Not That Bryan

My Bees Are Eating HOW Much?! 😳 (End of Summer Feeding Reality) 🐝 End of summer is where things get serious. Nectar starts to drop off. Resources tighten up. And suddenly… your hive starts going through food faster than expected. This one surprised me. Watch This Feeding and Hive Check ▶ See this video about how much bees really consume and how to manage feeding For more content beyond beekeeping: https://linktr.ee/thelongwayforward Why End of Summer Matters This is the turning point. Bees are no longer building unlimited stores. They are preparing for what’s coming next. And what they do now determines whether they survive winter. The Surprise in This Hive The biggest takeaway? How quickly this hive is consuming sugar syrup. Faster than expected. And that tells you something important. What High Consumption Means It usually points to one of two things. The hive is strong and actively storing The hive is lacking natural resources ...

I Opened This Hive… and Found Queen Cells 😳 (Now I Had to Decide) 🐝 This inspection didn’t go the way I expected. It started as a simple check. Honey levels. Hive strength. Maybe a frame or two to help another colony. Then I saw them. Queen cups. And suddenly… it wasn’t a routine inspection anymore. Watch This Hive Inspection ';"> ▶ See this video about finding queen cups and making hive management decisions For more content beyond beekeeping: https://linktr.ee/thelongwayforward What This Inspection Was Meant To Be The plan was straightforward. Check honey stores Confirm brood health Assess overall hive strength Possibly take a frame to support a weaker hive Nothing complicated. Why Long Langstroth Hives Are Different This hive uses a horizontal layout. No heavy lifting. No stacked boxes. Frames are easier to access and inspect. It makes decision making more controlled and less rushed. What Smoke Is Really Doing Smoke ...

This Long Hive Started Acting Different… So I Took a Closer Look Some hives just feel different. Not necessarily bad. Not obviously good. Just… different. That’s usually enough reason to open them up and see what’s really going on inside. This one has become one of my favourite hives to work with, but it hasn’t always been that way. Watch This Long Langstroth Inspection ';"> ▶ See this video about inspecting a long Langstroth hive and reading hive behaviour For more content beyond beekeeping: https://linktr.ee/thelongwayforward Why Long Langstroth Hives Feel Different This setup changes how you work with bees. Instead of lifting stacked boxes, everything runs horizontally. Frames sit side by side, making inspections smoother and less physically demanding. It creates a more controlled, relaxed way to move through the hive. This Hive Didn’t Always Perform Well When this hive was first set up, it struggled. Just a basic pine box, minimal in...

I Tried to Feed This Hive… They Had Other Ideas On paper, this was meant to be simple. Lift the lid. Top up the feeder. Close it back up. Easy job. But the bees clearly had a different plan. From the moment the lid came off, they were right there. Curious, alert, and just a little bit grumpy about the whole situation. Watch This POV Hive Feeding ';"> ▶ See this video about feeding a hive and working through defensive bee behaviour For more content beyond beekeeping: https://linktr.ee/thelongwayforward Why Feeding Matters at This Stage Feeding is not always about boosting production. Sometimes it is about helping a hive build enough reserves to get through tougher conditions ahead. In this case, the goal is simple. Build stores before winter and give the colony a buffer when natural flow slows down. The Setup Is Simple This is not a complicated system. A feeding frame sits inside the hive and is filled with sugar syrup. The mix here i...