Spring is an exciting and busy time for beekeepers. As we deal with the last few storms and ensure that the bees have enough honey to carry them through to the first nectar being available- we also prepare for expansion and bringing more colonies to life!
Our temporary bee yard March 5 2023:
Our startup hives have done well through the winter – and are finding pollen on days where the temperature rises above 10C. Crocus, tree buds, and other early plants provide the starting protein for the newly laid bee eggs.
April 5, 2023 – snow is gone (for now at least). Winter wraps will stay on until temperatures are consistently above 10C so the bees don’t have to work so hard to keep warm.
One of our hives in the home yard is placed on an old package scale so we can monitor the increased weight from pollen and honey collection. When the weight stops rising, we can harvest (likely not before July)! If it starts dropping before the end of May, we will have to supplement their feeding to prevent starvation.
Our 2023 equipment build is almost complete. Except for the one hive box with box joints, all our other equipment is being built on site from locally harvested pine. Our thanks go out to Kevin Dowling for setting us up with really high quality boards from his sawmill.
It’s still a bit of a wait before we can split hives and pickup some additional colonies from Ashhill Farms in Meaghers Grant – but with the mild winter, we can hope that the bees will be able to get an early start this year.
Tiddley Bee Honey Company 