SNOW!!!

No, this isn't a picture of my beehives! We had about 1/2" of snow overnight, and by mid-day it had all melted. But it is a sign that we are heading into winter.

I decided to do a little maintenance on the hives this afternoon. One good thing about the cool/cold weather is that the bees aren't out and about, and they don't bother me while I work around the hive.

I bought some styrofoam insulation (a sheet about 3/4" thick) and cut some pieces to fit under the screened bottom board of my hives. This'll cut down on the drafts coming up the bottom. Here's a picture of the insulation:


I checked the syrup feeders, and the one on the green hive was empty. I filled it back up, and the bees should be able to get to it once the weather warms up a little.

When I checked the brown hive, I found this visitor:


Mr. Spider, meet Mr. Hive Tool! Notice that there is a poor bee caught in the web.

I also tilted up the hives a little (wedged a stick under the back end) to cause any moisture condensation to go to the front edge of the hive, and not drip down on the bees. While I was lifting them up, I felt that the green hive was a lot lighter than the brown hive. This is consistent with the fact the green hive is newer than the brown hive. So I'll feed and feed and feed!