Hi Deborah,
I am also in the Monterey Bay area. Reports are that it appears the drought was our largest problem last year. Beekeepers from Monterey area to Santa Cruz - Hollister to Palo Alto in the Santa Clara Valley and even down to Santa Maria on the Central Coast are reporting losing hives, treated or untreated. My suspicion is that due to the drought, the pollen quality was not up to par to give the bees sufficient protein to survive. But with buckets of rain falling by the minute with more on the way this should be a good year.
Wayne
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