May 13: Inspection Day

5/13
Damage: 0 stings

After work, I got the smoker going, set up a hive box with 10 frames (2 with foundation and 6 drawn out and 2 full of capped honey from the fridge). To increase ventilation and provide an upper entrance, I drilled a 1/2 inch hole in the box (per a book I read). Last year's bees died over the winter when they got wet and froze to death, so I will be extra careful to keep them dry this year.

The Russians are doing very well! Textbook frames. (See picture.) Pollen. Nectar. Lots of capped brood. Lots of larvae. (Check out my closeup pic of the larvae and eggs that look like rice). Didn't see the queen, of course (I never have inside one of my hives). Added second box, because they now need room to expand. (If they get too crowded, they will exit the hive in a swarm.) I won't open the Russians again for a few weeks.

Now for the Italians. They are mean. I probably over-smoked them. I checked every frame. No eggs. No larvae. No queen cells. Not sure what happened. I will order a new queen from Mr. Simpson. The Italians are now a month behind.

I added a poster board covered in vaseline under the screened bottom board of the Russians for a 24-hour varroa mite count.