Month: February 2022

All the 5, previously indoor hives, were moved out at 7am and allowed to acclimate for 3 hours to the colder outside temperatures before removing the wire mesh. We do not want bees pouring out of the hive into 20F temperatures. Around 1pm, 40F, the hives showed activity and began their orientation and cleansing flights. All hives have good activity at the entrances. Once we get into April, the 3 campus hives will be returned to their location on the campus berm. Temperatures this week will show highs possibly around 70F. We will be doing inspections and evaluations.

A huge drop in temperature is approaching the Denver area. We can expect a drop from 60F to around -5F. The temps are not expected to rise about 20F for approximately 5 days. This type of weather can destroy even the hardiest of colonies. So, in these extreme cases, I will attempt to move the hives indoors until the next day where temps are above 40F. The bees have made it this far through winter, I would hate for them to not make it through these last few weeks.

The boxes from campus were moved in their entirety. I was planning on consolidating the hives a bit, possibly into NUCs. But the winds were so incredibly strong that I dare not open the hives. The plastic wrap is to block the cracks in the interface between hive boxes. The hive boxes need some work as there are 3/8 openings which bees can exit through.

4 Dollars’ worth of sugar can go a long way to preventing a colony collapse. In late winter sometimes we need to give the bees just a little insurance against starving. I typically will make up a sugar candy recipe. However, if you are short on time, you can just place some newspaper down and pour raw dry sugar on top. I also sprinkle a bit of pollen protein substitute.

Depending on the year, I will also take some unharvested honey frames and add them to the colony. However, this requires good weather to interact with the bees. I prefer to leave the bees alone as much as possible this time of year. Even on a nice warm day, it may be preferred to leave them alone. Breaking all the propolis joints or wax bridges is something that bees this time of year cannot readily repair. So, just adding sugar to the top 1 inch of the hive space is very easy and unobtrusive.

Depending on the time of year, I may check on my hives every week or once a month. Unfortunately for these hives and their location, I have not checked on them probably since November. The good and very surprising news is that all three of these hives are alive.

For these three hives, I decided to leave all the honey and resource frames intact and not harvested. This means these hives have an abundance of resources to survive and their only deficiency for survival may be the lower number of bees. Thes hives also received last summer early fall mite treatments. I really would like to see them through until spring.