[AndyMorton]

As its my first year i was wanting to make sure that i have everything in place in plenty of time, and have ample opportunity to shop around for the best options/ prices etc.

Question is: what does eveybody add to their hive(s) for the winter period to help the bees maintain their temperature a little easier?

I've seen a couple of quilts/ reflective sheets in the Thornes catalogue - does anybody use these? How have you got on with them?

Also, ive seen a video on YouTube, think it was a chap in America if i remember correctly, who went to the extent of wrapping three sides of the hive in old carpet to cut down on the wind chill and add a little insulation at the same time. Does anybody go to this extent, or is this a little excessive?

Like i said, its well in advance and the vast majority of keepers are probably busy thinking about extracting the honey crop. But in my defence it's my first year and ensuring that they survive through winter seems to be constantly in the back of my mind! 

 

[egglady]

Andy, you're not getting ahead of yourself at all - good to think about these things well in advance....and given this is Scotland, who knows when winter will arrive

it all depends on how cold this year is likely to be.  we have 5 or so hives in our wee village, 4 of them had insulation put in the roof space (above their fondant feed) and those that did, were up and raring to go much earlier in the year than those that weren't....might just be coincidence but think there is something in it if you ask me.

All we did was cut squares of polystyrene (old fish boxes actually) - 2 joined together and that was all.  also we had ventilated floors so there was plenty of roof for fresh air and evaporation.

you also want to close down their entrance and make sure your frames are facing the entrance to keep the heat in as well - it's called 'warm way' funnily enough.

other than that, i dont know of anything else to do.

we were -20 for quite a bit of the winter and our girls did survive, so makes me think this was adequate for where we are....but then who knows what this winter will bring....

oh and one of our mentors who has kept bees for several hundred years (!) told us that she'd used insulation for the first time this winter and she didnt lose a single colony - her first time ever apparently...so that's pretty sound 'evidence' eh?

[Tiva Diva]

I've used horticultural fleece to insulate my hives in the winter as it still allows ventilation.

[AndyMorton]

Tiva Diva: What grade of horticultural fleece have you used in the past?

Egglady: Your mentor has kept bees for several hundred years!? who is your mentor, Yoda!? 

I have to admit, your 'evidence'  seems pretty conclusive to me, and the fish boxes is a good idea - id never have thought of using that!!



Has anybody ever used straw as an over winter insulator? i quite like the idea of using that, with it being a natural product etc etc


 

[Victorian Farmer]

most off the bees have been lost neare aviemore glenmore etc to long a winter for them didn't reach freezing for 10 weeks .

[Tiva Diva]

Er......I don't know what grade, I just bought it from our local garden centre! Talking to my local beekeeper group, it's evident that your particular strain of bees and the microclimate of your apiary are really important. We're all in the Scottish Borders with similar minimum temperatures but there's a huge variation in how our bees cope with winter.

[Beewyched]

Well, I did just about everything wrong - no - nothing correctly, for my poor bees  Left the frames the "cold" way & didn't insulate the hive at all or close-down the entrance - I think the only thing I did do to help was to fit a mouse-guard & give them candy from Christmas onwards - I'm amazed they survived!

[Tiva Diva]

I leave mine the cold way and don't close down the entrances, just fit mouse guards.
Thats's because damp seems to be more of a problem where my hives are than wind or cold, usually, though I did use the fleece when it got very cold. You just have to see what suits your bees & hive site.

[LulaB]

Another thing you (or anyone else) might think about is woodpecker damage.  It's a good idea to wrap the hive loosely in wire mesh.  This stops the hungry bird from pecking through your expensive hive to get to your precious colony of bees and the brood/honey inside, but allows enough room for the bees themselves to fly out for their... ablutions.

Ventilation is key, as condensation and damp will chill the bees more than dry cold.  I have heard of more than one beekeeper putting small blocks under the roof to facilitate air flow in the winter.