Hi y'all. This is the first in what I plan to be a weekly blog about what we are doing in the bees - I'll call it "INSIDE THE BOX."
This week, I had a chance to join fellow members of the Alamo Area Beekeepers Association at their annual San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo booth. The club sets up a great display hive and has lots of resources to share with folks there at the rodeo. Some awesome questions from kiddos and a whole evening of talking bees! Too fun!
Out in our hives all across South Central Texas, our team has been busy finishing off oxalic vaporization rounds and doing hive checks.
The big question is: Has spring sprung? Hard to say! While we’ve had some warmer days, the extended forecast still shows a few cold snaps ahead. Many of our hives are picking up activity, with brood growth (eggs, larvae, and baby bees) increasing, but we’re also seeing quite a few weak colonies running low on food.
To prevent starvation—especially during these unpredictable late-winter/early-spring weeks—we’ve been supplementing with 1:1 or 2:1 sugar syrup and offering small amounts of pollen patty to struggling hives. Right now, we’re still treating our bees like it’s winter, aiming to keep them well-fed and strong, with at least 10–30 pounds of stored food in a full deep box (and more is even better).
Once temperatures stabilize above 50–60°F, we’ll shift gears and start pushing colony growth. But timing is everything—mated queens won’t be available until the first week of April, and if March brings steady warmth, we’ll be scrambling to stay ahead of swarm season.
On a promising note, Agarita is blooming (thanks for the report, Brice!), which is often a signal that spring is about to take off. We remain cautiously optimistic—because, as always, Texas beekeeping is a wild ride! The weather changes daily, and adaptation is key.
🐝 Check out this week's YouTube video on how to build a Russian scion swarm lure (from last Saturday’s workshop)! And if you’re seeing anything new or interesting in your bee yards, email Charlie — we’d love to hear your updates!