An Important Lesson on Ventilation

Bees need room, food and ventilation to be happy. If one or more of these things are missing the bees will swarm to a new home where all three will be in balance.

It was evident this morning that the Sasha hive was lacking in ventilation! Thanks to our cooler days and even cooler nights, paired with the 90 degree temperatures inside the hive, there has been a build up of condensation on the inner cover. This was caused thanks to the sugar syrup in the top feeder and a piece of cardboard covering the hole of the inner cover.

Popsicle sticks in place
on the inner cover.

Thankfully, the fix is as simple as gluing a popsicle stick to each corner of the inner cover which then raises the articulating cover about 1/8" to allow for the flow of air.

Here in Southern Maryland, I use the screened bottom board as well as this popsicle stick ventilation technique throughout the winter as you certainly don't want cold condensation dripping down on the cluster!