August 8, 2023 -- It's Time To... Prepare Colonies for Winter

We have 11 weeks to prepare our colonies for winter.
At the end of October, a colony needs:

• 1 queen
• 30 pounds of honey minimum
• A large population of workers

The colony also needs drawn comb on all the frames of a deep super and all the frames of a shallow or medium super. A different configuration of supers is fine; just ensure the colony is ready for winter.Start now. Feeding syrup will encourage brood rearing, wax making, drawing comb, and storing honey. Feeding now will allow the colony to raise two cycles of worker brood. The workers raised now will keep the colony alive to springtime. Feed gallons and gallons of syrup, as needed. You can move frames of honey from a hive with more than enough to one that needs more honey; make sure the queen stays home.Please do not rely on the fall nectar flow; it is sporadic and unreliable. Feeding syrup will get the job done.