Prepare the super as soon as dandelion and fruit trees begin to flower. Add it once the colony is strong, the nectar flow is genuinely under way, and the bees are beginning to run out of space. For straightforward colony management, the super is added with a queen excluder, before the brood box becomes blocked with nectar.
What to do
- From dandelion and fruit tree flowering, prepare the equipment: super, super frames, and queen excluder.
- Observe the colony, not just the calendar: a weak colony will not make good use of a super added too early.
- Check that the brood box is well occupied by bees and that the brood is developing normally.
- Watch for signs of insufficient space: large numbers of bees in the top of the brood box, regular nectar intake, irregular comb on frame lugs or under the crown board.
- Place the queen excluder between the brood box and the super.
- Add a ready-to-use super, ideally with frames already drawn out or correctly fitted with foundation.
- Check again a few days later: if the bees have moved up and begun storing, the timing was right.
If things do not go as expected
If the super remains empty, the colony was probably not yet strong enough or the nectar flow has not really started. Do not add further supers: wait until incoming nectar becomes regular. Conversely, if bees are building on frame lugs or under the crown board, or if the brood box fills quickly with nectar, this is often a sign that more space is needed without delay.
What to avoid
- Adding the super on a fixed date without inspecting the colony.
- Confusing the preparation signal with the signal to add the super: dandelion and fruit trees indicate that you should be ready, not that every colony should receive a super on the same day.
- Adding a super too early on a colony that is still weak.
- Waiting until the brood box is saturated with nectar.
- Ignoring irregular comb in the top of the brood box: this often signals that the colony is looking for space.
- Forgetting the queen excluder, with the risk of finding brood in the super frames.
Key points
Dandelion and fruit trees: prepare. Strong colony, genuine nectar flow, and signs of insufficient space: add the super with a queen excluder.
A super is added when the colony is strong, the nectar flow is beginning, and the bees are keeping the brood box well occupied. For a beginner, the simple rule is to add the queen excluder and the super at the same time: the queen excluder is placed between the brood box and the super. It prevents the queen from moving up to lay in the super frames, so that the super remains reserved for harvest honey.
What to do
- Check that the colony is strong enough: plenty of bees, well-developed brood, and visible foraging activity.
- Choose a mild day with good flying conditions and work quickly to avoid chilling the brood.
- Prepare a clean super with suitable super frames, drawn out if possible, or fitted with foundation if the colony is building well.
- Open the hive, remove the crown board, then place the queen excluder directly on the brood box.
- Place the super above the queen excluder, replace the crown board, and close the hive.
- Check a few days later that the bees have moved up into the super and begun to occupy the frames.
If things do not go as expected
If bees do not move up into the super, the super was usually added too early, the colony is too weak, the weather is unfavourable, or the nectar flow has not really begun. If brood appears in a super, first check that the queen excluder is present and correctly positioned, then correct the management before harvest.
What to avoid
- Adding a super without a queen excluder when the super frames are to be reserved for harvest honey.
- Placing the queen excluder in the wrong position: it must separate the brood box and the super.
- Adding a super to a weak colony: there is a risk it will not be occupied and the colony will chill.
- Waiting too long on a strong colony: lack of space can promote the swarming impulse.
- Placing frames that have contained brood into the super intended for harvest honey.
- Feeding syrup when supers intended for harvest are in place.
- Treating against varroa with honey supers intended for consumption on the hive, unless an official approval compatible with the product used applies.
Key points
For a beginner, super and queen excluder go together: the queen excluder is placed between the brood box and the super to keep the harvest separate from the brood.
No, the queen excluder is not mandatory as a piece of equipment required by law, but it is strongly recommended. For a beginner, the simple rule is to use one whenever a super is added for honey production intended for harvest. It helps keep the super reserved for honey and prevents the queen from laying there.
What to do
- Place the queen excluder between the brood box and the super.
- Put it in place at the same time as the super.
- Check that it is clean, correctly positioned, and that there is no gap on the sides.
- Reserve the super frames for honey production.
- At harvest, take only super frames containing honey and no brood.
If things do not go as expected
If the super already contains brood, do not extract those frames. First use a queen excluder to prevent the queen from returning to the super, then wait for the brood to emerge before considering harvesting the frames in question. In practice, frames that have contained brood should not enter the processing chain for extracted or run honey.
The important legal point is therefore not the obligation to have a queen excluder, but the obligation to produce compliant honey. In Switzerland, honey that is handed over or sold falls under food law, in particular the FSLA and the ordinances that specify the requirements applicable to honey, hygiene, and self-monitoring.
What to avoid
- Adding a super without a queen excluder as a beginner.
- Harvesting or extracting frames containing brood.
- Mixing brood box frames that have contained brood with the super frames intended for honey.
- Forgetting that some management approaches without a queen excluder exist, but require more experience.
Key points
The law does not directly require a queen excluder, but it does require compliant honey: for a beginner, the queen excluder is the simplest way to keep the super reserved for honey.
If the bees are not moving up into the super, do not force the colony. First check three things: is the colony strong enough, is the nectar flow genuinely under way, and is the super attractive? In the majority of cases, a super stays empty because it was added slightly too early or because the bees do not yet need that space.
What to do
- Observe the brood box: bees should be occupying the top of the frames well.
- Check that nectar is genuinely being brought in, not just that flowers are present.
- See whether the brood box is beginning to fill with nectar: if not, the bees may not yet need the super.
- Inspect the super: clean, correctly positioned frames, wax in good condition, no foreign odour, no mould, no questionable stored material.
- If possible, place one or two already drawn super frames in the centre of the super: these are often accepted more readily than frames fitted only with foundation.
- Keep the queen excluder in place and check that it is correctly positioned.
- Check again a few days later, especially if the weather improves and incoming nectar increases.
If things do not go as expected
If the super contains mainly foundation, a genuine nectar flow, warmth, and a strong colony are needed before bees will build. Drawn super frames placed in the centre can help. If the super remains empty despite this, do not add more volume: wait for the colony to strengthen or for the nectar flow to start properly.
What to avoid
- Adding a second super while the first is still empty.
- Concluding too quickly that the colony has a problem.
- Adding a super too early on a colony that is still weak.
- Expecting rapid comb-building on foundation without a genuine nectar flow.
- Spraying syrup into a super intended for honey harvest: this blurs the distinction between feeding and harvested honey.
- Spraying honey onto frames: this can promote robbing and raises hygiene concerns if the origin of the honey cannot be fully verified.
- Placing brood in super frames intended for honey harvest.
Key points
An empty super is not necessarily a problem: a strong colony, a genuine nectar flow, and attractive super frames are the three main conditions for bees to move up.
The simple rule: renew brood frames regularly, ideally around one third per year (10-frame hive: at least 3–4 per year; 12-frame hive: at least 4–5 per year). This is not just a matter of appearance: in old frames, cells shrink and wax can accumulate residues. The best time is spring or early summer, when the colony is strong and builds readily.
What to do
- Prioritise renewing frames that have contained brood, especially if they are very dark.
- Plan a gradual renewal, for example around one third of brood frames each season.
- Introduce new wax frames or foundation when the colony is strong enough to build.
- Move old frames to the edge of the brood nest, then remove them once they contain no more brood.
- Remove misshapen, broken, mouldy, or difficult-to-inspect frames promptly.
- Record the age or year of frames on the hive record card or with a simple marking.
- Manage super frames separately: keep them only if they are clean, dry, sound, and have not contained brood.
If things do not go as expected
If the colony is weak or not building, do not force renewal: remove only frames that are truly unusable and wait for a more favourable period. If brood is abnormal, there is a suspicious odour, or there is any doubt about colony health, do not move the frame to another colony and seek expert advice.
What to avoid
- Keeping black brood frames for years simply because they are still intact.
- Replacing too many frames at once in a weak colony.
- Introducing foundation too early, too late, or in poor weather when bees are not building.
- Putting frames that have already contained brood into the honey super.
- Moving a suspect frame from one colony to another.
- Storing frames that are damp, dirty, or attacked by wax moth.
Key points
Renew brood frames gradually, especially in spring and early summer: old, black, or damaged frames must be removed first.
The best time is not a fixed date. Harvest begins when the honey in the supers is ripe, in dry weather, and when frames no longer drip on the shake test. For a beginner, the simple rule is to harvest mainly well-capped super frames – ideally at least two thirds capped – and to check the water content with a refractometer if possible. However, there is no point in waiting unnecessarily: it is better to have enough time to raise good winter bees than to chase the last few grams of honey.
What to do
- Observe the supers, not just the calendar.
- Choose a dry day, preferably after a rain-free period.
- Check that the super frames are mostly capped.
- Carry out the shake test on uncapped areas: if nectar drips out, do not harvest that frame.
- If you have a refractometer, measure the water content on several frames from the same super.
- Plan the last harvest so that the important end-of-season steps are not delayed: varroa monitoring, treatment if necessary, feeding, and winter preparation.
- Remove the supers and cover them quickly to prevent moisture uptake and robbing.
- Extract the honey the same day or the next day, in a clean and dry extraction room.
If things do not go as expected
If some frames are ripe and others are not, do not harvest the whole super automatically. Take only the frames that are ready, or leave the super a few more days. Towards the end of the season, however, do not wait too long: a late harvest can reduce the time available to protect winter bees against varroa and to top up food stores correctly. For honeys that crystallise quickly, such as oilseed rape or certain spring honeys, close attention is also needed: waiting too long can make extraction difficult.
What to avoid
- Harvesting simply because "it is the right time of year".
- Harvesting immediately after several days of rain or in high humidity.
- Relying solely on capping without checking when the nectar flow has been very abundant.
- Mixing ripe frames with frames that are still too wet.
- Extracting frames that have already contained brood.
- Postponing the last harvest to the point of delaying varroa treatment or end-of-season feeding.
- Waiting for the last few grams of honey if doing so compromises winter bee preparation.
Key points
The right harvest starts when the honey is ripe – but must not delay winter bee preparation.
No. In Switzerland, products containing amitraz must not be used against varroa. The simple rule for a beginner is to use only veterinary medicines or preparations authorised in Switzerland, in accordance with their official instructions for use.
What to do
- Do not use amitraz, even if the product is sold or authorised in a neighbouring country.
- Before each treatment, check the current list of authorised veterinary medicines.
- Use only a preparation authorised in Switzerland and follow the official instructions for use precisely: dosage, period, duration, removal of supers where required, and restrictions for honey.
- Record the treatment carried out on the hive record card.
- In case of doubt, seek advice from the bee health service, the cantonal bee inspector, or the cantonal veterinary service.
Swissmedic publishes regularly updated lists (list of authorised veterinary medicines).
If things do not go as expected
If amitraz has already been used, do not place the honey concerned on the market until the situation has been clarified. Isolate the frames, wax, and batches potentially affected, then seek advice promptly from the competent cantonal authority or the bee health service. The main concern is the risk of an unauthorised treatment and of residues in hive products.
What to avoid
- Using Apivar or another amitraz-based product purchased abroad.
- Assuming that a product authorised in France, Germany, or elsewhere is automatically authorised in Switzerland.
- Making your own strips or dosing a product not intended for bees.
- Treating during a nectar flow or with supers intended for harvest in place, without following official Swiss instructions for use.
- Relying on local custom rather than the current list of authorised preparations.
Key points
For a beginner in Switzerland: no amitraz against varroa. Use only preparations authorised in Switzerland, in accordance with the official instructions for use.
