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Spring in the Beeyards

From our Spring 2006 Newsletter

As this newsletter is being prepared, we are starting to check all our colonies, raising new queens, and making splits to replace bees that we have lost over winter. (Queen raising pictures ...)

May is the best time in our area for making splits and checking hives. It usually is nice weather, fruit trees are in bloom and the bees are busy in the trees and on the dandelions and IT SMELLS WONDERFULL.

Our spring colony check is a very important part of the bee year. Weak colonies are made stronger by taking frames of brood from strong colonies & given to the weak ones. This also helps to prevent swarming which is sometimes caused by colonies being too big and crowded. Splits are new colonies made by taking 3 - 4 frames of brood, bees and a queen cell. We use splits to replace colonies lost over the winter and sometimes to re-queen weaker colonies.

The above picture below is a colony taken apart and if you look close I have added a yellow queen cell to it. The picture on the right is a typical bee yard of mine, with my old white truck backed into the yard. My smoker is lit and I am ready to inspect my hives for this spring. Most bee yards are in a very peacefull setting like this. This was in a wooded area on the side of a very large orchard in Romeo, Michigan.

A Year in the Beeyards - Pictorial