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  • Wooden National beehive with a gabled roof set up on a hive stand in a garden apiary, prepared for winter.
    Winter Hive Preparation
    by Alex
    Welcome to my first apiary update! As the temperatures drop this autumn, I’ve been taking key steps out in the apiary to get the colony prepped for winter endurance. Top Insulation & Fondant Access First up was tackling heat retention and condensation control. I acquired a sheet of 45mm thick polystyrene insulation and cut it … Read more
  • Row of wooden beehives covered in winter snow on a wooden stand in an apiary field
    Over wintering Preparation
    by Alex
    With the supers extracted, autumn varroa treatments well underway, and thick 2:1 sugar syrup being taken down, apiary focus shifts entirely to winter survival. Foragers are working the final autumn blooms—such as ivy and late asters—while the queen steadily contracts her brood nest to rear long-lived winter bees.Read More
  • Honeybees clustered around downward-facing queen cells built along the bottom bar of a wooden hive frame
    What to Do When You Find Swarm Cells in Your Hive
    by Alex
    Found Swarm Cells in Your Hive? Here’s What to Do NextFinding queen cells during a routine hive inspection can make any beekeeper’s heart skip a beat. However, before taking action, carefully inspect where the cells are located and what stage they are in. Read More
  • Beekeeper holding up a brood comb showing a healthy pattern of capped worker brood and nurse bees.
    How to Do a Beehive Inspection: Step-by-Step Beginner Guide
    by Alex
    Keeping bees is an amazingly rewarding experience. Not only do we get our own supply of pure honey, but we are also responsible for nurturing these fascinating insects and helping local biodiversity thrive.For your first few hive inspections, the process can feel a little nerve-wracking. You might worry about accidentally rolling bees or whether you’re reading the frames correctly. Rest assured, your confidence will grow quickly as you develop your hands-on skills and become familiar with your colony. Read More
  • Stainless steel bee smoker with a protective heat guard and leather bellows emitting a faint trail of smoke.
    Smoker Accessories
    by Alex
    Your smoker is one of the most critical tools in your apiary toolkit, seeing heavy use throughout the spring and summer inspection seasons. Because it’s subjected to intense heat, pitch buildup, and regular wear-and-tear, it is inevitable that individual parts will eventually fail, get damaged, or get lost. You will also find yourself regularly needing to restock on fuel or upgrade your setup with safe storage solutions for transport. Read More