Not worth a fly!” as they say. But we are too soft hearted to ignore them, aren’t we?
This month:
– Keep an eye on the health of the colonies.
– Manage honey supers (less space is needed as the nectar flow decreases).
– Harvest surplus spring honey.
– Provide adequate air circulation through the hives (upper ventilation slots and follower boards).
– Remove frames of undrawn beeswax foundation.
– Ensure that water is available to the bees.
– Provide filtered afternoon shade, if at all possible.
– Follow up on the development of the colonies (keep notes!). Some colonies may have to be combined.
– Evaluate the quality of young queens.
– Replace failing or undesirable queens.
– Discard old and misshapen combs.
– Beware of robbing.
– Beware of the fire danger of using the hot smoker in dry grass.
At home:
– Extract and bottle spring honey.
– Render wax from discarded frames and from cappings (separately). The solar wax melters work very well at this season.
– Routinely clean and scorch tools and equipment.
August in the apiaries:
It’s summer break. Following the intense activity that drew us to the apiaries during the spring, our hive inspections and manipulations become less frequent and relatively superficial. We monitor the honey supers and occasionally harvest a few frames. The brood chambers are best left alone, unless some signs of a health problem prompt us to examine the colony. These inspections need to be performed rapidly, without leaving the honey exposed, in order to avoid triggering robbing.
The colonies are gradually winding down. Both their brood nests and their populations are decreasing. Preparations for winter are now well under way. Pollen foragers unload the pellets they have amassed not only around the brood area, but also in the comb that was vacated by the shrinking brood nest, between the brood and the entrance.
This time of year is when the differences between apiary locations may be the most striking. Some still enjoy a sustained honey flow, while others are enduring dearth. Regardless, the conditions are set for robbing, and we need to be aware of this danger. In addition, yellow jackets are starting to enter hives. Under these conditions, the hives become more defensive than they were a few weeks earlier. We can help them a little by reducing the size of the entrances, but this should be done without affecting the ventilation of the hives. The presence of bee proof upper ventilation slots or shimming the hive tops is beneficial. To cool their hives and to maintain an adequate level of relative humidity around the brood, the bees need to have access to water. Some shade can also provide relief from the intense sun.
This month:
– Watch for yellow jackets and any instances of robbing. If necessary, reduce the entrances of developing colonies and those that are under attack.
– Avoid hive manipulations that can trigger robbing.
– Provide and maintain sources of water.
– Ensure that hives are adequately ventilated (some summer afternoon shade is helpful).
– Develop young colonies for next season.
– Observe young queens and their offspring. Take notes for later selection, combination or replacement.
– Requeen or combine hives that are not performing satisfactorily, and those that have failing queens.
– Reduce the unused volume of hives.
– Remove frames of undrawn beeswax foundation.
– Harvest surplus summer honey.
– Beware of the fire danger when using the smoker in dry-grass areas.
– As always, keep an eye on the health of the colonies.
At home:
– Render wax from discarded frames and from cappings
– Extract and bottle summer honey.
– Routinely clean and scorch tools and equipment.
– This is a good time to make cuttings of good bee plants. On my list, California buckwheat (Eriogonum ssp.), rosemary, thyme, lavenders, etc.
September in the apiaries:
At this time of year, bee colonies are in a critical phase in their life cycle: They are in the midst of actively preparing for winter. At least, they should be. The colonies that are still acting as if spring were eternal will all too soon be brutally surprised and their keepers disheartened. As beekeepers, we want to find out which of our colonies are on cue, and decide what we have to do with the others.
I consider the timely and effective preparation for winter by bee colonies to be a key sign of their adaptation to their local conditions. It is an important selection criterion that nature applies without pity. I no longer interfere. Over the years, I have gradually adjusted the management of my hives so that the colonies may freely organize their nests for winter during the summer and fall seasons. This is in fact very simple. All that is necessary is to provide adequate space early in the season, to harvest with moderation and, generally, not to muddle their work, except when addressing queen related issues. I want the bees to do their own work, and I am not interested in providing them with crutches. No feeding, no treatments, but no neglect either.
Past the end-of-summer brief and temporary increase in brood production, the colonies steadily constrict during the fall. This is the opposite of what happens in the spring. Then, the colonies grow furiously and always need more space for incoming nectar and pollen and for their increasing populations. Now, everything is becoming compact within the hives, and our hive space management needs to reflect this reversal. Not only do the brood nests shrink in size at this season, but they also become very densely occupied. It seems that every cell of the brood chambers is in use, either to hold a developing bee, or some food, be it pollen, nectar or honey. When the fall flow is meager or absent, hive bees move uncapped honey from distant combs into the brood chambers. This typically leaves frames in the honey supers with isolated areas of sealed honey and lots of empty cells. By comparison, the brood chambers are jam-packed. Seeing this, we may be tempted to add empty combs to provide egg laying space. This intervention becomes unnecessary when we leave in place the empty combs in the lower part of the hives during the summer. In fact, adding egg-laying space at this time of year may prove to be a mistake, as this might disorganize the brood chambers and trigger an untimely or excessive bout of brood rearing at the wrong location in the hives. As the bees are consolidating their stores into the brood chambers, the brood nests are driven into these previously empty combs that now also hold beebread. This is where the winter bees will be reared in October. While this is happening, the stores are perfectly located for brood rearing next January.
Early this month, a rapid inspection of our hives lets us know which colonies are on track, which ones will need our attention over the following weeks, and those that have little hope of making it through winter. Three key points need to be checked: colony health, the brood nests, and the stores.
Nothing needs to be done with the hives that are healthy and preparing for winter properly, other than removing empty and old combs, as they become available, and, maybe, harvesting a little surplus honey, if there is any. The other colonies may require us to act, and this is substantially easier when we have many colonies than when we have only a few. More options are open then. The point is to accept that some of the colonies we have are not fit to survive until next spring and may become sources of contamination for surrounding hives.
Colony health status and strength are to be considered. We may combine colonies, as long as they are healthy, strengthen them by removing extraneous hive space or by boosting their populations with bees from colonies that have lost their queen, for example. Having a few nucs around with young queens also offers great possibilities.
When it comes to health issues, the impact of varroa mites on colonies that cannot handle these parasites becomes obvious at this time of year (Parasitic Mite Syndrome). Heavily infested hives stand little chance of overwintering, and treatments only perpetuate the problem. Requeening may still be an option. If not, we need to let them go without regret.
There are other problems that confront our hives at the end of summer and in the fall: hot dry days, nutritional stresses, robbing and yellow jackets to name some of the most prevalent. If there is a season when beekeepers need to be aware of the consequences of their actions in the apiaries, it’s now.
This month:
– Assess queens, brood nests and stores.
– Watch for yellow jackets and any instances of robbing. If necessary, reduce the entrances of developing colonies and those that are under attack.
– Avoid hive manipulations that can trigger robbing.
– Provide and maintain sources of water.
– Ensure that hives are adequately ventilated.
– Requeen or combine hives that are not performing satisfactorily, and those that have failing queens.
– Reduce the unused volume of hives.
– Configure hives for the consolidation of honey stores (scratch the cappings of patches of sealed honey).
– Harvest surplus honey.
– Return wet frames and cappings to the bees for cleaning (by placing them above hive top feeders or inner covers).
– Beware of the fire danger when using the smoker in dry-grass areas.
– As always, keep an eye on the health of the colonies.
At home:
– Render wax from discarded frames and from cappings
– Extract and bottle honey.
– Routinely clean and scorch tools and equipment.
October in the apiaries:
Although the climate we enjoy in this area is quite comfortable, winter remains a season to reckon with and to be prepared for. Over the next months, our colonies will have to literally “hang in there” in order to survive and then to come out strong next spring. Beekeepers know that their hives do not have second chances in winter, and that the outcome of overwintering depends largely on the contents of the hives when we button them up for the cold season.
Every bit of what is inside a hive can be vitally important to the bees. Deficiencies and excesses in any of it are detrimental. The stores, honey and pollen, come to mind first. Bees are needed of course, but not just any bees. They have to be healthy and well fed “winter bees”! Summer bees prepare the hive in early fall, nurse the winter bees, and will be gone by late November or early December. The size of a brood nest in October is a good indication of what the strength of the winter cluster will be. At the end of October, the brood it comprises should be mostly sealed. This shows that the queen is reducing her production of eggs, if not altogether stopping. A brood nest that contains too much open brood at that point in time will force the young bees to perform brood-rearing duty prematurely. This triggers and accelerates their aging process. Not a good thing at this time of year. We want this to happen in January and February. The shut-down of brood production occurs for a variety of reasons. The most important of these ones are the timely congestion of the nest when the bees consolidate their stores in early fall and the adaptation of the colony to the local climate. Even if a brood chamber seems crowded to us, we need to refrain from adding egg-laying space, as fall is not the time to expand a brood nest.
A month ago, we went through our apiaries to assess our colonies. Now is the time to ensure that the colonies we plan to overwinter will have everything they’ll need until spring. Early this month, as we perform another round of inspections, our questions are the same and ring like a checklist: Is the queen okay? Is she slowing down? Is the brood nest large enough? Are the bees healthy? Did they organize their hive adequately? Do they have enough stores? Then we know what we have to do, if anything.
Most colonies do the work spontaneously. Then, what is left for us to do is removing old and empty combs, eliminating excess space, shrinking the hives to the overwintering configuration we like (My preference is for relatively narrow and tall hives, with frames snugly arranged between follower boards.), and finally, reducing the entrances, installing mouse guards, cleaning the monitoring trays and securing the hive tops.
A few colonies require a little more attention and care. Those that are found queenless may be combined with other weak or small colonies, as long as they are healthy. Weak hives may be combined or set up as two-queen colonies. Two of the feral colonies I recently retrieved, one from a tree and the other from a farmhouse, have to be fed, as their combs were found essentially empty. They’ll receive heavy sugar syrup (2:1) over a period of a week in mid-October.
Here is a scheduling goal: To have the preparation of the hives for winter completed by the end of October. Last November 1st, a surprise windstorm taught me to be very strict about this, and that it is better to have the hives secured even earlier. Once this is done, the colonies will be on their own, left undisturbed for a few months.
Let’s not forget that as we close this beekeeping season, we are already laying the foundations for the next.
This month:
– Verify that the hives are queenright.
– Inspect brood nests and stores.
– Reduce the volume of the hives to match the colonies’ strength and needs.
– Remove old and misshapen combs (follower boards greatly facilitate this).
– Configure hives for the consolidation of honey stores (scratch the cappings of patches of sealed honey).
– Harvest surplus honey.
– Return wet frames and cappings to the bees for cleaning (by placing them above hive top feeders or inner covers).
– Watch out for yellow jackets and any instances of robbing. Be aware of avoiding situations and manipulations that can trigger robbing. If necessary, reduce the entrances of developing colonies and those that are under attack.
– Provide and maintain sources of water.
– Ensure that hives are adequately ventilated.
– Combine hives that are not performing satisfactorily.
– As always, keep an eye on the health of the colonies.
At home:
– Render wax from discarded frames and from cappings
– Extract and bottle honey.
– Routinely clean and scorch tools and equipment.
November in the Apiaries:
As we close this beekeeping season, we are in fact already setting the foundations for the next one. Of course we want our bees to have another season. This is why the preparation of the hives for winter is such an important phase of the beekeeping year.
But how much should we do for our colonies during the fall? At what point do our fall hive management practices begin to interfere with the process of natural selection? These questions have been on my mind for several seasons. Interestingly, they’ve led me to reconsider some of my summer beekeeping practices, and in particular the production of summer nucs and queens. This is because these young colonies do not have the opportunity to build up stores during the summer nectar dearth that typically affects my apiaries. Consequently my summer nucs often require feeding in the fall. No matter how desirable summer nucs and queens may be, I am planning on not producing them next year. It will be interesting to see what will happen.
Winter challenges bees but it also brings them a period of rest and an opportunity to fend off varroa mites. However, the colonies will have lost all their summer bees by the end of this month. The reduced populations will then be comprised mostly of winter bees. These were brood and young bees as we closed our hives, and their numbers determine the size of the winter clusters. For a variety of reasons that include insufficient winter bee population, poor health, high parasite loads or inadequate nutrition to name a few, some colonies will fail before springtime while others will be demonstrating magnificent resilience. We need to accept this, as long as it is the result of natural factors. We also need to recognize when losses are the result of mistakes we made. Otherwise, we could repeat them next year.
In the fall, my goal is to have all my hives inspected and ready for winter no later than the end of October. However, I often perform the last tasks that relate to the exterior of the hives during the first days of November. Keeping an eye on the weather helps us take advantage of the earliest opportunities to complete these tasks and to finish our work in a timely manner. Some hives do not need much attention, if any at all, as they were obviously on the right track a few weeks earlier. Just a last-minute verification maybe. Others may still need some attention, and they receive a rapid open-hive inspection and manipulation on a nice sunny day. This is a time when keeping good records of our hives is of great value, as we know beforehand what needs to be done and in which hives. No time is wasted in taking care of hives that do not need it. Their bees are left undisturbed.
December in the Apiaries:
With the disappearance of the summer bees, the populations of our hives have rapidly dropped. Even though some bees fly and may forage for a few hours on sunny days, most of their time is spent in clusters. With little or no brood to rear, this is a period of rest for the colonies. When this is the case, our bees do not have to produce much heat and, consequently, their honey consumption is minimal. This period of broodlessness is one of the few times in the year when varroa mites have no place to hide and reproduce. It is a great opportunity for the bees that possess good grooming behavior to eliminate these parasites, or at least to reduce their population. Brood rearing will resume soon after the winter solstice.
At this time of year in the apiary, it is better to keep our curiosity in check and our interaction with our bees to the minimum necessary: an occasional inspection of the exterior condition of the hives; keeping an eye on the monitoring trays; placing an ear against the side of the hives when there is no visible activity; observing the flight paths and entrances on warm sunny days. Any disturbance or jostling of the resting hives should be avoided. Only in rare instances of emergency should we open a hive. There is in fact very little that we can do with our bees now, but we must shut down or remove any failed hives without delay so that they do not present a risk of contamination for other colonies. Yes, robbing can happen at any time of the year.
Reflecting on the past season keeps us thinking about our bees. For this purpose, our notes are invaluable sources of information. This year again, the cool and wet spring almost entirely eliminated the spring honey flow. It was followed by a rather cold summer that brought only dearth for hives that depend on natural nectar flows. If measured in terms of honey production, this year was probably the worst I’ve seen since I started keeping bees. However, on the bright side, there were few cases of disease. The mite populations remained low and the hives went into winter with adequate stores. It was interesting to note that most hives shut down brood rearing early in the fall.
One of the lessons that I am drawing from this past season was administered by the unexpected November 1st strong winds. They did some spectacular damage in my main apiary. Next year, I will definitely have my hives secured for winter before the end of October.
Now is the time to clean, assemble and prepare frames and equipment for next season.
This month:
– Inspect the exterior condition of the hives:
- Hive tops should be properly set and secured.
- Observe the landing boards and the ground in front of the hives.
- Verify that the hive entrances remain unobstructed.
- On nice days, observe the flight paths and the bee activity at the entrances.
– Observe monitoring trays. The clusters should remain centered in order to maintain access to their stores.
– Ensure that hives are adequately ventilated.
– Verify that mice have not entered hives (telltale clues of their presence are visible on the monitoring trays, as coarse pieces of comb, mouse feces, etc.).
– Keep an eye on the colonies that still carry large brood nests (lots of finely chewed up pieces of brood cappings are visible on the trays), and make a note of this. The risk for these colonies is that they may run short of stores at the end of winter or in early spring.
At home:
– Clean and scorch tools and equipment.
– Scrub your smoker.
– Build and repair beekeeping equipment for next season.
– Review notes from the year.
– Plan next season (evaluate the need for equipment and bees).
– Read and learn more about bees and beekeeping.
– Store unused equipment to protect it from damage caused by wax moths, mice and the weather.
