The colony should have a young queen and plenty of bees. Since we know winter is upon us we also know it is only a matter of time until it will be darker longer.
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It should be disease free and protected from pests and predators and.
Preparing bees for winter uk.
Although spring may seem a long way ahead in september what you do to your bees in the autumn months will have a marked effect on how they over winter build up in spring and ultimately your honey crop next year.
The winter hive is a delicate balance of helping the bees stay warm while not hindering air flow.
If youve been on top of things all summer you have been keeping the mite population in check by routinely trapping and removing them in drone brood.
Start with making sure the bees in the boxes today are healthy.
By the time november comes the bees will go into a cluster and will rarely leave the hive.
Of course the biggest problem honey bees have is that pesky varroa mite.
Winter patties these are great for your bees especially if they are clustering.
Check the weight of the hive by hefting.
If you do your homework now before winter when it finally arrives all the preparation pieces are in place and your bees have everything they need long before they need it.
Dont be so stuffy.
Check that the colony has a laying queen.
To minimize chilling the bottom of the hive use a specific entrance reducer or place a couple of pieces of 1 by 1 inch wood to allow only two to three inches open at the hive entrance.
Give them a wind breaker.
Just place the winter patty on top of the frames and the bees can eat it without even leaving the cluster.
Photo by deviant art.
The optimum condition for a colony going into winter is.
Look for eggs larvae and sealed brood.
Preparing honeybees for winter.
So too for your bees.
The colony clusters together to stay warm and protect the hive in winter.
Preparing the bees for winter.
If there is no queen unite the colony to a.
10 steps to wintering bees to keep them alive even if youre in the northern climates 1.
In the uk it is important to have removed your honey crop before colonies are treated for varroa i am not going to get into the argument of apiguard vs bayvarol vs apistan vs formic or oxalic acid.
As the weather gets colder the bees will start preparing for winter you will see from your garden and outside spaces that the bees are not spending much time outside the hive.
Stores should be sufficient to last until the spring flowers arrive 3.
Remove any part filled supers for re fitting later.
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