The Holidays are over so now is the time to fill those extra hours (if there is such a thing) with beekeeping activities. Just finished adding foundation to forty frames that I reclaimed from old dark comb. I also have about forty new frames ready for foundation. My goal is to have all my extra supers ready for use.

The next activity on my list is to take a quick peek into each hive on the next warm day. Weather reports are predicting 50 plus for Saturday which would work. I’ll also lift the back of the hives and make a guess as to the amount of honey available. I plan to make bee candy and have it ready for February feeding because stores can get very low in February. I pour my candy into heavy paper plates, the ones with no plastic coating and simply place it candy side down over the cluster when needed. My rule is that it is better to add sugar that never gets used than find the hive has starved. There are several good recipes on the internet. I don’t use corn syrup but most recipes call for it. Your decision.

It is also time to start the 2013 notebook so that all of this can be recorded. I have promised myself that I will keep better records this year so having the notebook ready to go would be a good start. The record keeping sheet I use is available on this blog. Also posted is a day length chart and 2013 single sheet calendar which I also include in my notebook.

Sometime in February I plan to start swarm control using a new to me technique known as CB/NM or checker boarding. The theory is to maintain space above the brood nest with empty comb alternating with frames of honey. To read about this process Google checker boarding for swarm control.

I’ll post when and how I do it and the results as I see them.