Beekeeping is very much tied to nature, and death is just as much a part of beekeeping as honey. January to March are the most dangerous months for bee hives, and sadly this year we lost 2/3 of our hives, which is our first loss in 5 years. One hive we believe was lost due to excessive moisture, which we had problems with all of last year, and the second one we believe died due to varroa mite stress, despite having treated the hives in the fall. Last fall, the varroa mites were very high, and it could be this stress going into the fall was too much for the bees. Our remaining hive is strong and well. We did an inspection last week and saw eggs and lots of bees, so we're still in business!
This year we're making some changes, including introducing some new genetics to the bee yard with a new hive and expanding the bee yard to put more space between the hives Our pond has had many bees washing up in it, and I've seen the bees on the crocus and early bulb flowers. The maples are now in bloom. Normally April 15 in Western PA marks the official start of spring nectar season, but the lingering cold weather has delayed the season. No matter. Our bees have plenty of winter honey still in the hive and they are drawing this down while also dreaming of spring sunshine and warmer weather.
Disclaimers: Blog posts are opinions, not advice. One thing all beekeepers will agree on, is that if you ask 10 beekeepers what to do, you'll get 13 different answers. Beekeeping is alchemy, nature, and a bit of magic.
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