The Bee Supply Monthly

Giving up on a hive is very hard to do. But the reality is that all beekeepers, even the best, lose hives—and a lot of them. The average annual loss rate fluctuates between 40% and 50%. It’s one thing when a hive dies on its own, but it’s much harder when you have to make the decision to stop pouring efforts and resources into a hive that isn’t going to ultimately make it.

Beekeeping can be a rewarding and fascinating hobby or profession, but getting it right requires understanding the best apiary setups and beekeeping equipment. Choosing the right apiary location is essential to the health and productivity of your bees.

You would think that bees are healthier when consuming natural honey as opposed to sugar syrups. That’s actually not the whole story. Although honey contains some vitamins and minerals that provide some nutritional value, it’s a mixture of sugars that include fructose and glucose, which are harder for bees to process.

As winter approaches, many beekeepers face hive losses. With about 40-50% of hives typically dying each year, new beekeepers may experience even higher losses. However, the equipment from dead hives, including drawn-out honeycomb with honey and pollen, retains significant value for future use. 

Winter is often a worrisome time for beekeepers. Each new cold front makes us wonder if our bees have enough food, if they are warm enough, if there are enough bees in our hives, what else we can do to help them—and the list goes on.

Unfortunately, not controlling Varroa will spread Varroa to your other hives and often all the hives within a few miles of your own bees. There are always some beekeepers who say they’ve never treated for mites and their hives do fine. However, that is certainly not the norm.