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Beekeeping Diary
This is a log of data and notes from each inspection during our first year of beekeeping. All entries are for the same single hive.
Temperment: Very Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Very Strong
Drone cells: No
Queen cells: No
Weather: Sunny, 70
Top super still full of capped honey – ridiculous number of SHB, way more than I’ve seen on prior inspections. One of the traps was propolised - we cleaned that off and added an additional trap to every box, placed diagonally across from the other existing trap. Brood looked excellent – eggs and capped worker brood. Tons of nectar and pollen stores. We added 2 sheets of formic to the main brood box, pulled the entrance reducer out, and added a robbing screen. We’ll pull whatever remains of the formic out in 14 days and do another mite count. The colony is really strong overall so if we can keep a handle on the pressure of SHB and varroa I’m hopeful they’ll be in good shape going into winter.
Temperment: Very Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Very Strong
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: No
Weather: Sunny, 80
Colony still drawing out some of the frames on the second super down. I’m leaving it for now because I think it’s keeping them from feeling cramped and I know other local keepers are experiencing swarms right now. I expected much of that box to have been emptied of the nectar because we aren't feeding sugar water, but the hive is still full of resources. If there's a dearth right now I wouldn't know it by looking in our hive. I really feel that they're better off getting the minerals and nutrients from wild nectar than being given sugar water which is why I've held out from doing it. We saw different aged larvae, capped brood, and eggs in cells. Yesterday we watched the guard bees launch onto a hornet (pretty sure it was a european hornet) and take it down to the ground. We switched the entrance to the smaller one so they’ve got less open space to defend. Robbing is clearly in full force right now. We did our follow up varroa count today after the 4 rounds of OA treatment. At the last count we had 15; did OA 4x; now our count is at 25. (?!?!) I reached out to some senior keepers and have been guided towards formic, another organic option (formic acid is what stings you when an ant bites you). In doing some research and reading I believe there’s 2 possibilities as to why this count is higher than it was before treating. Possibility 1: could we have shaken already dead and detached varroa into the cup? Possibility 2: Our ridiculously strong hive is robbing out weak hives and picking up all of their varroa in the process. I’m encouraged that our bees are still rearing young, hauling in nectar and pollen, and successfully defending themselves. I believe the best we can do for them is to continue to try to relieve them of the varroa load as much as possible. It reminds me so much of bot flies on horses and ticks on dogs - all have the capacity to truly wreck their host. As stewards of these creatures it’s our duty to help relieve them of these disease-carrying burdens as much as possible.
We gave the 4th and final Oxalic Acid vapor Varroa Mite treatment this morning. I wanted to stick to exactly every 7 days but the bees were bearding so much yesterday that it didn’t make sense to treat when so many of them were clearly not in the hive. We did it first thing this morning instead. In the coming days I’m going to put a bee escape on to pull 2 of the extra honey supers and we’ll do a mite count then. I toiled a ton over whether or not to leave extra honey on or pull it. My first-year beekeeper mind really wanted to “leave all the honey for the bees!” but in learning about bee behavior and in the experiences of other keepers I have begun to understand that leaving on an excess number of boxes and frames can do more harm than good. The bees need to be tucked in tight to stay warm and all the honey they will consume must also reach that bee warmth, otherwise it crystalizes and they can’t use it. It’s just space for cold air to get trapped and come Spring they’ll turn the nice clean honey super into a brood box, leaving the original brood boxes down below which can lead to pests and other junk that would be harmful to the colony. Yes bees can survive on their own in a tree. A man-made hive is not a tree and that’s where the art of beekeeping comes in. The way I see it is that we’re in a contract of reciprocation with the colony. We give them an endless supply of abundant blooms, care and attention as they need it, help get their mites off, and they’ll give us extra honey they won’t even use in return. There is no other reciprocal relationship on earth as dynamic as the one between human and honey bee.
Temperment: Very Calm
Eggs seen: No
Population: Very Strong
Drone cells: No
Queen cells: No
Weather: Overcast, calm, 74
Colony is thriving and robust. Bees are extremely calm and easy to work with. In watching the hive entrance this week I noticed a lot of bees dusted in a green pollen which I discovered was from the buckwheat they’ve been all over. We harvested seed from the spring crop in the front yard and spread those seeds behind the quail run. It’s been absolutely bustling the last few days with all number of insects, including the honey bees. Hive inspection looked really nice. The frame we harvested honey off of last week has been cleaned up and they’re building new comb. In the medium super we swapped to the middle last week they’re drawing out the remaining sides of the frames they’d previously ignored and are capping what nectar they do have in there. They aren’t producing as much brood but they are very active in collecting both nectar and pollen. I’m being told we need to consolidate the hive down into fewer boxes but the population is so dense and there are so many full frames that I just can’t see how it’s possible right now. I’d rather they go into winter with their own abundance than be forced to survive on sugar syrup. We did the 3rd OA varroa treatment, again the bees seemed unbothered by it. We have 1 more treatment to go and then we’ll test to see where the numbers are at.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Very Strong
Drone cells: No
Queen cells: No
Weather: Sunny, 85
Second OA treatment today. I’m getting mixed info (as is the way in beekeeping...) on treatment timing. I’ve heard either 4 days, 5, days, or 7 days. Today is day 6 and we treated. This was a bit out of necessity (yesterday and tomorrow were/are not possible treatment days for us humans). Hopefully the 1 day difference won’t be an issue. When I really sit down and think about it – it’s not like all varroa in the hive are on the exact same cycle schedule anyway. Varroa can get picked up at any time and integrated into the hive on different schedules. I know the thought process with OA and timing is to break the life cycle of the varroa and slow the progression, but there’s no single life cycle happening for varroa in the hive. Am I over thinking this? Maybe. The point is that 1 day past 5 and short of 7 seems to me like it would still be effective. Latest research from University of Florida shows that 7 day intervals seems to be most effective at 4 grams of OA per brood box (‘brood box’ being an undefined size). At any rate, despite the varroa our hive is active and strong and seems to be doing well overall. We found some eggs, good brood patterns, lots of resources (pollen and honey) and overall demeanor was pleasant. No evidence at all of queen cells or cups.
I’ve been told we have too much honey and need to consolidate (not a problem I expected in our first year!). We pulled one frame of honey to try out low tech harvesting methods. We attempted to score the wax capping to let it escape the cells via gravity and heat, but it didn't work. I was hoping to preserve the comb but I just don't think it's possible without a centrifuge. We scraped everything off the frame and into a seive and it's straining into a glass bowl where we'll then transfer it to a bottle. This is a fine method for now, at this small of scale. I'll have to figure out a better plan for next year.
My next step is to figure out how we can reduce our hive into less boxes. We’ve got a deep and 3 supers and I’m getting the impression from senior keepers it’s too much space going into winter. For now I’ve pulled the top super down closer to the top brood box to give them some more space to work (it's not fully drawn out yet). I believe reducing the hive will make more sense to me when the population begins to naturally decrease as the bees themselves get organized for winter. For now there’s just too many bees to corral into two boxes. A swarm this late in the season could be devastating. Last Thursday we had a bees outside of the hive buzzing all around the hive an into the sky. I was concerned they were swarming or absconding. It seems after this inspection that it was a huge hatch and orientation flights. While we were inspecting today we saw a few bees poking through the cappings and working on emerging out. Absolutely incredible to see. We’ll do another OA treatment on Friday (@ 5 days) and inspect again next weekend.
First Oxalic Acid vapor treatment for the Varroa mites. J kindly brought equipment and medication and showed us how it’s done. It was extremely simple and the bees were entirely unphased by it. I’m impressed with this treatment and with a proper respirator I had no concerns about handling it. The Hopguard was a drippy mess and hard to manage in rubber gloves whereas this was very simple and easy to handle. Because we’ve got brood we need to do 3 additional treatments 4-5 days apart to hit the varroa mites as they come out with emerging brood. Oxalic doesn’t penetrate through the cappings. For the next treatment I’m renting a vaporizer from our local bee club’s tool sharing library.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: No
Population: Strong
Drone cells: No
Queen cells: Yes; empty cups
Weather: Sunny, 88
Hive population is robust. Brood is primarily all in the deep box with the medium box where brood was earlier in the season being filled with pollen and some nectar. Brood pattern is good. A lot of capped worker brood. Not much in the way of drone. Some empty queen cups. Varroa count was 15 for 300 bees so we are eager to treat again. I was warned about varroa counts exploding this time of year and they sure did. I thought having treated earlier in the season (June) and then being followed by a brood break (via swarm) would have helped but if it did, I can't tell. The colony still seems strong despite the pressures of the season. We’ll do 4 consecutive oxalic acid treatments 5 days apart to try to get a handle on these varroa. It’s one thing to hear about how bad varroa is for honey bees but totally different to actually see it for yourself. During our inspection I actually saw a worker bee with two on her abdomen. A friend is coming to help is with the first vaporizer treatment tomorrow to show us how it’s done and then we’ll do the others ourselves. I am hoping to rent a vaporizer from our bee club, but if not I’ll have some tough decisions to make on how much I’m willing to spend on all of this equipment. The cost of bee keeping is no joke. Invasive parasites have made it more of a mite management hobby than a bee keeping one.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: No, but lots of very young larvae
Population: Strong
Drone cells: No
Queen cells: Yes; empty cups
Weather: Sunny, 88
This is our first inspection since discovering the hive was queenless. Last week I saw orientation flights, which made me certain new brood was hatching, and knew it was safe to inspect. We found a lot of capped honey still present in the top 2 supers; they are still drawing out some frames in the very top box. Saw larvae of all ages, some of which was so tiny it could not have been more than a day old. Lots of capped worker brood with a great brood pattern. Not much drone brood. One empty queen cup. A generous amount of nectar and pollen. We even saw recently deposited pollen sitting in the cells awaiting processing. The colony was strong and in good spirits. SHB traps were still going strong and we did not see any wandering around. Everything was tidy and well-managed. We feel confident that all is right with the queen and the colony for today. We’ll do a varroa count next week and see where we stand there.
Over the last couple of weeks I’ve seen a lot of evidence that points towards the hive being queen right. Last week I saw what looked like a large amount of bees doing orientation flights and while sitting on our ‘bee observation bench’ with binoculars pointed at the entrance I counted 1 bee per second carrying packed pollen baskets into the hive. All different colors of pollen – orange, white, yellow – which I was really pleased about. I know we’re meant to be in a dearth this time of year – or heading into it, but I do believe the colony is still growing just from the amount of increased activity throughout the day. I am seeing a good balance of workers and drones. Right before the last swarm I remember noting that there were a lot of drones present in the hive. Far more than I’d seen before. Now, at least from the outside, it seems like a stable population of both the workers and drones. I am beyond eager to get into the hive. At this point I feel like we’ve given them enough time to sort out the queen situation and now it’s time to return and see where the colony needs our assistance. I’m eager to see how the small hive beetle traps are managing, what the brood is doing, how the top box has been developed, and much more. It’s going to be a big inspection and likely a hot one! At some point soon I also need to do a second Varroa check as the swarm happened very shortly after using the HopGuard and because of the decreased population did not want to re-test and stress them out even further. The swarm gave us a brood break which is an IPM method of Varroa management and for that I am grateful – still with getting into August now I am eager to know where our mite count stands. All of July I kept saying that it just felt like August to me – and now that we’re in August it feels like September. I really think we’re a month ahead in terms of climate this year. I have no idea what that means for plants or the hive but my intuition is telling me to observe accordingly. It’s not enough to blindly follow a calendar anymore. Saturday is our planned inspection day and I know I'll have a lot to record here in the next entry.
As to not disrupt the colony while they’re working on bringing a new queen up to speed we’re not inspecting for the next couple of weeks. I still like to spend some time watching the hive entrance though, just to see what workers are up to and how they’re coping with the heat of summer. I could see some workers hanging from the front and fanning their wings at high speed; I assume this is an effort to keep the hive at a comfortable temperature and circulate air. More workers were doing what looked like a ‘cleaning dance’ just above and in front of the entrance. Meanwhile numerous foragers were coming and going. I saw around 15-20 bees a minute bringing in loads of packed pollen baskets (corbicula) of orange, yellow and white pollen. We’ve had the good fortune of thunderstorms the last week so perhaps that’s helping stave off the impending dearth. With that much pollen heading in I assume the bees are preparing for feeding brood – a hopeful sign we’re queen right. I’m eager to get back into the hive, but for now I will just watch with awe and anticipation.
Bees were bearding like crazy yesterday afternoon through the evening and again around noon today. We put the entrance reducer back to the larger opening and added a popsicle stick between the inner cover and lid to provide some ventilation. They seem much more comfortable now, moving in and out of the hive easily and not bearding or acting like there's a traffic jam.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: No
Population: Good
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Yes, see notes
Weather: Sunny, 88
Top box is still being drawn out but what they have drawn they’re filling with nectar and just starting to cap. The frames aren't uniformly drawn, but because there are resources in the cells I am hesitant to consolidate the hive down. They do not have much extra space in the lower boxes and so I elected to leave it in, even though the population is not as epic since the swarm. Honey super below the top box is still filled 100% with capped honey. We saw capped worker and drone brood and a lot of pollen and nectar in the 2 brood boxes; no larva or eggs. We found numerous uncapped queen cells. Given that 8 days ago on our last inspection we didn’t see queen cells like we saw today I believe they’re in the process of rearing a new/emergency queen. We saw one queen cell with a hole in the side of it which makes me confused that another queen is around, but given the number of days since our last inspection where we didn’t see queen cells like we saw today, I do not know how that would be possible. The cells were in various locations, both along the bottom of the frames and in the center so I am confident these are emergency cells. I believe they should be heading toward capping those cells and having a queen emerge in the next week or so. In theory by next weekend a queen should hatch, then she’ll need a couple of weeks to orient and head off on her maiden flight. The whole process is so delicate that we won’t go back into the hive until early August to ensure she gets established. There's potential for a secondary swarm, I suppose, but at this point I think they need to be left to their own intelligence to get a queen established for the survival of the colony. The SHB traps are all fine and doing their job so I have no reason to be concerned there. We reduced the entrance today down to the smallest so the bees have less to guard from robbing. The population is lower and the resources within the hive higher so as we head into the dearth this makes the most sense to me. I did not test for varroa again because we’re getting a brood break right now (brood break is an IPM method for varroa). This is a delicate and tricky time for our hive. If a queen is successfully mated I'll feel better about the prospect of getting through our first winter.
Queen rearing timeline:
- Day 1, 2, 3 = egg
- Day 4 through 9 = larva
- Day 10 through 15 = pupa
- Day 16 = adult/emergence
Workers go to day 21 and drones to day 24
Beekeeping is extremely challenging; there are so many variables - colony lifecycle, swarms, dearth, varroa, SHB, season preparations, early blooms, late frosts. I spent three years studying beekeeping through Penn State, Cornell, and a local class before I got into it and even with the fundamentals in mind it's still extremely challenging. I have a mentor, beekeeping friends, and attend two different beekeeping club meetings per month. It's by far the most challening endeavor I've taken on so far. And somehow the most addicting.
Watching the hive entrance on our 'bee observation bench' with a pair binoculars is one of my favorite past-times these days. This morning I was able to see packed pollen baskets (corbicula) on foragers returning to the hive. Orange and yellow pollen hanging like saddle bags from their strong little legs. While harvesting beans and cucumbers from the garden this morning I saw dozens of bees on the radishes we let go to seed. The gone-to-seed carrot had numerous native bees but not the honey bees. The borage and buckwheat is a favorite among many of them, but the Bumble Bees prefer the lavendar more than the others. I see this throughout the garden, each with their own unique preferences.
I'm encouraged about the state of our hive and likelihood of being "queen right" with all of the pollen I see going in and the bees busy doing what they do when all is well - foraging, cleaning, fanning, and bringing in resources. I've heard that if you can count at least 10 bees going in per minute with loaded pollen baskets it's a good sign you've got a laying queen.
Temperment: Calm overall but more annoyed in bottom/deep brood box after awhile
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Still strong
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Possibly, see notes
Weather: Sunny, hazy, 84
Top box is still being drawn out. Next super down is still full of capped honey. Third super had eggs, larvae of all sizes, capped worker brood, capped drone brood, nectar, pollen. We saw 1 cell that looked like maybe a swarm cell but the bee was hanging out of it dead with its proboscis sticking out (weird). We looked everywhere for queen cups or cells and saw none. There were less drones wandering around on this inspection than the last one. Given that we watched a cloud of bees vanish into the sky yesterday I thought we’d have less bees in the hive than we did, but it still looks strong. I can’t make sense of not finding really any queen cells. Bees were bringing in pollen as we were inspecting. We removed the hopguard strips. SHB traps looked about the same as last inspection and we did not see any others wandering around.
Our thinking at this point is possibly a supercedure situation. Doesn't explain the lack of supercedure cells, but it's the best explanation I can come up with at the moment. We know there's eggs and the hive population is still really strong. We'll continue to monitor hive strength and do another varroa check in about 2 weeks.
We saw them swarm as we looked out the kitchen window - no luck finding where they landed. This city has a truly incredible number of huge trees so wherever they went I'm sure they're quite pleased with themselves. Or if someone finds them they're going to get an outstanding queen and a nice recently-varroa-treated colony.
Temperment: Calm - shorter patience level
Eggs seen: No
Population: Robust
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Yes but open with pupae exposed
Weather: Sunny, humid, 82
After 4 days straight of non-stop rain we were able to do an inspection. Third medium super is still about the same as it was a week ago; some comb started but not any progress from the last inspection. Second medium super is still full of capped honey and the first medium box has some pollen, lots of honey, some drone brood, and a queen cell with the front open and the pupae exposed (still white) – need to research this more to better understand what’s happening there. Bottom box had really beautiful brood pattern and different aged larvae; did not see any eggs, however. Since there’s small-sized larvae I know the queen has been around in the last few days. This is reassuring after both the varroa treatment and biblical rains. SHB traps still going strong on the collecting. We did not see any beetles wandering around; we did see a few earwings under the inner cover when we first opened the hive but they ran outside the box. We have another week to go on the HopGuard; still trying to decide if I should do a consecutive treatment or wait a couple of weeks and re-test them. The HopGuard documentation says the efficacy is better with consecutive treatments – so that’s something worth considering. It will also depend on the weather temps – over 90 and I’m hesitant to do it without a screened bottom board. Something about the HopGuard that’s worth noting is that the area directly beneath the strips is completely devoid of comb with just the plastic frame base that’s left. I’m curious about why or how that happened and if it's normal; I might reach out to BetaTec for clarification.
Approximately 300 dead bees under hive this morning (following Hopguard 3 tx yesterday afternoon); Normal activity at entrance otherwise; lots of foragers in garden. Texted CF for guidance and they suggested this could be normal; older bees sometimes respond this way to treatments. Will monitor closely and re-inspect earlier than planned if needed.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Robust
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Didn't see
Weather: Sunny, light breeze, 82; still hazy/smoky in the distance
The bees are starting to build comb in new super. 2nd super remains full of capped honey. Different aged brood including eggs, nectar, pollen in 2 bottom boxes. SHB traps had 6-8 beetles in each; did not see any live beetles wandering. Applied Hopguard 3 @ 2 strips per brood chamber (total 4 strips). Was relatively simple to apply, though messy, and cumbersome with PPE. Bees did not seem irritated by initial application. Will monitor and remove in 14 days; recheck mite count 2 weeks later and potentially reapply PRN. I decided to go ahead and treat at a 4 mite count because of the lower efficacy rate of Hopguard, and at the guidance of a senior keeper. This is a really strong hive with lots of bees which means there are going to be lots of mites as the season progresses. I want to stay on top of keeping them free of mites and viruses and giving them the best chance for health moving into winter. I'd love to be able to split this hive next Spring as the bees have an exceptionally delightful temperament and seem to be a very proficient colony.
Varroa tx: Hopguard 3
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Very robust
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Didn't see
Weather: Sunny, calm, 75; hazy/smoky from canadian wildfires
Lots and lots of bees; saw brood of all ages, including eggs. Good brood pattern, mix of capped and uncapped. The second medium super we added on May 18 was full of capped honey – all frames full; added an additional super. SHB traps each had 4-5 beetles in them. We killed a couple of live beetles while working. Traps still looked useful so did not swap out. Did not add sugar water because we don’t have enough empty boxes for the top method and I am concerned about robbing with an entrance feeder. Bees are holding their own right now - will continue to monitor. Weather was nice but is very hazy (code orange I believe) from Canadian wildfires. Bees frequenting clover, buckwheat this week.
Varroa check: 4 mites on 300 bees
Varroa tx: none - below threshold; will recheck again in 4 weeks
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Robust
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Didn't see
Weather: Sunny, calm, 79
Lots of bees on second md super – still drawing out comb on all frames. First md super full of brood – eggs, larvae, capped drone brood seen. Did not inspect every frame. SHB trap had 1 beetle in it. Deep box SHB trap had 4 beetles in it (dead). Lots of capped honey seen in deep box; did not inspect frames as all seemed well. Am considering giving sugar water to help draw out second md box faster now that trees are done blooming. Have seen lots of honey bees on clover and buckwheat over the last couple of days. Bees calm and in what seems like cheerful spirits.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Robust
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Didn't see
Weather: Sunny, calm, 79
Lots of bees and brood in deep box; some covered; some hatched; pollen and nectar throughout. 1st super lots of eggs and larvae – none capped. 2nd super had bees and some wax but not drawn yet. Saw SHB on inner cover and 1 in one trap and 2-3 in the other. Will order varroa tx for checking in early June.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Robust
Drone cells: Didn't see
Queen cells: Didn't see
Weather: Overcast, calm, 66
Lots of bees and brood in deep box. 1st medium super drawn out with loads of eggs on 2nd frame in. Added additional medium super. Added 1 large SHB trap in drawn boxes (corn oil and splash of peach vinegar as attractant). Sugar water neglected and funky; removed and did not replace. Bees in excellent spirits. Will monitor sugar water needs this week. Vented telescoping lid as "R" suggested.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Growing
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Didn't see
Weather: Sunny, calm, 80
2/3 of sugar jar consumed; added new jar. Bottom box almost full of brood; a few frames drawn but not filled. Super box has wax and some comb drawn. Cleaned wax from frame tops and sides; corrected frame spacing issue on bottom box.
Added 1 qt sugar water (2 cups sugar + 2 cups water) over inner cover; 2 md supers boxes over top.
Temperment: Calm
Eggs seen: Yes
Population: Growing
Drone cells: Yes
Queen cells: Yes, but empty
Weather: Sunny, calm, 72
Flipped entrance to bigger one (lots of entrance congestion). Will start feeding 1:1 again to help aid in the increase of population. Will inspect again in 1 week.
Nuc arrival - 5 frames deep box with overwintered queen. We added a medium super. Brood strong - eggs seen and some drone brood as well.