Bee colony in July

July is often associated with summer holidays and the height of summer. However, for beekeepers, it is a pivotal month. Some even refer to it as the beginning of the beekeeping year. It is an extremely important period for bees; neglecting it can significantly reduce honey production in the following year or, in the worst-case scenario, result in the death of colonies during winter.

This month should be divided into two periods.

First Half of July

With the linden trees finishing their bloom across much of Poland, the abundant nectar sources come to an end. Bee colonies respond by drastically reducing the feeding of the queen, causing her to lay fewer eggs. Older queens may stop laying eggs altogether. Colonies have many older worker bees, few young bees, and little brood. The bees become somewhat more long-lived, and the average age of worker bees increases. This leads to increased aggressiveness in some colonies and the occurrence of robbing.

The period of robbing, where foreign bees invade weakened and undefended colonies, continues until the appearance of natural foraging resources. Weak, robbed colonies weaken further and may die. Colonies after honey harvesting may require feeding, as the small amounts of nectar from nectar-producing plants are often insufficient, leading to starvation. In extreme cases, this results in their death, diseases, or absconding as a starving swarm.

During hot weather, some bees hang outside the hive entrance in clusters called beards to prevent the hive interior from overheating. In June or May, overheating and different colony compositions might lead to swarming, but in July, bees are much less inclined to reproduce. They are on the eve of winter preparations, and swarming, consuming reserves, rebuilding the nest, etc., could severely impact winter survival. At this time of year, only neglected, starving, diseased, or genetically predisposed colonies may swarm. In WindowBee™ observation hives, early July is a lazy period, and it is essential to ensure that bees have food reserves. You can read about queen replacement during this period here: Queen Replacement.

Second Half of July

This is the most critical moment of the year, and how we manage the bees in this and the following months will significantly impact their winter survival and condition in the next season. Mistakes made now will result in reduced honey harvests in the following year and, in extreme cases, can cause the collapse of the bee colony before or during winter.

This is because wintering bees come from eggs laid by the queen between approximately July 20 and September 10. Bees raised from eggs laid before this period will be too old before winter and will not survive until its onset; they will also not be physiologically prepared for wintering even if they do survive until winter. On the other hand, those raised from eggs laid after September 10 will not be able to complete their cleansing flights due to low external temperatures. Additionally, due to the frequent lack of pollen food – bee bread – in the hive, they will not develop sufficient protein-fat bodies to become long-lived and survive winter in good condition.

Therefore, in a bee colony, 90% of the wintering bees are raised from eggs laid between July 20 and September 10. These bees receive adequate larval food rich in royal jelly, bee bread, and honey; it is warm, they have time to feed on bee bread after pupation, and for the most part, they are not forced to feed the next generations of larvae. These bees feed themselves, becoming long-lived winter worker bees.

Unfortunately, due to environmental changes and increasingly impoverished plant cover, bees often starve during the periods when they need food the most. As a result, poorly fed queens lay fewer eggs. WindowBee™ observation hives are equipped with a special feeding system for bees during these critical periods. This is done simply by placing sugar syrup (water:sugar 1:1 or preferably invert syrup) in the amount of about 200-300 ml every other day in the dedicated feeder. Pour the food through the hole in the hive roof. Remember to provide the syrup in the evening, preferably at dusk, to avoid provoking the workers to search for food around the hive. Daytime feeding can lead to robbing if there are weaker colonies nearby or strongly stimulate bees to search for food around your windows. If the hive entrance is near a window, remember to close the window when the house lights are on in the evening. Bees may go out onto the window sill and, seeing the light, may try to enter the house. Therefore, the best time to feed is when you turn off all the lights in the house.

Such feeding gives the workers the illusion of a moderately abundant nectar flow, prompting them to feed the queen abundantly with royal jelly. The queen then starts laying more eggs after a few days. However, be careful not to overfeed the bees, so they do not fill the cells meant for eggs with syrup. There will be time for storing winter reserves later. If you start stimulating feeding around July 15, the queen will resume or intensify egg-laying by July 20, and you will have the first part of winter preparations behind you. If you live in an area with a rich late summer and autumn forage base, feeding may not be necessary, as the bees will bring in adequate amounts of food themselves.