March is one of the most critical transition points in the beekeeping year. Colonies are expanding, winter bees are aging off, brood production is ramping up, and nectar flows are just beginning. In this episode, I walk through the key management decisions that can determine whether your colonies thrive, swarm, or collapse in the weeks ahead.

What’s Inside This Episode:

• Why March is the most dangerous transition period for overwintered colonies
• The balance between declining winter bees and rising brood production
• When to feed, how to feed, and what not to stimulate too early
• Box management, reversing hive bodies, and when to add space
• Why I do not equalize weak colonies at the expense of strong genetics
• Early swarm pressure, queen cups, and how quickly things can escalate
• Inspection timing and how missing one queen cell can cost you half a colony

Why Listen to This Episode?

If you want strong colonies heading into spring instead of surprise losses or swarms, this episode gives you a practical framework for managing the most volatile month of the year.

More Info:

🌐 https://beekeepingfornewbees.com

🔗 https://bestbeekeepinggear.com

📺 https://youtube.com/@beekeepingfornewbees

💬 https://discord.gg/XzkqFKrjMJ

🫶 https://thehealinghiveproject.org

☕ https://buymeacoffee.com/beekeepingfornewbees

About the Podcast:

Beekeeping For Newbees is a top 1.5% podcast with over 650,000 downloads, helping new and experienced beekeepers grow stronger colonies and make smarter decisions through every season. Listen weekly for practical guidance, swarm stories, and honest takes on what works and what does not in real-world beekeeping.

Cold weather has a way of making even experienced beekeepers second guess everything. With unusually low temperatures showing up across large parts of the country, I wanted to take some time to walk through what cold actually means for overwintering colonies, how much additional honey they may consume, and when intervention does or does not make sense.

This episode is a general update covering several seasonal topics, including winter feeding philosophy, evaluating colony stores, progress on ongoing projects, and getting ready for spring.

What’s Inside This Episode:

• Why extended cold spells increase honey consumption and how much more bees may actually use
• Realistic weekly honey usage at different winter temperatures
• Why panic inspections often cause more harm than good
• How to assess colony weight and food stores without opening the hive
• Different feeding strategies and why context and goals matter
• Updates on the hive monitoring project and why it is temporarily paused
• Progress on the Master Beekeeper Program and what is coming next
• Swarm trap preparation and placement timing for the upcoming season

Why Listen to This Episode?

If cold weather has you worried about your bees or questioning your winter management decisions, this episode provides calm, experience-based perspective to help you evaluate what actually needs attention and what does not.

More Info:

🌐 https://beekeepingfornewbees.com

🔗 https://bestbeekeepinggear.com

📺 https://youtube.com/@beekeepingfornewbees

💬 https://discord.gg/XzkqFKrjMJ

🫶 https://thehealinghiveproject.org

☕ https://buymeacoffee.com/beekeepingfornewbees

About the Podcast:

Beekeeping For Newbees is a top 1.5% podcast with over 650,000 downloads, helping new and experienced beekeepers grow stronger colonies and make smarter decisions through every season. Listen weekly for practical guidance, swarm stories, and honest takes on what works and what does not in real-world beekeeping.

Laying workers are one of those beekeeping problems that feel intimidating until you understand what is actually happening inside the hive. After a listener reached out asking where to find guidance on laying workers and realizing it deserved its own episode, I finally sat down to break the topic down from the ground up.

In this episode, we walk through the pheromonal mechanics behind laying workers, what causes the condition, how to recognize it early, and several proven ways to correct it depending on your resources and goals.

What’s Inside This Episode:

• Why queen mandibular pheromone and brood pheromone are central to colony stability
• How prolonged queenlessness leads to ovary development in worker bees
• Clear visual signs that indicate a laying worker condition
• Why laying workers can involve multiple workers, not just one
• The role of brood pheromone, open brood frames, and synthetic QMP
• Practical options for fixing a laying worker colony, including splits, shake-outs, and recombining
• Common mistakes that cause queen introductions to fail in laying worker hives

Why Listen to This Episode?

This episode gives you the biological context and practical tools to diagnose and fix a laying worker situation with confidence.

Referenced Video About Hive Site Selection:

📺 https://youtu.be/UbJRAhoCD9Q

More Info:

🌐 https://beekeepingfornewbees.com

🔗 https://bestbeekeepinggear.com

📺 https://youtube.com/@beekeepingfornewbees

💬 https://discord.gg/XzkqFKrjMJ

🫶 https://thehealinghiveproject.org

☕ https://buymeacoffee.com/beekeepingfornewbees

About the Podcast:

Beekeeping For Newbees is a top 1.5% podcast with over 650,000 downloads, helping new and experienced beekeepers grow stronger colonies and make smarter decisions through every season. Listen weekly for practical guidance, swarm stories, and honest takes on what works and what does not in real-world beekeeping.