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June in the Hive

 

Summer is here! Bees will be building up their populations through June 21, which should have been a turning point for your bee hives. Your queen will be starting to take cues from the sun and slow down bee production. This is around the time you should anticipate the main honey flow.

The timing for adding and removing the honeycombs is very important: Removing the honeycombs too early might risk having honey that has too much water in it, which could lead to fermentation. Removing them too late may lead to overcrowding in the hive, which may trigger swarming – for tips on managing a swarm, check out one of our previous blogs about swarms.

Generally, the best time to remove the honeycomb is when it is at least 3/4 full. There are a few methods to check if the honey is ripe: Observe if bees are actively fanning at the hive entrance, which indicates they are still reducing moisture in the honey. Harvest only when fanning activity decreases significantly. When you have confirmed that the bees are no longer fanning the hive entrance, you can take the frame, shake it, and if the honey does not drip, it means it is ready to be removed. However, if the weather is warm enough, using the shake method it may be hard to differentiate if the honey has too much water or is just too warm.

Another way to tell is to harvest your honey only when at least 80-90% of the honeycomb cells are capped with wax by the bees. Capped honey typically has a water content of 16-17% or lower, as bees reduce moisture through fanning before sealing. You can also measure the water content directly with a calibrated refractometer. Take small samples from multiple frames to ensure consistency. A reading of 17% or below indicates the honey is ready for extraction.

By combining these methods, particularly waiting for capping and using a refractometer, beekeepers can reliably ensure honey is below 17% water content before pulling it from the hives.

June will be filled with tons of activity from your bees! By paying close attention and listening to the natural rhythms of your hives, you’ll be sure to enjoy a successful harvest.

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Month in the Hive – June

It’s bee season! Right now, Michigan bees are foraging on all the blossoming flowers and trees, including sumac, milkweed, basswood and clover, creating a robust nectar flow throughout the month of June.

While bees are out foraging, you might see them swarming as well. We’ve had a few calls about how to handle a swarm. No need to be alarmed – just a little patience and the swarm will usually disband, sometimes within about 15 minutes or an hour.

So why do bees swarm anyway?

A swarm occurs when the reigning queen and about half the bees rush out of the hive entrance together, clustering on a tree limb or another similar object. Bees will continue swarming as they look for a new home. Once the bees have found a new location, the cluster breaks up and the bees fly to their new hive.

The bees that did not leave the hive continue their work in the colony, collecting nectar and pollen and building honey combs. Within the colony, a new queen emerges and looks for rival queens. A “fight-to-the-death” combat ensues until there is only one surviving queen. Once the new queen has mated, she begins to lay eggs and the cycle begins again.

A bee’s natural instinct is to swarm when we have good weather. Since we haven’t had much rain lately in West Michigan, we’re seeing a lot of swarms. Just bee-patient and they’ll naturally move along.

Happy Bee Season!

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What is Swarming and Why Bees Do it

 
 
Have you ever seen the wondrous sight of bees, tightly grouped around each other in a giant pile wrapped around a tree branch or other mechanism that exists outside of the hive? Do not fret and do not call an exterminator! These insects are able to sting, but will only do so when disturbed. The swarm you see might look scary, but these bees are not interested in you or stinging you. In fact, they are far more busy trying to find a new home. That’s right- you just stumbled upon a colony of bees in the middle of a move!

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