 Honey bees clearing out recently emptied emergency queen cells. Photo by Eric Malcolm, June 25, 2026, College Park, MD. | Time in the Yard: 6 hours 20 minutes Avg Time per Colony: 7 minutes Total Colonies: 67 Temperature (°F): Hi: 91° Low: 58° Avg: 75.21° Total Precipitation: 0.74” |
Actions:
Performed full colony health inspections and sampled overwintered colonies for Varroa (n=22). Took a count of supers with capped honey to prepare for harvesting and extraction. Added supers with foundation to package colonies for space (n=24).
Observations:
We spotted evidence of successful emergency requeening in one colony. Two colonies observed had entombed honey and pollen in their brood chamber, which can be an indicator of pesticide presence. One colony was recorded as Queen Not Seen (QNS), where no eggs were seen, but there were plenty of very young larvae and the colony behaved as if queen right. Most overwintered colonies have 1 super of capped honey and are working on their second super. Very few small hive beetles (SHB) seen in the operation this week. Only one colony had 12 beetles that we dispatched. The most exciting find of the week was a female Black Widow spider and 3 egg sacs hanging under a lid of a hive.
Reflections:
There still appears to be a lot of options for foraging but the nectar flow has slowed significantly. We are not seeing the same slow and steady build up we saw over the past few weeks regarding food stores. As population growth slows, we will be keeping a close eye on space and removing empty or unneeded boxes from the hive. We are planning to harvest within the next 3 weeks.
Things in bloom:
Russian Sage, Dutch Clover, Elderberry, Sweet Yellow Clover, White Sweetclover, Golden Raintree, Chicory, Common Cinquefoil, Yucca (Adam's Needle), Oakleaf Hydrangea, Common Yarrow, Magnolia, Purple Crown Vetch, Daisy Fleabane, Mullein, Orange Day-lily, Mimosa tree, Narrowleaf Mountain Mint, Clustered Mountain Mint, Virginia Mountain Mint, Queen Anne’s Lace, Crepe Myrtle, Staghorn Sumac, Winged Sumac, St. John’s Wort, American Pokeweed, Blue Vervain, Hare’s Foot Clover, Field Bindweed, Early Goldenrod, Black-eyed Susan, Milkweed, Amur Honeysuckle, Daisy Fleabane, Leatherleaf Viburnum, Dogbane, Glossy Abelia, Japanese Knotweed
Performed full colony health inspections and sampled overwintered colonies for Varroa (n=22). Took a count of supers with capped honey to prepare for harvesting and extraction. Added supers with foundation to package colonies for space (n=24).
Observations:
We spotted evidence of successful emergency requeening in one colony. Two colonies observed had entombed honey and pollen in their brood chamber, which can be an indicator of pesticide presence. One colony was recorded as Queen Not Seen (QNS), where no eggs were seen, but there were plenty of very young larvae and the colony behaved as if queen right. Most overwintered colonies have 1 super of capped honey and are working on their second super. Very few small hive beetles (SHB) seen in the operation this week. Only one colony had 12 beetles that we dispatched. The most exciting find of the week was a female Black Widow spider and 3 egg sacs hanging under a lid of a hive.
Reflections:
There still appears to be a lot of options for foraging but the nectar flow has slowed significantly. We are not seeing the same slow and steady build up we saw over the past few weeks regarding food stores. As population growth slows, we will be keeping a close eye on space and removing empty or unneeded boxes from the hive. We are planning to harvest within the next 3 weeks.
Things in bloom:
Russian Sage, Dutch Clover, Elderberry, Sweet Yellow Clover, White Sweetclover, Golden Raintree, Chicory, Common Cinquefoil, Yucca (Adam's Needle), Oakleaf Hydrangea, Common Yarrow, Magnolia, Purple Crown Vetch, Daisy Fleabane, Mullein, Orange Day-lily, Mimosa tree, Narrowleaf Mountain Mint, Clustered Mountain Mint, Virginia Mountain Mint, Queen Anne’s Lace, Crepe Myrtle, Staghorn Sumac, Winged Sumac, St. John’s Wort, American Pokeweed, Blue Vervain, Hare’s Foot Clover, Field Bindweed, Early Goldenrod, Black-eyed Susan, Milkweed, Amur Honeysuckle, Daisy Fleabane, Leatherleaf Viburnum, Dogbane, Glossy Abelia, Japanese Knotweed