Winter Management

Basic Beekeeping -- Winter Management

Getting your bees ready for winter

Begin to think of fall management as the beginning of a new bee year. Things you can do in the fall will reduce problems you may face in the spring.

There are several task that need to be taken care of in the fall after the honey is removed:

First, an inspection of the hive is in order. The hive should have ample supplies of honey stores, a good population of bees, and the queen should have a good brood pattern rather than a spotty one. Disease is a concern, but if you started with package bees and new equipment, it should not raise its ugly head (American foulbrood). However, you should know what to look for. Check Intermediate Beekeeping 201 for diseases.
Second, fall management to save your hive involves doing several things. a) Level your hive making sure the hive slopes slightly in the front so water does not run back into the hive from the landing area of the bottom board. b) It is time to use miticide strips to control Varroa. Check the catalogs for products and follow directions on labels. More hives die from mites than any other reason. c) Place an entrance reducer at the front entrance. This keeps mice out and winter wind damage at a minimum. d) Provide the bees with a wind break. e) Make sure the hive has good ventilation. Air has to move about within the hive so that condensation does not collect and fall on the bees. f) feed the hive with sugar syrup mixed 1:1 if they do not have enough surplus honey to carry them through the winter. This should be done before it gets cold.
Third, fall is a good time to replace a failing queen. Don't wait until spring.
Finally, if you have done all you can, don't disturb the bees during really cold weather. I know you want to know if your bees are still alive but please wait until you can visit on a warm day. Bees will fly during the winter on warm day and on a day such as this, you might open the hive and check bee activity and get an idea of the number of bees in the hive but don't go looking for the queen. The bees need to conserve as much heat as they can. You can only do damage to the hive.

As winter sets in, you can continue your growth as a beekeeper by reading books. One book that should be in every beekeepers library is the most recent issue of The Hive and the Honey Bee published by Dadant & Sons, of Hamilton, Illinois. It is absolutely the best book you can buy to get the latest and best from experts on beekeeping. Each chapter is written by a recognized authority. If you haven't subscribed to a bee magazine, you should. The two most popular are: Bee Culture published by the A.I. Root Company and the other is The American Bee Journal published by Dadant & Sons. If you are computer literate and you most likely are because you are reading this, explore the many bee web sites. The amount of information is just overwhelming.