Spring has started to appear in the apiary. The hawthorn has started to blossom, and things are starting to wake up. It’s a crucial time of the year for the bees as they need to get out the hive and start foraging but the weather can make this difficult for them.
The temperature needs to be above about 13 degrees for the bees to get out, and it has been hovering around that temperature during the afternoons. The danger is that the colonies food supply is low as they have depleted the winter reserves, and survival is dependent on if they can maintain enough food supplies until spring really arrives. I will be keeping an eye on their food reserves and top them up if required.
Things now start to get busy in the beekeeping year. This weekend I extracted the wax from the old frames from last season, this will be processed later in the year to make beeswax candles and polish. I have made up more frames so the bees have some spare accommodation when they decide to swarm in the coming weeks. Regular hive inspections will commence as soon as the temperature is constantly above 13 degrees and we will be on the lookout for when the bees intend to swarm.
Until then I am repairing any equipment that needs looking at, and waiting till the weather warms up.