Ethan Brooks

Queen introduction fails in a laying worker colony because the workers themselves start producing queen-like pheromones, tricking the entire hive into believing a queen is already present. I learned this the hard way after watching three beautiful Italian queens get balled and killed within hours of introduction, even though I had followed every textbook step … Read more

A well-fed colony going into October is a colony that makes it through to March. Every fall, beekeepers face one make-or-break question: how much syrup does a colony need before winter? Starvation is the leading cause of winter colony loss, and most of those losses are preventable with proper fall feeding. The quick answer: a … Read more

Every beekeeper knows the feeling. You head out to your hive on a warm afternoon, ready for a routine inspection. You lift the inner cover, grab the first frame, and it will not budge. The comb is glued to the next frame, the one after that, and probably the one beyond that too. Your heart … Read more

If you have ever stood in front of an overwintered hive in early spring and wondered whether to split it now or wait, you are not alone. Every year I hear the same question from new beekeepers in our local club, and the answer almost always comes down to timing your spring split to the … Read more

I have pulled hundreds of frames over the years, and the first thing every beekeeper wants to know when they spot a peanut-shaped protrusion is simple: is this a swarm cell, a supersedure cell, or an emergency cell? The answer tells you whether to act fast, stand back, or run for a nuc box. This … Read more

Beekeeping month by month in Florida looks nothing like beekeeping anywhere else in the United States. While northern beekeepers pack their hives in November and wait for spring, Florida beekeepers manage active colonies twelve months a year. Our subtropical and tropical climate means nectar flows start in winter, swarm season can begin as early as … Read more

Knowing when to stop inspecting hives in the fall is one of the most common timing decisions every beekeeper faces. I have lost colonies to both over-inspection and under-inspection, so I have spent years refining exactly when to close the hive for the season. The short answer is simple. Stop your routine inspections when daytime … Read more

There’s a moment every beekeeper remembers: a call from a neighbor about a “ball of bees” hanging from a tree branch, and the small voice inside your head asking whether you should actually do this. I’ve caught around 40 swarms over the past decade, and the most important lesson I’ve learned isn’t a technique. It’s … Read more

Every spring, honeybee colonies split. The old queen leaves with roughly half the workers, and that cloud of bees goes looking for a new home. If you build a box that matches what they are searching for, you can catch them for free. Setting swarm traps placement height lure and timing is something I have … Read more

I pulled the second brood frame last spring and froze. There they were, three peanut-shaped cells hanging off the bottom bar, white and gleaming. My heart rate spiked and my first thought was, “The bees are leaving.” That moment taught me something every beekeeper eventually learns: finding queen cells during an inspection is not a … Read more