With the weather feeling 'less than springy' today, the Bee Team went through the 'Golden Rules' of hive inspections, to make sure we are ready for action when the weather improves.
At every inspection good beekeepers monitor their bees and the state of the hive to ensure all is well, taking into consideration things like the time of year and the weather, which all have an impact on our bees. Today we thought about...
At every inspection good beekeepers monitor their bees and the state of the hive to ensure all is well, taking into consideration things like the time of year and the weather, which all have an impact on our bees. Today we thought about...
- Is the Queen laying well? Thinking about pattern and amount
- Are there any Queen cells? thinking about swarming!
- Is there any disease or abnormality? Remembering our 'Curly Pearlies!'
- Are there sufficient stores? Have our bees enough to eat, at least until the next inspection
- Is there sufficient space? Queens need space to lay, workers space to store nectar
- Is the hive the same as others in the apiary? Are all the colonies roughly the same?