Autumn make it this weekend , and with it crisper twenty-four hour period and fewer blush . For beekeepers , it ’s a changing of the safety . We get to enwrap up the routine of the meddlesome summertime calendar month and expect toward secure the hives for the add up common cold . In fall we pass the billy of security fully to the bee , having patronize them through their growing time of year and now into the tough months .
If you have n’t yet wrapped up your summertime chore , here ’s what ’s on your to - do list :
1. Harvest ONLY Surplus Honey
By now , most beekeepers haveharvestedall the surplus dear that is uncommitted , leaving the residual for the urticaria . In some neighborhood , such as the southeastern U.S. , a 2d flower and mini period can give the bee a final , cherished imagination of nectar , but only sometimes . The end now is to make certain they have enough . A single Apis mellifera beehive requires 40 to 60 pounds of honey for the dependency to make it through wintertime , with the whole hive weighing between 120 and 130 pound .
2. Maintain a Regular Inspection Schedule
Do this at least for now . Until temperatures really start to dip , keep a close optic on your urticaria andinspect them as demand . Look for a healthy queen and brood as well as sizable storage going into the fall .
3. Monitor Varroa Mite Populations
reckon for Varroa mites using your favored method acting , unremarkably over the course of three days . One favorite is thesticky panel method , in which a beekeeper lay an screened adhesive sheet at the bottom of the hive to reckon the routine of mite that pass onto it . It is valuable because it does n’t kill any bee in the operation — the screen keep them from the adhesive . apply your assessment to treat , if you see primed .
4. Requeen Your Colony or Not?
Replacing the existing pansy with a young , mated fagot in the fall is a common practice in commercial beekeeping and conventional apiaries , though many natural beekeepers prefer not to take this approach . The alternative is yours . If you do requeen , this is an excellent fourth dimension to do it .
5. Watch for Robbing
Therobbing of treasured storesby outsider insects is a serious threat . Yellow Jackets and other WASP become very fast-growing this sentence of year , as their nests are heavy and the foraging is scarce . Large hives with pounds upon lb of honey stored is very tempting . Keep the beehive ’s entrance realizable for your bee , and watch behavior closely . Small entrances are easier to defend by the dependency ’s sentry go bees .
6. Feed Your Bees or Not?
Whether to feedis another challenging question between conventional and natural beekeepers . If you ’ve not been fanatical with harvesting , your bees ( if they make up a strong settlement ) might have ample stores on their own . If too much has been harvested , the menses was spotted or robbing has occur , feeding might be necessary . Do so in a way that does n’t promote more robbing .
Hopefully , as you move your bees into fall weather , you ’re concluding another successful summertime as a beekeeper .
