October Beekeeping

It is the beginning of autumn now with shorter days and colder nights although the end of summer can sometimes linger.

 

Queen bees will have reduced their egg laying now and may have stopped completely for winter but it is not unusual for them to continue if conditions provide an income of nectar.

The population of remaining adult drones will decrease and those that remain at the end of the season will be ejected by the workers before winter.

 

Adult drones may be seen at the entrance being ejected by the workers.

It is always heart warming to see pollen being brought back home.

There is also a lot that can be learned from identifying the pollen loads to determine what flowers the bees are working in your area - local knowledge is important.

 

 

Late summer flowering plants such as Asters, Sedum, Rudbeckia and Verbena for examples are always good nectar sources for all insects.

Any planting for bees is best done in drifts if possible, as in nature, a few plants may not provide the attractant needed for the bees to find them.

 

The main summer flowers are now over but Ivy will continue to flower which can provide large quantities of nectar and pollen.

Experienced beekeepers will always have an eye on the forecasts and the forage to anticipate possible honey flows and the consequent need for space in the hive. Extra Shallow boxes can often be filled when standard supers are not so try Extra Shallow for snatch cropping and honeycomb production. This can be great way to taste those honeys that only have small nectar flows. 

 

N.B. Remember that every year is different, every locality is different and no two colonies are the same so every hive should be treated as an individual and managed accordingly.