At this time of year we run through a series of checks, including ‘hefting’! Hefting is when a bee-keeper very slightly lifts one side of the hive. From this, they can accurately judge the hive’s weight and they’ll know whether the bees have stored enough honey. Bees solely feed on honey and typically they need around 20kg of food to get through winter. 

During the winter months there are no flowers to forage and it becomes too cold for bees to fly. So, like many other creatures that stock up for winter (us humans included!), bees work tirelessly in summer to make sure they produce and store enough honey for winter. 

If the hive is light, we provide supplement feed to ensure the hive will survive the cold weather. This is exactly what we’ve done for your hive here. The brown box has food inside it for an extra boost to hopefully help your bees get through winter.