Fall Flow

The actions you take now will directly affect your hives next spring

I'm constantly amazed at bees' resilience as we go through the seasons. Coming out of an extended dearth and the responsibilities of feeding my hives through the horrible heat wave, I now find that my hives are exploding with bees, nectar, and pollen. Some are even in need of splitting. How is this happening when just 30 days ago, we were feeding 2x a week just to keep the hives alive? It's simply what we refer to as the "fall flow," and its timing could not be better. We received about 12 inches of rain, which caused the fall plants, trees, grasses, and flowers to bloom, which woke the queens up and got them laying eggs again. This is important because the nectar and pollen created by the fall plants are used to feed the bees that will grow up and carry the hive through the winter months. Winter bees begin to be created around September and are provided a different combination of protein/carbs than spring/summer bees to increase their fat stores. These stores are essential because they allow the bee to produce the energy needed to shiver, making the heat necessary to keep the hive warm during the cold months. 

While the hives are busy getting ready for the winter, I am finishing up testing and treating for mites. I'm also busy making strong fall splits to take advantage of the opportunities my hives have given me. This is an excellent time for beekeepers to take advantage of their hives that want to swarm by utilizing the queen swarm cells as resources. Think of these queens as an insurance policy for a hive that might end up queenless after the drones are no longer around or our commercial bee companies no longer have mated queens available for purchase. You can keep these queen cells in a small nuc box with a couple frames of nurse bees, brood, and food with the assurance that you will have the ability to help a hive. Fall is a needed transition for our beekeeping season, and helping to manage your hives through this time will bring you success in the coming spring.