The first winter is over. The blog was forgotten but the bees were not. For the winter I placed an empty super with a few small sugar cakes inside. I wrapped the hive in black plastic to keep out the wind and provide some solar heat during the days. It seems to have been helpful except the reduced ventilation may have caused nosema. I am getting some medication for them so they can get to feeling better.
For Spring time, I removed the wrap and placed sugar syrup in the empty super. It seems to prevent freezing when the syrup is inside the hive. It has definitely been cold enough this week. The blizzard winds and feet of snow were short lived. Fortunately, I was able to shuffle around some frames to put their leftover stores closer to their cluster. While I was shuffling the frames around, Doris made an appearance to let me know she was in good spirits. There were fresh eggs in the frame I found her on.
Today, since it was sunny and warm, I thought I would stroll by to see how they made it through the blizzard. I didn't account for the winds and clouds coming in. I saw no bees outside so I decided to stick my head in and say hi. The second I lifted the lid, I was effectively bounced from the club with the precision of an Apache attack helicopter. She got me right in the jugular. I will not forget again, that bees like to be left alone when the weather is changing.
I will continue to feed the syrup to Doris' colony for a few weeks in order to administer the medication for nosema. Once we get the new colony, they will get all the same attention Doris did last season in order to get the new queen off to a good start. Doris made it through the first winter and her second spring is looking very optimistic. I will leave her alone mostly to forage and make honey all summer.
The new colony we ordered is of the Carniolan line. Hopefully they will be more tolerant of my terrible timing. They are delayed a few weeks because of an abnormally wet season in Washington. Their colonies are not increasing at the rate they should be. Last year we received Doris on April 24th. This year, the new bees should be closer to the first week of may. Hopefully they arrive before May begins so they can get off to a good start.
Right now, Doris' cluster is roughly the size of a large cantaloupe. She is laying eggs and has plenty of comb to get the spring brood started. This colony will be back to normal size in to time. Hopefully May and June will be much more mild this year than it was the last. I will try to get more pictures for the next post. We all love the pics.
