We have made it to March; a month that is extremely important to bees, beekeepers, and beekeeping in our area. Colonies need to be evaluated for food reserves, queens, expansion space, pests/diseases, condition of equipment, and intended use for the year. Examinations are best done on a calm, sunny day with temps around 60 degrees or better, and need to be done quickly; while still being able to answer the needed evaluations. Often colonies will perish just weeks, or even days, before the 1st good nectar flow; thus the reason for verifying that all is well within the hive. March is the time many plants begin blooming, some of which are already doing this (maples, elms, willows, crocus & other spring bulbs, several low-growing weeds, etc.). These small, early flows are used almost exclusively for brood rearing and are not converted into stored honey. Dead colonies should be removed from the apiary and examined to try & determine the cause of death before returning equipment to use.

     My first exam came earlier this week, with temps in the upper 60's, partly cloudy skies, and a fairly decent wind. (Sometimes ideal conditions are hard to find) I came with pollen subs and notepad in hand. Some of my findings were these:
     
     * Most hives are lighter than expected in capped honey.
     * All colonies are rearing brood; some even have emerging workers.
     * No space issues at this time.
     * The battle with Small Hive Beetles and Varroa mites has already begun.
     * Saw no sign of brood diseases at this time, did see SHB & Varroa active, and
        bees attempting to deal with them. (Smashed all SHB I could)
     * Noted a few frames to be replaced & a couple of boxes needing repair.
     * Began identifying colonies for honey production/increase.
     * Removed 1 dead colony. Disassembling this at home, I quickly found the problem: 
       a pair of field mice had enlarged the entrance reducer to get in and began nesting,
       devouring food reserves, and driving the bees into an upper corner where they starved.
     * Will have to replace comb with foundation as the bees often don't clean or use comb
       contaminated by mice.
 
     All in all; things are good, but will probably have to begin feeding a 1:1 sugar syrup or dry sugar to supplement stores. With the pollen subs and the large amounts of pollen the bees are bringing in, they should be good, - it is the honey reserves that concern me. Also the early start to the beetles & mites concerns me.

     March is of great importance to me because the 1st nectar flow I try to capture is the one from the black locust tree. In order to have my bees ready, I practice what has been called the "42 days to foraging" or "common sense" technique. Since most workers become field bees and begin foraging about 42 days from the time the queen deposited them as an egg in a worker cell, I count backwards 45-50 days prior to the black locust bloom and do all that I can to try and stimulate brood rearing. This tree, on the average, blooms around May 5th to 10th in my area. Therefore, I begin stimulative feeding (1:1 sugar syrup & pollen subs) in earnest around March 15th and continue on into April. 
     This is also when empty, drawn comb (from the previous year) is added to the brood boxes in place of any frames with large amounts of old and/or drone comb, honey, nectar, or pollen reserves in order to give the queen more room to (hopefully) lay a few more eggs. Also, if the bees are fully into an upper brood box, you can reverse boxes at this time; putting the empty brood box over the broodnest. Be careful not to divide the broodnest this early if the bottom box still contains part of the cluster & brood. 
     Unfortunately, March can occasionally be unkind for broodrearing and colony manipulations; and often one just hopes for the best. Even when things do go right, with the short blooming period for black locust, 3 to 4 days of bad weather during peak bloom can make it all for naught. This technique can be used for any nectar flow if you know approximately when it begins in your area. Learning the individual flows in an area and targeting certain hives towards collecting these flows is part of becoming an experienced and wise beekeeper. The timing of your increase in foragers is an essential in capturing these individual flows and increasing honey production because an abundance of foragers are what is needed prior to and during a large or sustained nectar flow.

     I'd like to remind you that our next meeting will be March 30th at the St. Clair County Farm Bureau in Belleville, IL. Ken Schaefer will give a presentation on swarm collection and I will have a video from Jamie Ellis concerning the #1 problem facing our bees. The Swarm List, Summer Meeting Host List, and dues collection will be ongoing. Dues need to be paid by April in order to avoid being dropped from the membership. Hope to see you all at the next meeting,

Your President, 

Terry Combs.