Beekeeping Seasonal Calendar: What to Do Each Season, From the Extension Guides

Late winter (brood starts)

Penn State: brood rearing begins in mid-February in the Northeast, which is when stores run down fastest. Heft the hive; add fondant or dry sugar on top if it is light (Penn State: fondant in winter, not syrup). Oregon State's rule for liquid: not below 57 °F daytime (the HBHC uses 50 °F). A broodless oxalic acid treatment (Penn State: when broodless) belongs here or in early winter, per the product label. Do not open the brood nest in the cold; a quick lift of the lid on a mild day is the inspection.

Spring (population increase)

Feed 1:1 in April and May if the colony is light (UNH; UGA: feed heavily when light). First full inspection on a warm day: queen laying, brood pattern, stores, space. Install packages and nucs (the installation guide). Inspect every two weeks from late spring to early summer (Penn State). Count mites; HBHC's spring threshold is 2 to 3 percent. Add the second brood box when the first is seven or eight frames drawn; add supers ahead of the flow. Swarm season: a crowded strong hive wants to swarm, and a split into a nuc box (the how-many-hives guide) is the beekeeper's answer. Bear fence on by May 1 (Maine).

Summer (peak)

Supers fill. Penn State's July dearth: forage drops in midsummer in the Northeast, robbing starts, and entrance feeders are a liability. Keep the count going (HBHC peak threshold: treat over 3 percent). Water nearby. A queen takes about 16 days from egg to emergence (Penn State), which is the clock to watch after a swarm or a split: a new queen is laying three to four weeks after the split. Harvest capped supers at the end of the flow (the harvest checklist).

Late summer (winter bees)

Penn State: the bees raised in August and September are the winter bees, living up to six months, and they are raised by a colony whose mite load is at its highest. This is the count that matters most. Treat on the label if the count is over the HBHC threshold, with supers off for Apivar and Apiguard; Formic Pro's label allows supers on. Reduce entrances against robbing.

Fall (population decrease)

Penn State: weigh, feed and combine. Feed 2:1 in September and October (UNH) until the hive reaches weight: UGA's minimum is 60 pounds of stores in Georgia; UF/IFAS puts the North at about 90 pounds of honey. Combine a weak colony with a strong one rather than wintering two weak ones. Count mites again after treatment. Stop syrup when days fall below 57 °F (Oregon State). Mouse guard on, entrance reduced, hive strapped, fence on until November 1 (Maine). Store extracted supers where wax moths cannot reach them.

Winter (dormant)

Leave them alone. Heft on mild days; fondant on top if light. HBHC's dormant threshold is 1 percent, and the broodless window is when oxalic acid works on the label's terms. Order bees for spring (Penn State: the fall before). Assemble and paint woodenware now so it cures (Betterbee's guide). Read the coating guide and the catalogues.

The year in a table

Season	Marker (source)	Jobs	Gear
Late winter	Brood from mid-Feb, NE (Penn State)	Heft, fondant, broodless oxalic per label	Fondant; EasyCheck
Spring	1:1 Apr to May (UNH); inspect every 2 weeks (Penn State)	Feed, inspect, install bees, count, add boxes, split, fence up May 1 (Maine)	Top feeder, second deep, nuc box, fence
Summer	July dearth (Penn State); peak threshold 3 percent (HBHC)	Supers, count, water, harvest	Supers, extractor, sieve, bucket
Late summer	Winter bees Aug to Sep, live up to 6 months (Penn State)	The count, treat on label, reduce entrances	EasyCheck, labelled treatment
Fall	2:1 Sep to Oct (UNH); 60 lb stores (UGA); syrup stops below 57 °F (Oregon State)	Weigh, feed, combine, recount, mouse guard, strap, fence to Nov 1	Top feeder, mouse guard, strap
Winter	Dormant threshold 1 percent (HBHC)	Leave alone, heft, order bees, build woodenware	Fondant; catalogue

Where this calendar is wrong

It is a Northeast calendar, because Penn State's and UNH's markers are. Georgia feeds in January and February (UGA); Florida has beetles and a winter flow; the Pacific Northwest has Oregon State's own course. The phases (brood start, increase, peak, decrease, dormant) hold everywhere; the months move. Your club's calendar is the local one.