We've still got two to four feet of snow on the ground so when I look out over the yard I don't even see where the hives are at. I noticed a bunch of dead bees on the snow though and crawled over on all fours to have a look. The heat from the hives has melted a hole through the snow and the bees can fly out but theres really no way they'll be able to get back to the hive once out and about. I'm wondering if I should clear the snow away from around the hives, which will be quite a job, or try to cover the hives back up so the sun doesn't hit them and heat them up. We usually have snow here til the end of april.
Thanks,
Kaisa
Since the snow is an insulator, I would just keep the door open for them by just removing the snow in front of their entrance.
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We have discussed here is it good to dig hives out or should they be under snow.
Stupid debate when "no dig" guys have 1000 hives and "dig yes" have 20 hives.
I have just on my yard 2 feet snow and I dug 4 weeks ago the hives out.
I am at the level of Anchorage.
When sun penerates the white snow temp is zero and snow is moist. Colonies are in worse condition when they are inside wet snow.
I may see that after night snow is freezed but in afternoon snow is wet under the wet cover.
My opinion is that it is good that bees have cleansing flight early than they stay under most snow. Opinions varies about that. There are no facts about this. There are only feelings.
Unless your bees have been buried for many months, I would cover the hole with more snow or a tarp until a genuine flying day comes along. When I lived in colder country and had winterlong snow, my bees wintered the best when buried the deepest.
Quote from: Vance G on March 20, 2012, 09:17:29 PM
Unless your bees have been buried for many months, I would cover the hole with more snow or a tarp until a genuine flying day comes along. When I lived in colder country and had winterlong snow, my bees wintered the best when buried the deepest.
did you have insulated hives then?
Kaisa,
I am too new to be helping yet. I am curious as to where you are in Quebec. I am originally from the Laurentians North of Montreal (ski country!) and I know their snow is dropping now with bare patches in the clearings.
My guess is you are in the Saguenay or the Beauce. Other than snowfall, you may be in a similar weather zone as I.
Finski, I had my hives wrapped in insulation and placed on the downwind side of dense hedges that caught blowing snow. The ones wintered best who spent the winter in the ice cave the heat from the hives melted in the snowbank. There was usually a melted space around the side by side double row of hives twice as large as the double hive bodies. It was not wet havy snow but was often packed tightly. In Canada, some beekeepers are now purposefully burying beeyards in snow for the same effect.
Hey- four beekeepers, four answers! Maybe the question is not specific enough. I'm north east of Saguenay on the north shore just short of Baie-Comeau. Theres not much agriculture in the area. The beeyard is not in a good place. Two years ago my hives were located in a sheltered area but the bears got them all- now the hives are far from the woods in a sunny location but there is much too much wind coming off the St Lawrence. The hives are not styrofoam hives - I'm looking to get a project to compare styrofoam hives with wooden hives for this area but so far the hives I have now are wooden hives. I insulated them with beekozys this fall - these are black which is why I was thinking with the hives in the sun they would heat up too much and most of the bees would fly out to die on the snow. Today it's actually hot here and the snow is very wet and melting fast but there is still 2-4 feet on the ground.
Thanks for the answers,
Kaisa
Your lucky tht you only got four! Most beekeepers can argue both sides of everything! If the snow is melting fast, I would leave the bee cozys on til the end of April myself. I believe that cover easily comes off and on, so put it back after you do any needed or desired inspections to make sure they have groceries. If the bees have a top entrance, they will be as fine as possible
Quote from: Vance G on March 21, 2012, 10:12:23 AM
There was usually a melted space around the side by side double row of hives twice as large as the double hive bodies. It was not wet havy snow but was often packed tightly. In Canada, some beekeepers are now purposefully burying beeyards in snow for the same effect.
Same here.
In southern and western Finland it may snow as much as in inner land but it melts often becaus open sea is quite near. In inner country snow stays under freezing point long times and snow covers the hives.
It depends too, is it 2 or 1 box winterd hive.
But my experience is that bees do better over the snow than inside. Polystyrene hives keep bees warm.
It depends where you live.
Actually snow covers hives on my district only 2 months. It does not insulate much when winter are 4-5 months. We really want "white Christmas" here but it seldom happens. The sea is just open here one kilometre away.
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Only one of the hives was strong enough to be wintered in two hive bodies- the others are in one hive body. These last few days temperatures have been breaking records here and the snow is now melting so fast that the hives are coming out pretty much by themselves.
Thanks for the advice,
Kaisa
Good to here Kaisa. One thing no one mentioned was that the bees may have been caring out dead and leaving them on top of the snow.
Bees are quite good at finding there way back home. Good luck in the coming year.
John