Inspection Day

I left my hives alone for most of the summer, noting that they both were busy and humming. In September, I lifted the back of each hive. Both were almost too heavy for me to move, signaling they were full of bees and probably some honey. But what a difference a couple of months makes.

Today I went out to winterize the hives. With Atlanta's moderate climate, there isn't a lot of winterizing to do, unlike what beekeepers are tasked with in colder climates. Generally, I remove the extra supers from the top of a hive (those are usually empty), make sure the hive beetle trap is in place and doing its job, and insert an entrance reducer to cut down on the cold air flow.

Hive #2, which had not been named yet due to my superstition about waiting to be sure it's surviving, has been ravaged by wax moths. I won't document that in photos since I've shown it before, but suffice it to say that wax moths wreak a special, messy kind of havoc in a hive. There was a small cluster of honeybees left inside, but there is nothing I can do to save them. I took off two of the supers and then closed up the hive. On a warm winter day, I'll probably go out and dismantle everything. Most of that equipment will be unusable again.

On to Gloriana's Gold, which has a much happier, healthier story. The top super was empty, but clean. When I removed it, the super below began to hum and bees began moving up toward me to see what was going on. Good thing I'd checked the smoker and added some fuel before I started working on this one! This hive isn't exactly docile, but the smoke and the mid-50's temperature kept them quieter than usual.

The GG girls have been busy! They sealed off the hive beetle trap with propolis, so I removed it and made a mental note to order some more — as soon as they come, I'll install a fresh one. The bees have also made their own entrance reducer (see photo above) out of light-colored propolis! This is something I've never seen before, but have learned is common. Some bees just like to do their own winterizing.

Finally, the best news of all...Gloriana's Gold is chock full of honey in two supers. I'm debating whether to take out a few frames before the weather turns too cold for opening the hive. I may just leave it all in there for the girls to feed on until spring.

And yes, I will probably rebuild in the spring. After clearing out part of the side yard, there is more room and a level place for some hives, so I'm thinking of starting 2-3 more.