Preparing bees for winter outdoors

In winter, bees gain strength and prepare for active spring work. If earlier beekeepers tried to remove the hive for the whole winter indoors, then recently wintering of bees in the wild has begun to be practiced. Subject to certain rules, it is possible to provide the most comfortable conditions for insects. To this end, special attention is paid to preparatory measures.

How bees hibernate in nature

The active work of insects falls on the warm season. In winter, bees gather in a heap, warming each other. This allows them to cope with the cold without problems. In the apiary, the beekeeper takes care of preparing the hive for wintering. In nature, bee colonies most often winter in the hollow of a tree. They store nectar and feed on it throughout the winter.

Wild bees do not leave their hive in winter, as they are not able to tolerate the effects of low temperatures. In late autumn, the metabolism of insects gradually slows down. The need to empty the bowels completely disappears. This allows you to stay in the hollow for a long time without flying out into the street.

Advantages and disadvantages of overwintering bees on the street

Before choosing a method of placing bees, you need to familiarize yourself with the advantages and disadvantages of wintering on the street. The pluses include:

• bees return to work ahead of schedule;
• the strength and strength of the bee family increase;
• savings for the beekeeper on time and money in the absence of the need to build a winter hut.

The disadvantages of wintering on the street include increased feed consumption. In this case, you need to make significant reserves. If during wintering on the street the insects have some problems, the beekeeper will not be able to help them. For this reason, the risk of family death increases.

How to keep bees outside in winter

In order for the bees to winter on the street was comfortable, they should be provided with the necessary conditions. Initially, preparatory work is carried out. They include warming the hive, providing bees with food and ventilation. An important step is the preparation of feed. The energy of the bees depends on its quantity and quality. Lack of energy leads to insufficient heat production, which provokes hypothermia and further death.

How to prepare bees for wintering outside

Preparing bee colonies for wintering in the wild means strengthening the health of existing individuals and raising young ones. At the beginning of autumn, the hive is treated with a solution from ticks. You should also prepare sugar syrup in advance. For its preparation you will need:

• 2 kg of sugar;
• 1 liter of hot water;
• 1 tsp acetic acid.

Cooking process:

1. The components are thoroughly mixed and put on fire.
2. The syrup should be boiled for no more than 15 minutes after boiling.
3. After removing from the heat, the top dressing is removed to the side so that it cools down.

For wintering, it is better to place the hive in a quieter place. It is also necessary to assess the condition of the hive. If the family is strong enough, about 8-10 frames are left in it. Old damaged structures are removed or replaced with new ones. If the family is weak, then it is combined with another group of bees.

How and when to insulate families during the wintering of bees in the wild

Preparing bees for winter outside includes the process of warming the hive. With a strong draft, the bees die. But this does not mean that you need to carefully clog all the holes in the home. In this case, the insects will suffer from lack of air. Therefore, it is important to ensure proper ventilation when wintering bees on the street. To do this, open the upper entrances. To insulate the bee house, it is recommended to use one of the following materials:

• polyurethane foam;
• plywood;
• straw;
• unnecessary clothes;
• polyethylene;
• expanded clay;
• Styrofoam.

A bee nest is placed near trees and shrubs. They help protect the hive from cold winds. From the inside, the hive is insulated with an outpost frame. From the outside, the insulation is fixed in any way possible. It is important that the hive is located at a sufficient height from the ground. This will provide protection from rodent attacks and freezing of the soil. When a snowy winter sets in, walls of snow are built around the hive to insulate it.

Wintering bees without insulation in the wild

Wintering bees in the wild under the snow is considered the easiest. First, the hive is covered with some kind of material that prevents the ingress of snow during its melting. The next step is to cover the bee dwelling with plenty of snow. The advantage of such wintering is the early activation of insects, immediately after the thaw. The disadvantages include the impossibility of using this method in regions with snowless winters. Snow closes the bee dwelling from cold winds. But with its premature thawing, there is a possibility of flooding the hive.

Wintering of bees on the street in casings

Casings are structures for the wintering of bees, consisting of a roof of shield walls. The walls are made of raw boards and slabs, the thickness of which varies from 20 to 25 cm. Small gaps are left between the boards. They provide oxygen to the hives.

The bee family is planted in casings in early November. On the apiary plot put props filled with dry leaves. Hives are placed on lining in 2 rows. At the same time, the notches are located on the outside. Layers of slate are placed on top. With the help of snow, they form a wall and cover the roof with it. The ventilation holes remain intact. The advantages of wintering outdoors in casings include:

• good ventilation;
• smoothing temperature fluctuations.

Features of wintering bees in the wild in Siberia

The preparation of bees for wintering in the wild in Siberia does not have pronounced differences. It is believed that when located on the street, bees endure low temperatures more easily than closeness and lack of air. The most common way to insulate a hive in this region is under snow. The most important thing is to protect the hive from cold winds. For a successful wintering, it is enough to carefully insulate the bee dwelling and cover it with snow. Since the snow in Siberia does not melt throughout the winter, it is not necessary to constantly monitor the condition of the bees.

How to prepare bees for wintering on the street in the suburbs

In the Moscow region, bees endure wintering on the street without any problems. Due to unstable weather, you should not count on warming with snow. It is necessary to carefully insulate the bee dwelling and carry out the prevention of dangerous diseases.

The peculiarities of the climate of the Moscow region include a high probability of mold on the walls of the hive. To prevent its occurrence, you should increase the space under the frame. This will allow air to enter the hive in the right amount.

The death of bees in winter: causes and ways to eliminate them

During wintering on the street, the probability of death of bees increases. In the high-risk category are initially weakened families. In some cases, external factors have a depressing effect on bees. The family can also be destroyed from the inside under the influence of fungi, mites or infections. To avoid the mass death of insects, you should properly prepare them for wintering. Possible reasons for the painful condition of bees include:

• poor ventilation;
• diseases;
• rodent attacks;
• poor choice of location for the hive;
• a sharp change in climatic conditions;
• lack of food.

The best way to deal with the death of bees is to properly prepare their house for wintering outside. At least 25 kg of honey should be left for each hive. The main criterion for choosing nectar is its quality. It is equally important to sanitize the hive from varroatosis, nosematosis and acarapidosis. It is equally important to patch up all holes, which will exclude the possibility of rodents entering the hive.

The most common diseases characteristic of the winter period include nosematosis. The reasons for its occurrence are:

• the presence of honeydew in honey;
• getting into the hive of pesticides;
• sharp temperature fluctuations.

If the process of death has already begun, it is almost impossible to save insects. The chance that the beekeeper will detect the problem in time is too small. In this case, the bees are taken from the street to the winter hut and their dwelling is completely rebuilt. If the queen dies, the family is united with another swarm, stronger. In order for the family to accept new bees, the process of moving in is carried out with extreme caution.

Inspection of hives in winter

If the beekeeper has taken care of creating favorable conditions for wintering bees on the street in advance, frequent checks of the hive are not required. In this case, it is desirable to control the temperature in the bee house 2 times a month. You should also monitor the flow of air by monitoring the position of the ventilation holes. At the end of winter, it is necessary to increase the frequency of visits to 1 time per week.

The state of insects can be judged by the sounds coming from the hive. To do this, gently hit the surface of the hive. A fading buzz indicates a prosperous state of affairs in the home. If the noise does not stop, then the uterus is dead. If a slight rustle is heard, it is a lack of food.

It is important to pay attention to the death in the hive. If there are individuals with gnawed wings next to it, rodents periodically visit the hive. Swollen abdomens in insects indicate the spread of the disease. Excessive noise can be a sign of dry indoor air. Placing a water bottle behind an insert board will help solve this problem. A cotton wick is lowered into it. The other end of the wick is placed over the tuber so that the bees have access to water.

If the prepared food for the winter was not enough, it is necessary to feed with honey. The frame with it is placed in close proximity to the ball of bees. An alternative to honey can be thick sugar syrup. It is poured into honeycombs, as it is used up, replaced with new portions.

To avoid the establishment of wax moths in the hive, the combs are slightly frozen. In this case, it is enough to subject them to cooling around -6 ° C. This method is considered effective, regardless of the stage of development of the moth.

In the spring, it is necessary to free the hives from unnecessary fences and frames. It is necessary to create conditions for the first flight of bees to the street. You should also clean the home from dirt accumulated over the winter.

Conclusion

Overwintering of bees in the wild is a natural but risky process. Only strong families will be able to survive this period without loss. The task of the beekeeper is to warm the hive and provide the necessary amount of food for the winter. Under these conditions, the bees survive without problems until spring.