One of the first problems a new beekeeper confronts is how to get a colony of bees. If catching a swarm is not in the cards, or if an entire established colony is not for sale in your area, you are left with two choices: you must buy either a nuc or a package. While […] Read more
After my last post, “How to keep queen bees in reserve,” a number of people asked, “Then what? What do you do with them in the winter?” Last year was the first year I attempted to keep nucs over winter and it worked really well for me. Bear in mind, however, it was my first […] Read more
Every spring I re-queen my strongest hives in order to reduce swarming. A colony is less likely to swarm when the queen’s pheromones are strong, and the pheromones are strongest in a first-year queen. In fact, according to most sources, a new queen is the single best deterrent to swarming. However, it seems ridiculous to […] Read more
The term “nuc” is short for nucleus colony. A nucleus colony is just a very small colony of a few thousand bees and a queen. A beekeeper can find many ways to use a nuc. Nuc boxes, the structures that hold a nucleus colony, come in all shapes and sizes. Usually you see five-frame deep […] Read more
Last time I wrote about a simple way to split a hive to prevent swarming. It is quick and easy and results in two fairly equal hives. However, if your original hive is loaded with swarm cells you may be able to raise a few extra queens or start more than one hive. Let’s say […] Read more
About twice a week during the winter months, I walk around to all the hives just to make sure they haven’t been tipped over by a bear or some other hairy creature. While I’m making these rounds I flick the dead bees off the landing board and clean away any snow or soggy leaves. I […] Read more
I just did something I said I would never do. Based on predictions of unusually cold weather for the next week or so, I decided to move my three nucs into the garden shed. At the last moment, I decided to move the top-bar hive inside as well. Now for those of you living in […] Read more