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| Date: | Mon, 5 Jan 2015 08:21:22 -0000 |
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> IMHO it's these temps in late February/early March and late,
late springs (standing snow into May) that we've been having the last
few years that are hard on the colonies.
Yes, you have hit one of the nails right on the head there. Although the
days when this area had temperatures down below minus 20ēC seem to have long
gone (I guess minus 6ēC or minus 8ēC would be quite balmy for you), many
colonies can be lost in March and April if cold weather persists.
However, the biggest nail (if we ignore the varroa effect for a moment) is
the effect of the weather in late summer and through the autumn. Colonies
that go into winter with plenty of young bees and adequate stores of pollen
are in a far better condition to withstand a prolonged winter. If disease,
especially varroa, are controlled then it is usually possible to give a
fairly reliable estimate of likely losses by the end of the autumn.
Best wishes
Peter
52°14'44.44"N, 1°50'35"W
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