August 25: In a Drought

I propped up the top covers over the weekend, because it has been so hot. It rained hard yesterday. I was able to get the Italians closed up before the storm, but there were Russian bees all over their inner cover. I didn't want to squish them. They weren't getting wet but I worried all day about the drop in temperature last night.

After work tonight, I lit the smoker and figured I might as well inspect the top supers. In both hives, there has been no progress in the top super. The Russians are quite defensive and I ended up with 2 stings on the left hand.

I probably will not open the hives for a few weeks. I'll wait on the goldenrod honey flow and do a last check before the winter.

August 10: Setting Realistic Goals

Last weekend, I inspected both hives, got 2 stings, and removed the queen excluder from the Russians. There will be no excess honey to harvest this year. I will be stealing from the Russians to feed the Italians. I want to go into the winter with 3 mediums each. I'll be moving the full honey super from the Russians to the Italians before winter sets in. The late start for the Italians is taking its toll on my apiary.

It's important for new beekeepers to be realistic about their goals for the first year, or perhaps, any year these days. I'll just be happy to get the hives through the winter.

On the bright side, I did see orange pollen being delivered to the hives today.