1.4 - The reasons for opening a colony

Why open the hive?


Weekly inspection

1. Check for diseases
2. Check that the colony is Queenright and is expanding/contracting as you would expect at that time of the year
3. Check for signs of swarming
4. Check the stores, is there enough to last until the next inspection? An average hive will need 3 or so frames. 
5. Check there is enough space. There needs to be:

• Brood space for the queen to lay in
• Super space for processing nectar into honey
• Overnight space or the whole colony

Weekly - SQuiSSH

• Stores
• Queenright
• Swarming
• Space
• Heath

Occasional reasons

• Notice an excess of dead bees around the hive - could be poison or diease
• Heft the hive in winter to check stores
• Treat with Oxalic acid - only when there's no brood
• To check on a hive management process, e.g hive merging
• If you have been told there's a notifiable disease in your area and you need to check for it
• Top up feeder