As A newer keeper I have some questions. I have a new hive this year that was hived in Mid may. I have done several inspections and all looks good. My question is......how will I know when it it time to adjust my hive opening and make it bigger? Thanks in advance
Kent J
I have been told that it is ok and most of the time better to keep the entrance smaller rather then larger. So long as there is not a big traffic jam at the entrance I would leave it small until the traffic becomes a problem.
I use screened bottom boards so ventilation is not an issue. If you are using regular/solid BB then maybe you will need to make a bigger entrance for ventilation. Someone who used the solid BB can tell you better.
In nature the bees have pretty small openings. I saw a hive in a tree that had a hole barely bigger then a dime.
Good luck with your beekeeping. A great tool is the search field on this forum you can find answers to all kinds of questions.
Congestion at the entrance should tell when it's time to enlarge the entrance. Most entrance reduces have notches of several sizes. I would probably go to an intermediate size due to the strength of flow that should be going on in most areas of the USA right now.