Beekeeping plan for 2014-2015

I've been  lamenting the loss of my bees and looking back to see what I did wrong.  And I am also putting a plan together for next season.

Cleaning out dead bees

I went into the hive yesterday to dismantle it and clean it out.  I was so sad to see the number of dead bees.  I really think the moisture got to them. I never want to see this again so I will make every effort to not make the same mistake again.  I will use this time to clean out the hive, fix any foundation issues and get them ready for spring.  And I will begin to work on my plans for next season. But it's pretty sad to look out and not see my hive in place.

What I did wrong
The bees were ok until late December. So what happened?
- I didn't change out the mouse guard at the entrance of the hive.  I should have put back the wood entrance with only one small hole in use during the winter months. The mouse guard has holes across the entire entrance so it let in too much cold air.  The entrance reducer has a few sizes of openings and for winter, you'd use the smallest one.

Mouse Guard

Entrance reducer

- I have no other ventilation hole up at the top of the hive.  Many people recommending a 1-inch hole near the top so bees can go in and out as well as provide ventilation
- Was the top cover tipped back so that any moisture accumulation wouldn't drip on the bees?  I think this is what killed my bees!!
- Did I leave them enough food for the winter?  I don't think I did but I was feeding them with fondant so I didn't starve them.

New bees coming for 2014

First let me say that this is not a way to get cheap honey!  It becomes expensive when you lose your bees.

I have bought a 3 pound package of bees that I will put into one hive..that cost $100
I also bought a nuc which is 5 frames of bees, honey and brood for $150

I'll get both in late April or early May and I'll be back in business.  Both will have queens so I will be in a good position to just start over.  But needing to buy bees again this year was not part of my plan.

Wintering over bee hive plan for 2014-2015

After watching various video's and reading about this subject, I will try a different approach next winter.

• Leave more honey behind for the bees
• Continue to feed them
• Add a layer of insulation between the outside of the hive and the roofing paper. I have some thin roofing insulation that has bumps in it for airflow so I will staple that to the hive before I surround it with roofing paper.
• To the top of the hive, I will add a super that is empty.  Then I will pack it with cedar bedding that's been packed into a pillow.  That pillow will soak up any moisture in the hive.  After 3 weeks or so, replace the wet pillow with a dry one...just bring in the wet pillow to dry and reuse it next time.
• Then the top cover goes on
• Under the super, between the deep hive and the super, add a piece of screen so that the bees stay below.
• Make sure the entrance reducer is set to its smallest opening

A sad day indeed

My bees have all died.  As regular readers know, I checked the bees and added fondant on 12/19/13 and I saw and heard bees inside the hive.  At that time, I did clean a lot of bees that had died from the bottom of the hive, but that's expected.

Today I wanted to see how they were doing with the fondant and to give them more, if needed.  But no sign of any live bee and no humming at all from inside.

I think that, with the major cold weather we've had this season, it's just too much for them.  I need to figure out how to even better protect them next year.  I know that my bee instructor fixed up an insulated covering using trash bags and stuffing them with some insulating material and I may try that instead of the roofing paper next year.  It seems it would protect them better.

This spring I have two different bee packages ordered to replace these...and my intent is to add a new hive this year to expand my operation.  I'm sad that I must start all over but this, I understand, is common here with our cold winters.

I have ordered one Italian package of bees and the other one is Russian bees.  I would think that the Russian bees might do better in the cold but I'll need to research that and that may determine what I order in future years.