Dear bee-friends,

Spring is a critical time for a bee colony and one of the most difficult phases of the year, as brood activity causes a sharp increase in food consumption because the bees have to keep their brood warm – even if the temperature drops again.
The onset of brood activity can be recognised by the fact that the bees are already collecting pollen, mostly bright yellow, to provide their youngest with sufficient protein. However, the winter bees that brought the colony through the winter gradually die off.
In most cases, however, not enough young bees hatch to compensate for this loss. The colonies therefore continue to shrink.
In some regions it will take until the end of April, especially in the Alps and higher altitude areas, for the colonies to grow again. Beekeepers refer to this phase as the ‘drainage phase’.

The most important thing is that they have enough food. But even in spring, the bee colony and its heat balance are highly sensitive. Fewer and shorter interventions are therefore always better.

The bees will then be back at their sites at the latest so that they can pollinate nature – we are looking forward to that.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)