Beekeeping News

Midseason activities include managing late-swarming, rearing queens for overwintering in nucs, and making the best of the summer nectar flows … and, if that wasn't enough, there's the winter ahead to start preparing for. And now isn't too soon.

Laying workers, and the distinct but functionally similar rebel workers, are a curse in hopelessly queenless hives. Why and when do they occur, how can you prevent them from appearing, and how to fix things if they do.

The 'June gap' and brood breaks; does the queen stop laying, or are the larvae cannibalised? Probably both, and more. Plus some brief comments on hayfever and honey, and determining when OSR/canola honey is ready for extraction (it's earlier than you might think).

There are differences in the chemical and physical properties of wax in queen cells and worker comb. This is attributed to a specific group of young worker bees; the queen cell builders. What lessons are there for beekeeping from the identification of these bees and differences in the wax?

The weather has a profound influence on bees and beekeeping; some thoughts on coping with extreme heat, the ideal conditions for queen mating, and predicting the onset of swarming.

Miticides kill Varroa. They also have detrimental side effects for the brood, workers, drones, and queen. Some of these side effects are more damaging than others, but many can be avoided (or at least mitigated) with proper colony management.

The vagaries of the weather, compounded by unexpected events, are what make beekeeping so endlessly fascinating … and challenging. Don't get flustered. Just keep calm and carry on and things should be OK.

Bees spend more of their short lives learning about the environment during orientation flights than they spend foraging. Why are these flights so important, when do they start, and are bees that have yet to take them really 'non-flying bees'?

Some observations on the impact of low overnight temperatures on colony development and spring swarming, and the use of Taranov swarm control to partition the flying and 'non-flying' bees to prevent swarming.

Queenright queen rearing using the 'Ben Harden system' is an ideal way to produce queens without the need for huge cell raising colonies, or compromising honey production. A 'little and often' approach helps mitigate adverse conditions, and mistakes made when learning. Try it!

Bait hives, ley lines, exotic parasitic mites and formic acid treatments … a spring medley of good and bad beekeeping topics.

Winter DIY projects to make my beekeeping this year a little easier. Things for frames, mini-nucs, supers, finding bees, vaporisers, and queens. Some are novel, some are improvements, and some are poor facsimiles. All kept me entertained, and may help you in the months ahead.

What's the best method of swarm control? Some would judge this in terms of equipment needs, or lifting involved, or the number of return visits. However, if you also consider the population of bees in the colony, I'd argue there's one clear winner.

A recent study suggests that a beeswax Jenter-like system produces bigger, better queens than are reared by conventional grafting. Does this offer a worthwhile alternative approach to the current expensive (plastic) commercial queen rearing systems?

A pick'n'mix collection of swarm-related information this week. The planning and equipment needed for swarm control, and hiving bivouacked swarms. Some preliminary results on absconding swarms and re-hiving distances, and another over-confident prediction of when swarming will start.

Early hive inspections — and why you shouldn't — some thoughts on variable spring weather and progress in predicting swarming, and how the accuracy of the waggle dance varies depending on who is watching.

Colonies are highly selective when choosing larvae to rear queen. Standard (grafting-based) queen rearing methods are not. In this post I briefly discuss the science of larval selection, and then present two easy practical methods that take advantage of our current understanding of the process.

Do wet winters kill bees? Winter losses in '25/'26 appear to be unusually high. Inevitably, the miserable winter rain is blamed. However, I suspect the problem may be due to the earlier drought, a shortage of pollen, and the timing of winter bee production.

The financial outlay you need to make when starting beekeeping is less than the commitment the catalogues imply you should make. Buy wisely with compatibility and longevity in mind, but also invest in a couple of luxuries that will make your beekeeping easier.

Colonies can starve in early spring. It takes just a few days of adverse weather for colonies to run out of stores. This week I discuss preventing starvation in managed colonies, together with some observations on the survival of, and finding, overwintered free-living bees.

Don't believe everything you read in the catalogues. It's expensive to start beekeeping, so buy little, and buy wisely. The equipment should last — and be usable — for decades, so aim to make your beekeeping easier now, and in the future.

Identifying areas with endemic foulbroods, and the adjacent regions at risk from natural spillover through swarming. What choices are there in dealing with swarms originating from infected areas, including the options available for euthanising them?

Just because they contain an identical active ingredient don't assume they are equivalent. There are differences in the approved modes and frequency of administration, dosage, and shelf life … and significant differences in value for money (particularly for hobbyists).

Swarms may carry pests and pathogens. Mites are easily managed, but the notifiable foulbrood diseases are not. It is important to consider the risks, based upon swarm behaviour and the known distribution of disease locally. Is it a risk worth taking, and if not, what should be done with the swarm?

The age-related division of labour. Critical to colony survival and performance, disrupted every time you perform a split, but amazingly flexible so most splits (eventually?) are successful. What is it, why does it occur, and what happens when it is disturbed?

The Demaree method offers the tempting prospect of maximising your honey production and preventing swarming. Achieving both these things needs appropriate conditions, a strong colony, timely colony checks, and lots of lifting.

Colony temperament is determined by their genetics, the amount you disturb them, and the environment. You must select the first of these when rearing queens. To do that well you need to minimise the second, and understand the third. This post discusses all three, and the role of pollen availability.

Large, larger, largest. Some comparisons of honey bee egg sizes relevant to queen rearing. All other things being equal, the largest eggs are not laid in queen cups.

Recent studies show that queens can lay larger eggs under certain environmental conditions. This provides a fascinating insight into honey bee biology, and provides new opportunities to rear bigger, better bees … and queens.

I'm prepared for a bumper honey crop in 2026. It might not happen, but my supers are ready 'just in case'. Thoughts on tidying and storing your precious drawn comb, inexpensive protection from wax moth damage, and some musings on whether the weather can be used to predict the onset of swarming.