Things have been going ideally great here with the early warmer weather, up until now! We are to receive 20F Sunday night for the low. 21 Monday and 22 Wednesday. My concern is what is this going to do with all the spring blooms, nectar, and pollen. Our bees have been working overtime gathering and building new brood. I am thinking this is not good. Even after the freeze, what will they eat if we do not suppy them with supplement? And, how long will it take for new blooms to appear? This could be a major setback if beekeepers in this deep freeze area are not prepared?
We have a dose of winter coming back here as well. Just getting free from the flooding. Today there is stuff blooming everywhere, work fast little bees.
Arkansas: Sunday 12F and 100% chance of precipitation. An ice storm is my big worry: limbs snap and sounds like a gun being fired. The flow is weeks away so my bees are still in winter mode: daffodils, one tulip only flower I see blooming. I predict I will lose one treatment free hive due to small numbers. Hopefully most of my hives are not in full brood production mode: 2019 to cold to inspect so I don?t know for sure. Keeping my fingers crossed and the fire place going.
This is weird weather, the coldest month will be March, usually is January. In January we had a day in the 70F range. Go figure, I dunno.🤞
Being this is my first spring, I am concerned. All seven of my late fall splits are doing well. I don't want set backs or especially loose one. My advice comes from Woolie B's. He was kind enough to answer me on the Mountian camp-pollen sub ratio mixture that he uses for such occasions. His thinking is bees can still receive food and protein to help get through a critical time, and of the timing, of the bees progress already made, hopefully without setbacks. This was from his YouTube video.
Pretty much the same story in north Texas. Fairly mild winter with good rainfall, trees budding out early, bees working (on what?) some days, and now really cold weather forecast.
We're in for a week or so of below normal weather also. My concern when this happens(extended cold spell after warm weather in early spring)is that the bees have started raising brood and will not leave the brood to get to the honey stores and starve. I've had a couple hives die with honey just a frame away in the last couple of years.
It is the norm here in SC now..... yep a butt kicker.....we are usually in the clear after the second week of March.
March-April in the north of the 45th parallel is an unsettled period. Winter wants to stay. Spring wants to start. It is a meteorological battle.
Expect dramatic changes in appearances and swings in temper!
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190303/88c893ad5369d5c224f7d4671a4436fd.jpg)
BenFramed, Phil, you OK??? what was your low temp. I read tornadoes decimated areas: 23 killed 45 plus injured in Alabama. Hope the tornados were well away form you as well as others on this forum. Tornadoes are so frightening, so deadly.
In Arkansas, 12F light snow. No problems here
Quote from: Stinger13 on March 04, 2019, 08:04:24 PM
BenFramed, Phil, you OK??? what was your low temp. I read tornadoes decimated areas: 23 killed 45 plus injured in Alabama. Hope the tornados were well away form you as well as others on this forum. Tornadoes are so frightening, so deadly.
In Arkansas, 12F light snow. No problems here
Thank you for asking. No Tornadoes here and I am wiith you, I hope our friends in Alabama are ok. God Bless the family's that were struck. I have been in two and let me tell you, it is no fun!
It was 21F here last night . Mr Van it amazes me as how accurately they have progressed in the last few years at predicting weather.
Weather Underground says it will go down to 31 tonight and 32 tomorrow. Not what I was hoping for. As I said, our pastures have really greener up and if we have frost it will really set it back. We are supposed to have 5 mile an hour winds. That might stop the frost. Tomorrow it will only be 2 mile an hour winds.
Does anyone know how fast the winds need to be to stop frost damage?
Jim
Quote from: sawdstmakr on March 05, 2019, 07:09:17 AM
Weather Underground says it will go down to 31 tonight and 32 tomorrow. Not what I was hoping for. As I said, our pastures have really greener up and if we have frost it will really set it back. We are supposed to have 5 mile an hour winds. That might stop the frost. Tomorrow it will only be 2 mile an hour winds.
Does anyone know how fast the winds need to be to stop frost damage?
Jim
I don't know Jim, I would only be guessing. We have such a good variety of different walks of life folks here, someone should know. Your temp will be right for a frost. I wish you the best.
Quote from: sawdstmakr on March 05, 2019, 07:09:17 AM
Weather Underground says it will go down to 31 tonight and 32 tomorrow. Not what I was hoping for. As I said, our pastures have really greener up and if we have frost it will really set it back. We are supposed to have 5 mile an hour winds. That might stop the frost. Tomorrow it will only be 2 mile an hour winds.
Does anyone know how fast the winds need to be to stop frost damage?
Jim
Jim, your ground temp should be in the 50-60F. Frost on the ground would be unlikely with the much warmer soil. I think your grass would be OK. Now the blooms on the trees high off the ground would be of concern. I have seen many times frost on roof tops but no frost on the ground due to the warmer soil.
Blessings
Stinger,
We have had frost at 35 degrees if there is no wind. I was hoping the wind would help.
I really hope their predictions is much lower than it turns out to be.
Jim
I?m trying to encourage you Jim. You making it difficult, Buddy.
:cheesy:
It is suppose to be 25F tonight and 27F tomorrow night. It will certainly bite the Redbuds/Judas Trees that just popped two days ago.
Quote from: sc-bee on March 05, 2019, 09:11:48 PM
It is suppose to be 25F tonight and 27F tomorrow night. It will certainly bite the Redbud/Judas Tree that just popped two days ago.
Our Redbuds haven't bloomed yet. Will the freeze still effect them or, since the buds are still enclosed, will they be safe?
Interesting weather: Italy has a 57 percent drop in olives due to weather, unseasonal frost, drought, floods. Italy, the olive capital of the world may have to import olives. If you like olives better stock up now before price increase.
I just paid $80 dollars for 8 ounces of prime vanilla, again weather related shortages for price increase. So no doubt the bees around the world are feeling the effects of weather also.
Fairly sure I will lose one TF hive to this latest winter blast. I will know for sure Friday: to be a high of 58F, flying weather for sure. I just can hardly wait to walk close to my hives Friday and see the bees scampering about. I will watch each and every hive with joy, yes I am a hobbyist.
Wishing all best for your bees.
It stayed windy in my neck wife didn?t see frost, by time I got home from shift girls were flying.
Wednesday 3/6/19. Bees flying, dragging out dead larva. All Hives survived, but at a cost of freeze killed brood. I do not know extent of freeze kill but looks like the bees will be OK, I THINK, I HOPE!!! Every hive had dead larva of various ages on entrance.
Jim, please advise, did you get ground frost? Pasture OK?
Any body else in the South have bee mortality with this lastest cold front?
Best to all.
It reached 43 F here today. I am happy to tell you that all of my hives have survived. I noticed very little dead bees in front of the hives. When I say little I mean maybe 5 in one, maybe two or three in another some with 0. All 7 late Nucs have survived thus far. I hope the rest of you, which were in this unexpected freeze zone fared as well.
Phillip
Van,
It was pretty windy this morning so we had very little frost. Judy saw some on the clover leaves.
Tonight is is supposed to go down to 32 again but for a longer period and less wind. If we don?t get frost tonight I have a pretty good chance of not having it until next winter.
Jim
I don't know about you folks, but in central NC we have another chilly night to go
Same as Jim a little further south and west so will see how it goes tomorrow.
Quote from: drobbins on March 06, 2019, 07:45:11 PM
I don't know about you folks, but in central NC we have another chilly night to go
We do also 29 F.tonight. But much better than the previous three nights. Plus a heat wave tomorrow of 53 woo!!
Jim, are you good,,,,did you get frost last night??
Van,
Yes we had frost but it looks like it was mostly on the tall grass and clover in my yard. Frost does not bother clover. The cows have kept the fields cut short and I did not see much frost in the pastures. A lot of my grass is in between pine trees and the trees protected that grass. It looks like I will bee good for another 10 days. Our last frost is usually March 30. We are supposed to have a warmer than average March.
Jim
No bored on the boards so that?s good 30 here
Quote from: jtcmedic on March 07, 2019, 06:58:08 PM
No bored on the boards so that?s good 30 here
Good deal, so far, good reports. While this may or may not be boring to more experienced beekeepers, this is a learning experience for me, maybe others here also?
I am always learning and reading.ment to say no brood on the board. Haha
got down to 25 here last night
no worries, got to about 50 today and the girls were rockin
hefted the backs of my 2 hives and they're heavy :cool:
(http://drobbins.net/bees/bees_march7.jpg)
Saturday 3/9/19, 71F, first warm day in a week. One dead out, small cluster, maybe 300 bees. Hive had close to 50 pounds of capped honey which is now in the freezer for future nucs. A support quality hive so no big loss. I am guessing the low population is due to Varroa last fall or nosema Apis. Did see some brown splatter on inside of inner cover, not bad though. One out of fifteen hives gone, now down to fourteen hives.