Brian Fackler – Cornell University Master Beekeeper
The Bee Cluster: The bees are in a compact cluster since the ambient temperature
dropped below 57F. As the temperature lowers to freezing the bees generate heat with
heads facing inward and consume a great amount of honey also give off a great amount
of water. The bees rotate positions and are active in the cluster center. Most of the
colony will be rearing brood and maintaining the brood-rearing temperature in the brood
area of 92F. This area must be dry, and an efficient ventilating or condensing hive must
be maintained to control moisture.
Hive Entrance: The hive entrance needs to be open as bees will take a short cleaning
flight to void fecal matter on a sunny calm day. Clear your hive entrance of blockages by
snow, ice, and or dead bees. Keep the entrance reducer and mouse guard installed.
Starvation: Bees will break the cluster for the worker bees to move into areas where to
resources that are stored. The bees will starve if they do not have access to the
resources or are too cold to break the cluster. You can get an idea of how much
resources the hive has stored by hefting the hive and comparing it to previous
monitoring. If you suspect or are in doubt, feed the bees with fondant, sugar patties, or
100% plain white granulated sugar and not organic or brown sugar. Make fondant and
or sugar patties with recipes from Lane County Beekeepers – https://www.lcbaor.org.
Checking for starvation or adding emergency feed can be done from the hive top.
Dead Bees: You might notice dead bees as well as brown spots of fecal matter in front
of the hive. This is typically not a concern. The bees may have frayed wings and hair
loss, which are indications of old age and desire to die outside the hive. Monitor the
bottom and landing board for excessive dead bees as the undertaker worker bees may
not be able to remove.
Varroa: Monitor the sampling board for dropped dead mites and consider multiple
applications of oxalic acid vapor following the guidelines of Honey Bee Health Coalition
Tools for Varroa Management.
Reflection and Preparation: This is the time to reflect on last year’s success and
failure and consider your 2025 bee year. Make a plan to control varroa mites and now is
the time to order cultural and miticides to have them on-hand. Take inventory of
wooden ware and frames and repair, paint, and replace as needed. If you anticipate
needing new bees place your order for NUCs and or packages, as later this spring they
often are unavailable.