Every month there’s something to do in the apiary, whether that’s feeding, harvesting, or just preparing for the next season. What happens when depends on the year – early or late springs, warm or cold winters, wet or dry summers. Here’s a rough guide to what might be going on each month for a beekeeper and their bees.
January
Bees should be clustering together. Activity should be minimal – but bees don’t hibernate like many other animals. Everyone is wide awake in the hive! Sometimes on a warm, still, dry day, especially in the milder South-West UK, you’ll see bees taking flights to clean out dead bodies, carry out their ablutions (mind your washing…) or even get in a little early forage on snowdrops or gorse. The beekeeper is unlikely to be opening the hives at this time of year but is likely to be busy cleaning and repairing equipment for the spring.
Image to come – bees on snowdrops or gorse
February
Still very quiet but in the hive the queen is gearing up laying eggs as days lengthen. The beekeeper may be monitoring activity and weight of the hive by hefting – attempting to tilt the hive gently to see if it feels heavy. More foraging activity as early spring flowers like crocus and blackthorn start to peep out.
Image to come – bees on crocus or blackthorn
March
We usually see some warmer days and much more activity, especially with new foragers orientating themselves to the hives. This means they come out – usually on a warm still afternoon and fly backwards and forwards around and towards the hive, learning where their home sits in the landscape. The beekeeper may do a quick hive inspection when temperature is above 10°C – normally referred to as “shirt sleeves weather”. If stores seem low we could feed sugar syrup as commercial beekeepers do, but we aim to leave enough honey for the bees all year round.
Image – bees on spring flowers e.g. crocus or celandine
April
This is a time of rapid growth for bee colonies. The beekeeper normally begins weekly inspections to make sure there’s no sign of queen cells which indicate potential swarms. Big strong colonies may be split or a nucleus (small colony) made up in order to discourage swarming and create new colonies. We may start to add supers – smaller boxes of shallow frames which will make it more convenient to harvest honey. A super of honey can easily weigh 20kg!
Image – bees on hawthorn or dandelion
May
Lots of nectar producing flowers are out including dandelions (don’t use weedkiller!) and hawthorn as well as fruit blossom. . We continue swarm prevention measures and add more supers if everything is going well.
June
Peak honey production over the summer – we may make an early harvest of spring honey. We keep adding supers. and watching out for swarming behaviour.
July
More harvesting, supering and watching for swarm behaviour.
August
Nectar flow tends to slow down and we start planning for winter, with varroa treatments, creating a nucleus.
September
Wasps can be a problem at this time of year so we may reduce the hive entrances with entrance blocks or other measures. We may feed colonies and complete varroa treatments. Ivy starts to flower…
October
Continue feeding if necessary. Finish varroa treatments. Ensure hives are weatherproof for winter.
November
Bees start to cluster as temperatures drop. Heft hives to check food stores. Clean and store equipment for winter.
December
Bees remain clustered. Minimal work needed – just ensure hive entrances aren’t blocked by snow. Plan for next season. Winter varroa treatment when weather is cold enough.