1 Good queen

Queens selected by the beekeeper must be reared under optimal conditions in a hive in excellent condition, equipped with suitable frames. The inner cover allows the placement of a feeder, which should be cleaned regularly to prevent mould growth. The honey super is separated from the brood chamber by a queen excluder. The beekeeper ensures that high-quality queens are mated with numerous drones from high-performing lineages. Selecting a valuable queen is pointless if she is fertilised by drones from problematic colonies. Likewise, a poorly mated queen—for example under unfavourable weather conditions or late in the season when drones are scarce—will not perform satisfactorily. The queen must be in perfect health, in particular free from viral or fungal contamination. Her physical integrity is also important. Marking must not glue wings, eyes or antennae. During handling, care should be taken not to tear off a leg, so as not to compromise the work of this egg-laying “machine”.

2 Good genealogy

The choice of a bee race well adapted to the local environment is crucial. A Mediterranean bee will struggle to cope with the rigours of a continental climate, and conversely a cold-adapted bee may not tolerate intense summer heat. The race must meet the beekeeper’s expectations, for example in terms of early brood development, gentleness, cleanliness, frame holding, etc. The selected race should be able to withstand common problems, such as mycoses. The beekeeper selects a race whose honey production meets commercial requirements and whose moderate winter consumption allows the colony to avoid starvation. The race also determines specific husbandry characteristics: brood abundance, swarming tendency, acceptance of a new queen, behaviour during colony merging, gentleness, etc.

NB: An “average” queen in a strong colony outperforms an “excellent” queen in a weak colony.

3 Varroa control

The beekeeper selects lineages with well-developed natural resistance to varroa. Varroa treatments are applied at the optimal time in relation to the mite’s population dynamics, taking into account expected side effects and the accumulation of residues in wax. The aim of treatment is not to eradicate the parasite, as overly aggressive treatment endangers the colony and selects for resistance. Rather, the objective is to maintain the parasite load at a sufficiently low level to allow satisfactory colony development over the years.

4 Swarm control

Anticipating the population growth of a given colony is the key to swarm control. Egg-laying is far from constant and varies according to multiple factors, including temperature, weather, pollen and nectar flows, and the balance between different bee developmental stages (nurse bees versus foragers) … The beekeeper adjusts the available volume for brood rearing or storage as needed by introducing foundation or drawn combs depending on the season. The honey super is added at the spring nectar flow, bearing in mind that this additional volume requires substantial calories and thus increased honey consumption to maintain an adequate temperature. Population size can be artificially controlled by removing capped brood frames containing many bees close to emergence. The volume occupied by bees after emergence is three times greater than the volume of capped cells containing pupae. Reducing population size before a strong nectar flow helps limit the risk of swarming.

5 Choice of environment

The beekeeper acquires equipment in perfect working condition. Tools are well maintained, clean and functional. Nothing is more frustrating than opening a hive, identifying a problem and being unable to solve it due to missing specific equipment (e.g. marking a queen without paint of the year’s colour). The quality of the wax used determines the colony’s ability to build newly introduced frames and the speed of honey storage in the supers. Poor-quality waxes containing residues or diluted with paraffin are less attractive to bees. High-quality “organic” wax from cappings or one’s own production improves comb building and reserve storage. The location of an apiary relative to neighbouring apiaries is important with regard to bee drifting and disease transmission (varroa, infectious or fungal diseases …). The apiary’s position in relation to surrounding agricultural crops determines exposure to pesticides. Close cooperation with neighbouring farmers and treatments carried out outside flowering periods reduce impacts on colonies. The apiary should ideally be located on dry ground, well exposed to the sun in winter, partially shaded in summer, and sheltered from wind. Finally, the beekeeper has functional “extraordinary” equipment: a vehicle adapted to more or less accessible sites, a trailer for moving a colony after division, possibly for migratory beekeeping, lifting equipment, straps, a winch, etc.

6 Sufficient space at the right time

The volume occupied by bees is relatively easy to estimate: visual inspection of frames shows whether they are well covered or not. For population estimates, 1 dm² well covered corresponds to approximately 130 individuals. A densely covered Dadant frame contains about 1,400 individuals per side. The volume occupied by brood is more difficult to assess, as it is usually located in the centre of the frame and covers a variable area. It is often described in terms of one or several “handfuls” per frame. The pollen volume is difficult to quantify, as it is often arranged in a crown shape around and above the brood. Honey reserves are unevenly distributed across several frames around the brood. Only the outer frames are usually reserved exclusively for food storage, more or less capped. The art consists in providing the colony with sufficient space … at the right time.

7 Adequate food at the right time

After winter, the hive is lifted to estimate the reserves available to the colony as activity resumes. If reserves are deemed insufficient, fondant is provided as close as possible to the top of the frames where the cluster is located, to prevent bees from dying chilled by cold. In spring, 50% syrup should be given cautiously, as it strongly stimulates the queen’s egg-laying and may promote May swarming. In summer, emergency feeding with 50% syrup is carried out after removing the honey super to avoid sugar storage in honey. After the end of harvest, obligatory feeding is done with 75% syrup to facilitate the workers’ processing work. From the end of September onwards, feeding should be avoided to spare future winter bees.

8 Only healthy colonies

Avoiding stress to the colony is the primary rule during hive inspections. A little smoke is often useful, but not always necessary. Wearing a veil is recommended, gloves are not. Gentle handling of frames promotes colony gentleness, especially if timing is appropriate: no wind or storms, foragers out, sufficient food reserves, enough time … It is pointless to insist on managing a colony that chronically presents development problems. Not only does this overload the beekeeper’s work without return on investment, but such a colony may pose risks through robbing and disease transmission. A weak colony should be united with another (strong) colony, bearing in mind that merging two weak colonies always results in one weak colony. Attempting to save a drone-laying colony at all costs by repeatedly introducing queens that will not be accepted makes little sense. It is better to disperse this colony and focus on healthy ones. Winter preparation takes place in autumn. Keeping a weak colony with few reserves and an ageing queen is pointless—it will not survive winter. It is far more sensible to unite it with a strong hive. The beekeeper remains proactive throughout the seasons regarding food reserves, queen vigour, treatments based on natural varroa fall, and available space.

9 Winter preparation

Preparations before winter are essential. Food reserves are weighed or, better yet, honey frames are counted and weighed. A 12-frame hive should have approximately 15 kg of honey reserves to survive winter without risk of starvation in February when egg-laying resumes. Pollen reserves are also important to assess; a surface equivalent to two frames seems appropriate. Protection against cold allows the cluster to move gradually towards food reserves. The inner cover is insulated with expanded polystyrene. Protection against moisture is indispensable, as the temperature at the centre of the cluster favours condensation, which tends to form at the back of the hive. Good ventilation prevents this problem. Unoccupied frames are removed in favour of one (or two) dummy boards to reduce the volume to be heated. Protection against pests requires reducing entrance openings and clearing any fallen branches or leaves in autumn. Any measure that helps care for the bees that care for winter bees is welcome.

10 Food safety

Honey must not come into contact with potentially dangerous germs: from handling frames when adding supers to jarring (sterile jars), particular care is required. Cleanliness of the honey house and extraction tools is paramount. Moisture is the number one enemy of highly hygroscopic honey, which should never be stored uncovered. After checking moisture content (< 18.5%) and once packaged, honey is stored cool, protected from humidity and light. It will crystallise progressively depending on its composition.

What else?

Continuous (in)training improves knowledge. Remember that while Google can be helpful, forum publications do not all come from recognised specialists. Be able to sacrifice a colony to save an entire apiary. Be able to deal with situations involving vital prognosis.

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See also:

• Apiary Management: Operational Concept
• Beekeeping in Harmony with the Bee
• Best Practices in Beekeeping (Meta-Study)
• Swarm Prevention
• Late-Winter Feeding: Is It a Good Idea?
• Renewing Colonies and Queens