Beekeeping Calendar Hampton Roads, Virginia

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1 Beekeeping Calendar Hampton Roads, Virginia This calendar contains a collection of suggested actions that may be taken by the beekeeper, together with a list of events that happen in each month for a typical year. This calendar contains only suggestions, as weather conditions, hive locations, and the type of honeybees you have can and will influence your activities throughout the year. January Average mean (14 year average) = 42 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 52 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 33 degrees F. In most years the colony is tightly clustering to stay warm, with little or no outside activity. However, in the past couple of years with the mild temperatures the bees have been flying almost every day. Bees may be seen actively collecting resources (pollen and minimal nectar). January is a critical month for the bees as they may begin initial brood rearing, which will result in increased consumption of honey and pollen. It is critical to make sure colonies have sufficient honey reserves. On a warm day, you may briefly remove the outer and inner covers to inspect the cluster. If the cluster is tight up against the inner cover and the colony feels light, then the colony is desperately low on reserves. It is generally recommended not to feed liquid sugar water at this point in the year due to the excess moisture added to the hive. A good alternative to liquid food is to place dry sugar on top of the frames directly above the cluster. Use moistened newspaper as a base for the dry sugar. Do not place dry sugar on the inner cover, as bees may not break cluster to reach it. January is also a great time to catch up on your reading and to study up for that beekeeper s course you ve been thinking about taking. Don t forget to attend your next club meeting and start building and repairing the equipment you might need for this coming season. This is a good time to arrange for the purchase of bees from a reputable local supplier. February Average mean (14 year average) = 44 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 55 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 34 degrees F. The colony will still be clustering, but increased brood rearing typically happens in February. The queen will begin to lay a few more eggs each day. There are still no drones in the hive. The biggest trigger is the longer days and more importantly the maple bloom that usually happens in early to mid-february. This bloom is probably the largest single trigger to kick the colony into brood production. Check the status of your hive. It s okay to remove the top

2 cover and inner cover to inspect. You ll be able to tell where the bees are clustered. You can move frames around so the frames with honey are near the cluster. But NEVER, repeat NEVER physically disturb the cluster. Continue to monitor the hive for sufficient food supplies, and if light provide either dry sugar if cold weather is predicted or sugar water for warmer conditions. A colony that is rearing brood will consume lots of resources per week, and if the weather turns bad, a colony with small food reserves can quickly starve to death. However, once you start feeding, you will very likely need to continue feeding until they are bringing in their own food supplies. You may feed to stimulate brood production, but again, once you start, you must keep feeding until the colony is bringing in adequate resource to sustain itself. Sign up for that appropriate level beekeeping training. Attend your bee club meetings and get your equipment ready for spring. March Average mean (14 year average) = 51 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 62 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 40 degrees F. With the days becoming longer, the queen steadily increases her rate of egg laying. More brood means more food will be consumed. The drones begin to appear. The bees will continue to consume honey stores. They will also bring in a fair amount of pollen in during this month. On a nice sunny day at the beginning of the month, when there is no wind and the bees are flying, have a quick look inside your hive. Any temperature above 60 degrees should be fine for a short period of time. If the temperatures are cooperating there should not be any problem removing the frames for a quick inspection, but be careful not to chill the brood. Inspect for disease and see that the queen is laying. Colony populations are high in preparation of the coming poplar flow, but food stores can run dangerously low until the flow starts. It may be necessary to continue feeding the hive. For those using double brood boxes, you may consider reversing boxes. This may help your colonies expand and not swarm. Do not reverse if brood spans between your boxes. Towards the end of March is when you should consider placing honey supers on your strong colonies. If you are using bare foundation add only one super at a time. If you have drawn comb, you may add more than one super. You may not collect honey in March, but this gives the colony a sense of overhead room and helps with swarm prevention. Also mid to late March you need to make sure that the colony has plenty of space to expand the broodnest. Failure to provide adequate space will most certainly result in swarming. Also near the end of March is when you should do the first comprehensive inspection of the season.

3 April Average mean (14 year average) = 61 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 72 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 49 degrees F. April is a very busy bee month!! There is no specific date when swarm season starts, but April is when swarming really starts to kick into high gear. Although our ability to totally control nature is limited, swarming can and should be managed to minimize its occurrence. Despite our best efforts, it is a very good idea to have some spare equipment ready to put into service. What works: checkerboarding, artificial swarms, Demaree method, splitting, providing a young queen, and to a lesser degree repeated reversing. What doesn t work: wishful thinking, cutting out queen cells, clipping the queen s wings, and beekeeper neglect. April (typically mid-april) is when the main honey flow starts and will continue until early June. During this time, the primary objective is to keep your colonies from swarming. Poor spring management is the primary cause of low honey yields. During your inspections be sure to evaluate the colony for brood production, laying pattern, and temperament. Mature drones will be present, so you should be able to rear queens without mating problems. Consider performing splits on your large hives. A cut down split is a great way to maximize honey production while still making increases. Late in April or early in May, consider breaking the brood cycle. Breaks in the brood cycle, which of course breaks the mite cycle as well and can be effective reducing mites. During this brief brood less period all the mites in the hive are now on the bees and not in the cells. Mites on the bees are much easier to deal with it s VERY hard to treat for mites inside the cells, particularly during the honey flow. A soft treatment during this broodless period, for example powered sugar dusting can be effective. May Average mean (14 year average) = 68 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 79 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 58 degrees F. This is when honey production should peak. As a result swarm prevention is still a big issue. Swarms at this point in the season as almost always related to beekeeper neglect due to backfilling of the brood chamber resulting in congestion and no place for the queen to lay eggs. Other activities to consider: making splits and queen bees.

4 June Average mean (14 year average) = 77 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 86 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 67 degrees F. Grab a lawn chair, your favorite beverage and sit back a watch some bee TV. Congratulate yourself on a successful honey season. Honey production will rapidly decline to a small trickle by mid- to late-june. There should be no need to add more honey supers this month. Some beekeepers like to harvest the spring crop to keep it separate from the later season honey. Consider splitting large colonies if you want more hives. For those near agriculture prepare your colonies for the summer flow. July Average mean (14 year average) = 80 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 90 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 71 degrees F. Bees are doing temperature control duties and gathering lots of water. Please provide a constant source of water for your bees so that they don t become a nuisance at your neighbor s swimming pool or birdbath. Also, be sure to provide adequate ventilation by propping up the outer cover. June and July are harvest months for the Hampton Roads beekeeper. Continue inspections to the hive to make sure your hive is healthy. As drone production decreases, varroa mite populations will rise in worker brood, so consider monitoring mite populations. For those near agriculture, cotton and soybean nectar production is peaking watch for summer swarming. August Average mean (14 year average) = 79 degrees F. Average maximum (14 year average) = 88 degrees F. Average minimum (14 year average) = 70 degrees F. For those not near agriculture, the colony s growth is slowing down. The nectar flow is basically nonexistent. Watch out for honey robbing from nearby colonies, yellow jackets, and

5 hornets. Larger colonies will test the defenses of small colonies, so reduce entrances on nucs and weaker colonies. Continue to monitor varroa mite populations. Small hive beetle populations are nearing peak, so monitor small colonies closely. For those near agriculture, cotton and soybean nectar continues until late September. August and September are great months to fall re-queening. September Average mean (13 year average) = 73 degrees F. Average maximum (13 year average) = 82 degrees F. Average minimum (13 year average) = 63 degrees F. Nectar production is still low for those not near agriculture. Primary hive activities are still water collection and colony defense. Signs of varroa infestations would be obvious from bees with shriveled wings and possibly crawling on the grass in front of the hives. If these are observed, then act according to your beekeeping philosophy. Late in the month of September we should see the early stages of fall flowers, which will provide a much welcome relief. Some beekeepers prefer to harvest that this point in the season. If so, remember to leave at least 40 pounds of honey for the hive to get through the winter. For those near agriculture harvest your summer cotton/soybean honey crop. October Average mean (13 year average) = 62 degrees F. Average maximum (13 year average) = 73 degrees F. Average minimum (13 year average) = 52 degrees F. Typically we will see pollen and nectar actively being collected. This usually kicks in the last big round of brood rearing and produces the winter bees. These bees are essential to the survival to the colony. Still be on the look for robbing this month. Additional feeding may be beneficial to build up colony resources. This is a good month to combine weak hives. It s better to take losses in the fall. Remove any queen excluders still on the hives. Install windbreaks to prevent drafts from directly entering the hive.

6 November Average mean (13 year average) = 53 degrees F. Average maximum (13 year average) = 64 degrees F. Average minimum (13 year average) = 43 degrees F. The first of the cold weather may appear, but over the past several years we ve seen very mild temperatures in November. This gives the beekeeper more opportunities to build up colonies reserves. It s time to add that entrance reducer to the hive to minimize robbing and to prevent mice from nesting inside. Store your equipment away for the winter. Again, don t forget to remove any queen excluders that may still be on the hives. December Average mean (13 year average) = 44 degrees F. Average maximum (13 year average) = 54 degrees F. Average minimum (13 year average) = 34 degrees F. Most years there is nothing you can or should do with the bees in December. Grab some bee catalogs and put together your Holiday shopping list. Calendar developed by: Dr. Sean Kenny Vice-President Norfolk Beekeepers

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