Any day now, winter will arrive. On November 25th we winterized our bees. We’ve been feeding syrup since roughy Labor day, and in the months of November put on two rounds of winter patties.
We had cardboard boxes that are waxed so they are relatively wet-weather resistant. They are big enough so that we can slip on-inch thick insulation boards on all four sides. We also put another pine of thick insulation board on top of the inner cover.
Supplies laid out, ready to winterize.
The bees can still got out of their normal entrance at the bottom of the lower hive body, but we also put a PVC tube in a hole in the upper hive body, in case snow blocks the bottom entrance. We decided to use the PVC tube to ensure that the box or insulation doesn’t shift and block the hole during the long winter months.
Hopefully we can get out there during the coming months to drop in more patties. And hopefully we come out of the winter with five good looking colonies. Fingers crossed!
Idiots Keeping Bees 