The Betterbee guide to hive inspections
Why do we use the word “inspection” to describe visits to our hives? Because it helps to encourage an attitude of searching and questioning whenever we approach our bees. As we inspect and explore our colonies, we’re asking them how they’re doing and what they need from us. As each frame is checked some questions are answered, but new questions may also come up.
Frame with a nice Rainbow pattern
What to inspect when you’re inspecting
When we inspect, we’re really checking on two things: The brood, and the food.
We need to know the amount of brood the colony has, at which developmental stages, and we also have to make sure the brood is healthy.
Thoroughly checking the brood also gives us information about the queen. If we find eggs in the bottoms of the cells, it tells us the queen is still in the hive, or at least that she was there within the last three days. (Otherwise, all of those eggs would have hatched already!) It can be exciting to hunt for the queen while inspecting, but it’s not necessary, and often takes more time and causes more disruption than you or your bees want. Seeing the queen only tells you that she’s alive, not whether she’s laying enough eggs each day. Only a thorough check of the brood nest can tell you that. We consider ourselves lucky when we spot the queen, but we mostly monitor her indirectly by inspecting multiple brood frames during our inspection to make sure she’s laying well, and keeping our eyes open for fresh eggs.
The food of a colony is also important. What they have, and where they’re putting it, guides much of our hive management during the year. Does the colony have stored pollen to provide protein to the growing brood? If not, they may need help from you. Do they have stored nectar or honey, to fuel their growth and activity? If not, be prepared to offer them sugar syrup. A healthy colony will often create a “rainbow” across some of their frames, with an outer band of capped honey, then uncapped nectar, then pollen, then brood of different ages. You may not always find such a frame, but if you do you might be able to conclude your inspection right there. Plentiful food and lots of brood? That’s what you came to see.
Rules for inspecting
(1) How often should an inspection be done?
We inspect our hives at Betterbee every three weeks or so. Most successful beekeepers inspect every two weeks or every three weeks, depending on their free time and their confidence in guessing what a hive will need in the coming weeks. Some beekeepers inspect every week, and get to spend much more time with their bees. For new beekeepers, we recommend inspecting weekly or at least every two weeks. You will see more, learn more, and by the end of your first season you’ll have spent much more time in the bees than another beginner who only checked their hives every three weeks.
(2) When can inspections be done?
When the outdoor temperatures are at or above 50°F. This means that in our region (upstate New York) we inspect occasionally in March and early April, and then consistently from mid-April to October or November. If you don’t know the temperature, watch the hive entrance to check if lots of bees are setting off on flights. If they are, that means it’s warm enough to lift frames out and inspect them without much risk to the brood.
Remember, in the brood area it’s roughly 94°F, and quite humid. As you work, keep brood frames protected from the sun and wind, but don't avoid inspecting your colonies from a fear of disturbing them. It’s better to get used to the look and feel of frames of brood and bees than to avoid opening hives. Ideally though, a full inspection of a colony should be finished in under 20 minutes. It’s not usually necessary to look at both sides of all 20 (or so) frames in the brood nest.
Beekeepers carefully inspecting frames from a hive.
(3) Come with a plan
In order to learn what’s happening in a colony while keeping the hive open only as long as necessary, make sure to prepare before you open a hive. Ask yourself: What is my purpose for this inspection? Often, your purpose will simply be: “Assess the brood and food, and check for signs of disease or other trouble.”
However, sometimes you’ll know that flowers are blooming, nectar is flowing, and your bees are likely to need more room to ripen honey. During those inspections, your purpose is: “To confirm that each colony needs a new super, and then give them one if they do… but also to check the brood and food and look for signs of trouble.” You’ll always be assessing brood and food, and looking for signs of trouble like disease, swarming, queenlessness, etc. It’s far easier to be efficient in your inspections (and to bring the right gear to the apiary) if you decide beforehand that you’re also going to be evaluating honey storage space and adding supers, or checking for mites and treating as-needed.
(4) Remember varroa mites
If you have honey bees, you have varroa mites (unless you live in a few remote islands around the world.) Keeping mites under control requires attention and management. We find that intervention early and often works best to ensure good colony health throughout the year, instead of trying to kill mites once a year just before winter weather arrives.
(5) Don’t open the hive right away
When you arrive at the apiary, whether it contains one hive or forty, take a moment to look around. Check the flight patterns and activity levels at each hive.
Walk close to each entrance:
- Are the bees bringing in pollen?
- Are there signs of robbing?
- Are there piles of dead bees and scratched grass near the entrance that suggests a skunk may have visited the previous night?
Without opening a hive or lighting your smoker, you can get a lot of information about your hives. When we arrive in a yard to check all of the colonies there, we can usually find a few outliers during our quick glance around. “Hmmm. This colony isn’t bringing in pollen. Maybe they don’t have any brood? Let’s inspect them first!”
You may be with your bees for an hour or less each week. Your bees are living their lives every second of every day. Just like catching up with an old friend you haven’t seen for a while, it’s only polite to begin by asking “How are you doing? What’s up with you?” Inspecting your hives lets you figure out what has been going on with your bees. Don’t barge in with beekeeping techniques and manipulations in mind - see how the bees are doing without you first, and then decide how you may (or may not) want to change things.
