Category Archives: beekeeping

After two weeks out of the country, I had a chance yesterday to check in on the girls and see how they are doing. I had added an empty super to the hive before we left to be on the safe side. There was some comb drawn out but nothing significant. Everything else looked pretty normal but I did notice a huge increase in the amount of pollen being stored.

Unlike the pollen in the spring and early summer, this pollen is very white. I’d be interested to know what plants are in bloom right now that has white pollen. Austin did have a massive amount of rain last week, so I’m wondering if all the rain lilies are the source of this pollen. My only concern is that they seem to be using cells formally for brood to store this pollen in. There was also a reduction in the number of queen cells as well which is a good sign. At the end of the day, I just have to trust that they know best.

A cold front came through today bringing some random rain showers and much cooler temperatures. I’ll be very interested to see if the bearding on the hive is reduced this evening.

With temperatures hitting up to 105 degrees in the city, even the girls are complaining about the heat. Everything I’ve read seems to indicate it is just too hot for all of them to be in the hive at night. I’ve ordered a screened inner cover to help with ventilation, but it may not get here before the weekend.

There is good news on the horizon as the temperatures are predicted to break by Friday and the highs should be back in the low 90’s. Rain is also a possibility which would be great as Austin is looking a bit dried out after two weeks of hot and dry weather.

Apparently, mine are all hanging outside the hive.

I always just assumed that all the bees went inside the hive at night leaving just a few guard bees at the entrance. Since the temps here are hitting 100+ each day, my best guess is the hive is still too warm for all the girls in the evening. Maybe I need to set the alarm for 3:00 a.m. to see if they are still outside, or if they all finally go inside.