End of Year Beekeeping Evaluation

What Worked

This is the easiest and most fun question – what worked? Knowing what went well will help you to decide what to do next year. What went well or better than expected?

• Did a certain hive outperform the others?
• Did one yard produce more honey than the others?
• Did your colonies survive over winter?
• Was a particular Queen especially productive?
• Did you successfully split your hive(s)?
• Did you sell more honey at one market than another?

What Didn’t

Looking at our failures is never fun, but it helps us learn and grow. What did you do that didn’t go as well as planned?

• Did you use a certain feeder that leaked or ran out too fast?
• Did you not feed a colony that needed it?
• Did you pull honey too soon or too late?
• Did you wait too long for swarm management?
• Did you lose or kill a Queen?
• Did a hive get robbed out?
• Did you experience disease or pests?
• Did you keep a record or log?

This, of course, is not a full list of questions, just a few to help get you on the right track.

What Do I Want To Do Next Season?

What is something that you’d like to try next year?

• Did you read about a new technique you’d like to try?
• Do you want to experiment with a new hive style?
• Do you want to try new equipment?
• Do you want to dabble in Queen rearing?
• Do you want to collect swarms or cut-outs next spring?
• Do you want to sell Nucs or hives next year?
• Do you want to expand to new bee yards?
• Have you signed up for free insurance through the USDA?