Summer is the period when the colony stores the most and the beekeeper should intervene the least. What happens is chiefly giving space and harvesting on time.

Space

• Add a super before three-quarters is full
• Use drawn comb where possible; foundation costs energy during a flow
• Do not open too often; every inspection interrupts the work

Heat

At high temperatures the colony spends its strength on cooling rather than foraging.

• Provide midday shade where possible
• Keep the open mesh floor open
• Widen the entrance on strong colonies
• Water is decisive; consumption rises sharply in heat

The end of the flow

The picture changes the moment the flow stops. The scale falls and the risk of robbing appears.

• Reduce entrances
• Work quickly; do not leave hives open
• Leave no comb lying in the open
• Spill no honey or syrup

The transition to late summer

The most important thing about summer is not the harvest but what follows. Winter bees are reared in late summer, and the mite load at that moment determines whether they can do their job.

The Varroa measurement therefore belongs in the summer plan, not the autumn one.

What can still be done in summer

• Requeening: Drones are available and there is time to mate
• Making nucs: They can still prepare for winter
• Brood interruption: After the main flow, before winter bees are reared
• Comb renewal: While there is still a flow, the bees build

What to watch

• Wasps and hornets; pressure rises in late summer
• Weak colonies; uniting comes before trying to save
• Stores; they can fall quickly once the flow ends