I almost couldn’t wait, but around the third week of March I opened the hive on a very warm day to find them happy and plentiful. The entire first level [hive body] was empty of bees, brood and honey. The upper body was filled with all the bees and a few frames of untouched capped honey. This is good news because it means they were able to store enough honey on which to live through the winter. If you remember, this was the first year goal.
Their success was not without bumps, however. Honey robbing, especially. Besides the feral bees we talked about in the last newsletter; those of us close to the bees were met with ravenous yellow jackets in early November. I learned quite a bit about this carnivorous wasp, and even though they do perform a valuable environmental function, I found an eco-friendly trap that worked so well, I recommend its use to anyone around their home, no honey bees necessary.
Winter is always a challenge. The worst part for the honey bee is getting wet. If you can help them keep the humidity down, by removing any supplemental syrup feeder and keeping the hive in good weather proof condition, the snow actually is good insulation. Protection from gusty cold winds helps too. My obsessive mothering kept them warmer than if they were near my own drafty windows. That ridiculous looking shelter was probably overkill but I still was glad to have it when digging out of the snow drifts.
You may have noticed the hive was moved over a foot or so. I discovered the pesky small hive beetle [SHB] during the March opening. Part of their life cycle includes spending some time in the soil below the hive. Some bee keepers keep their hives on a concrete slab, and there is of course a pesticide. I did some research and made an eco-friendly trap placed under the hive and scraped off the first layer of soil from the original placement. This should work well enough until I decide if something else is necessary.
I’d always been thought to use whatever I have first before I go and buy something fancy. I’m sure this isn’t exactly what my dad had in mind, but, my SHB trap is filled with a banana, extra virgin olive oil and aged white balsamic vinegar; lucky them.
When spring nectar/pollen flow begins, the queen starts laying more eggs, and the hive becomes crowded. Instinctively, the bees want to take their queen and move to a new location, leaving behind queen cells and a small cluster of workers. This is the time when you may hear of swarms in mailboxes, play sets, eaves, or trees, and the beekeeper needs to make a decision.
A beekeeper could use this opportunity to split their hives. This leaves two smaller weaker hives that need extra care. This is where we were last spring. Not a bad idea if you want to increase your bee yard and sell one half.
Some beekeepers use this as an opportunity to gain free bees by offering to capture these scary swarms and rescue homeowners. Swarming honey bees are actually in a very calm peaceful state. This is true only for honeybees and not wasps or hornets.
Another option is to keep them from swarming. You can provide lots of room, by switching the empty lower body to the top and adding extra layers [supers] as needed on top. If you remember these guys got here late last spring and missed this early flow. I’ve already witnessed them bringing in pollen. The protein rich pollen reminds the queen to start laying more eggs.
By doing all these things there should be no reason why we shouldn’t have surplus honey to extract thius summer. I attended a class on soap making, using honey and the beeswax which I would love to try. This year I also want to learn about capturing pollen and its medicinal benefits.
So let’s all cross our fingers for a warm dry spring and we’ll bee seeing you.