Dad Interviews the Steiner Bro’s on Wintertime Beekeeping.

The take home from Dad’s interview with the Steiner Bro’s about bees. 1. It’s not possible without a great mentor, 2. It’s a lot less work in winter.

by Chad Steiner

The Steiner Bro’s are entering their 3^rd year of beekeeping. They started in 2023 with a Flow Hive. This was a great way for them to start and learn. With the help of their bee mentor Craig, they were able to get a swarm to make their home in that hive and produce enough honey to sell. Which gave them funds to invest the following winter into more regular hives. Unfortunately, their first hive didn’t survive the bitter -F temperatures we had during the winter of 2023/2024. But, with lots of work and help from Craig, the boys ended up with 7 hives in 2024. New queens, mean queens, swarms and lots of other activities resulted in a great honey crop for the boys. So far, the hives are doing well this winter. Spring is just around the corner and the boys are looking forward to seeing the bee’s “take off” this spring.

Follow along for my Q&A with The Steiner Bro’s over breakfast:

Question from Dad: How does wintertime bee keeping compare to summertime bee keeping?

Steiner Bro’s Answer:

• Not as much work as summer.
• More work in spring and summer.
• In the summer you have to move frames around, not in winter.
• Lots of “inspection” to see if they have enough food during winter.
• We made our own sugar cakes to feed the bee’s.

Question from Dad: How did you prepare the bee’s for winter?

Steiner Bro’s Answer:

• Treated for mites.
• Put insulation on.
• Put up a wind block.

Question from Dad: What are the bee’s doing in winter?

Steiner Bro’s Answer:

• They form a circle around the middle of the hive. Almost like penguins. They rotate in and out of the middle. They’re basically trying to stay warm and eat.

Question from Dad: What are you thinking about for spring?

Steiner Bro’s Answer:

• Hoping they all lived. So far so good.

Question from Dad: Anything else?

Steiner Bro’s Answer:

• We checked the bee’s regularly. Some were upset when we added sugar because we had to open the top.
• On nice days the bee’s carry out other dead bee’s and drop them far from the hive. They also come out to go to the bathroom.

It was fun interviewing the boys. It seems like they’re looking forward to spring with the bee’s.

Have a great weekend all!

Cheers,