 | Wake County Beekeepers Association |
Beekeeping Calendar
The Beekeeper
| January |
Clear any snow from entrance (not usually a problem in our area). May start feeding, continue once you start until they are gathering their own food. Catch up on your reading. Attend your bee club meetings and bee school. Get your equipment ready for spring. |
| February |
On a warm day quickly and carefully check the hive for sufficient food supplies. Observe exterior of the hive Sign up for an advanced beekeeper course. Attend your bee club meetings. Get your equipment ready for spring. |
| March |
Observe exterior of the hive Make preparations for swarming (prevention and capture). Attend your bee club meetings. |
| April |
Critical month for area beekeepers, add honey supers in April, do a complete inspection Prep honey harvest Attend your bee club meetings. |
| May |
May and June are harvest months for our area. Inspect the hive weekly. Attend your bee club meetings and any workshops you can find. |
| June |
May and June are harvest months for our area. Inspect the hives weekly Supers full of early honey may be removed. Attend your bee club meetings. |
| July |
Continue inspections to the hive to make sure your hive is healthy. Adjust entrance sixe to match bee population Attend your bee club meetings. |
| August |
There is not much chance of swarming this month. Watch out for honey robbing by wasps or other bees. You can do a fall re- queening this month or in early September. Queens may be a little less expensive this time of year. Attend your bee club meetings. |
| September |
It’s time to do that rare, final harvest for the season. Remember to leave at least 40 pounds of honey for the hive to get through the winter. Attend your bee club meetings |
| October |
There is not too much work for the beekeeper this month, but keep an eye on your hive. Watch out for robbing this month. Install inner cover wedges for ventilation. Attend your bee club meetings. |
| November |
There is even less to do in the hive this month. It’s time to add that entrance reducer to the hive to keep field mice from nesting inside. Store your equipment away for the winter. Attend your bee club meetings. |
| December |
Not much to do with the bees this month. Read a good book on beekeeping, study the latest reports on their health. Year-end assessment, successes and failures Attend your bee club meetings. |
