On your mark... Get set,,,

I can feel it! Spring is right around the corner!

Lately it's still been pretty cool. The bees come out for a little on the warm days, but it's definitely not full-on spring... YET!

I spent some time tonight digging out some of my hive equipment I put away last year wherever I could find it. Most of it was in the garage (shown above).

I stored the empty frames of wax comb in large tubs where I added some PDB crystals (a type of moth ball which is not harmful to the bees or leave residue on the comb). I had a couple of frames show evidence of wax moth infestation (you can see webbing as the worm burrowed in the frame), but nothing the bees can't repair.

I also made up some sugar syrup with a 10 lb. bag of sugar:

I had a problem over the winter with one of my hives dying from Nosema, so I decided to add some Fumigilin-B to the syrup which will combat the Nosema. I generally try not to over-medicate, but in this case I believe adding the medicine it is waranted. Also, I'm going back to using mason jars for the feed. They don't hold as much as the buckets I tried last year, but at least the lid will seal well. The buckets were like big butter tubs, and the lid didn't hold a seal worth anything.

My plans this weekend are to get into the backyard hives and really give them a good looking over, assuming the temperatures cooperate. If it's too cold, I'll probably just pull a couple of frames to see how things look. In any case, I'll add some sugar syrup to the hives.

I also need to go out to the Sutton hives and bring them back for some cleaning. The package bees arrive in about a week, so I need to get those hives ready.

It's close!!