Winter can be a challenging time for honey bees. It’s too cold to go outside and there are no flowers in bloom. Beekeepers often turn to supplementary feeding to ensure their colonies have enough sustenance to survive the cold months. Dry granulated sugar provides a simple and cost-effective way to nourish the bees until the weather warms up.
Swarming is a natural process of reproduction, where a portion of the colony leaves the hive to establish a new one. Unfortunately for the beekeeper, it can reduce the honey production of the original hive.
A queen excluder is a mesh-like device placed between the brood chamber and honey supers in a beehive. Its primary function is to prevent the queen from laying eggs in the honey supers, ensuring that the honey remains uncontaminated by brood. It can be placed above the entrance to delay swarming, but will not work in the long run.
Splitting your colonies in the spring, adding supers to your hives, and clipping your queen’s wings are more effective methods of managing swarming behavior.
Bee larvae found on the bottom board of a hive can be an alarming sight for many beekeepers. In many cases, larvae found on the hive bottom board are the result of wax moth larvae or small hive beetle larvae that were present in the colony’s brood chamber or comb. These pests may feed on bee brood, causing the bee larvae to fall onto the bottom board.
Investigating the source of the problem, implementing proper management techniques, and monitoring the colony’s health is crucial to resolving this situation.
The queen in a colony is a very elusive creature. Even experienced beekeepers fail to see her in the hive. The next best thing is to look for eggs. It takes 3 days for eggs to hatch, so if eggs are present, chances are that the queen is too. It is frustrating if a beekeeper looks through the hive and can’t find any eggs.
In this article, we explore several potential reasons for a queen bee to stop laying eggs and offer some guidance on what steps can be taken to address the situation.
Beekeepers have used smoke for centuries to calm honey bees while working in their hives. But what is the science behind this fascinating phenomenon, and how does smoke subdue bees?
When beekeepers puff smoke into a beehive, it masks the bees’ sense of smell and inhibits their ability to detect and communicate through pheromones. This disruption in communication prevents the transfer of intruder alarm signals, creating a sense of calm as the hive temporarily goes into ‘survival mode.’ During this time, bees focus on protecting their resources and preparing to leave the hive, instead of attacking the perceived intruders, making beekeeping activities safer for humans.
Beekeepers predominantly wear white suits because honey bees have a natural aversion to dark colors. This defense mechanism has evolved due to their common predators, such as bears and raccoons, which typically have dark-colored fur. Wearing a white beekeeping suit helps decrease the chances of bee attacks, as bees are less aggressive toward lighter colors.
Death is always a little jarring when you can’t explain it. It’s one thing to know that your bees go through a life cycle, like anything else, and it’s another thing to see it. Usually, they have the good sense to die out in the field, and the few that die in-house are removed before you come to visit. So when you find dead bees on your bottom board, it can be alarming.
This article will discuss the possible reasons behind the presence of dead bees on the hive bottom board and recommend appropriate actions to take when necessary.
As a beekeeper, you may notice bees hanging outside their hive at night, a behavior often referred to as “bee bearding.” A colony of bees works like a human body. They operate at an optimal temperature. When it gets too hot, both adults and brood suffer, and unfortunately, the brood can’t move out, so the adults do. By clustering outside the hive, the bees work together to regulate the temperature and maintain a comfortable environment for the colony inside.
When beekeepers notice their bees removing larvae from the hive, it can be a cause for concern. This behavior, however, is an essential part of the hive’s self-regulation and overall health. Bees are highly hygienic insects, and they meticulously manage their hive environment to prevent the spread of diseases and parasites.
A healthy bee colony is typically a bustling hive of activity, with numerous bees flying in and out of the hive. However, some beekeepers may notice bees crawling around in front of their hive, raising concerns about the colony’s health.
There are various reasons why bees may be crawling near their hive, including disease, poor nutrition, and natural processes such as hive expulsion. By identifying and addressing potential issues, you can help ensure that your bee populations continue to thrive.