November in the Central Oregon Apiary

Ah, the killing frost has come and gone, so no more running outside barefoot in your pajamas after dark to cover the tomatoes. The leaves are changing and falling, and many of us are starting to salivate as the mountains turn white.

At this point, your hives should be ready for winter. You can no longer feed with syrup—only honey-filled frames and emergency sugar. Most other tasks will need to wait until either a very warm day or next spring. Sometime this month, if you haven’t already, you should have any honey you’ve harvested extracted and packaged (remember the old saying about molasses in January).

What I really like to do in November is twofold: look back over the season and think about what you did that worked, what didn’t, and what you’d like to change. This can be quite a wrenching mental exercise if you have well-entrenched habits, techniques, or theories that aren’t working or have been disproved. But the only one who’ll know about your thoughts is you. Also, we can’t improve unless we acknowledge that what’s currently happening either isn’t working or isn’t optimal. And remember to celebrate your successes! Beekeeping as a hobbyist should be FUN and SASTISFYING.

On a lighter note (cue the pumpkin-spiced tea and holiday music), if bee-related gifts (or any other craft-style gifts) are in your plans for any of the holidays, now is an excellent time to get started on them. There are many possibilities for bee-related gifts, including honey, infused honey, creamed honey, candles, hand lotion, lip balm, propolis tincture, pollen for your cereal, wax wraps, and more. For some of these, if you didn’t have a bumper crop this year, you’ll need to plan ahead or work with another beekeeper to get the raw materials. I find joy not only in the giving but also in the creating and silently thank my bees for providing for us.

Allen Engle

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