As spring stretches into full bloom, May marks one of the busiest—and most important—months of the beekeeping year. Colonies are growing rapidly, nectar is flowing, and swarming season is in full swing. Your actions this month will shape the strength of your bees through the summer and into fall. Here’s what every beekeeper should focus on during May:
1. Keep Inspections Consistent and Thorough
By May, hive inspections should happen every 7 to 10 days. During each check, look carefully for a healthy queen, a strong brood pattern, and signs of overcrowding or swarm preparation. It’s important to ensure the queen has plenty of room to lay—if brood nests are too congested, bees will start thinking about finding a new home.
In northern states, inspections may just now be picking up due to late spring weather. In southern regions, colonies are already in full swing.
2. Stay Ahead of Swarming
Swarming is a colony’s natural way of reproducing, but losing half your workforce can set back your honey production dramatically. In May, it's critical to look for queen cells—especially along the bottoms of frames—and act quickly if you see them.
To reduce swarming risk, add space by placing additional supers or brood boxes. If a hive is extremely crowded, making a split is often the best strategy. Once bees start building swarm cells, your window to intervene is short, so vigilance is key.
3. Add Honey Supers Before the Hive Gets Crowded
Timing is everything when it comes to honey production. As your colonies expand and nectar flow increases, be ready to add honey supers before bees run out of room. If you have drawn comb available, use it—it allows bees to store nectar faster without expending energy on building new wax.
If you wait until the hive is completely full before supering, you risk triggering a swarm or missing out on a honey flow. May is a month to stay just one step ahead.
4. Monitor and Manage Varroa Mites
Even in spring, Varroa mite levels can climb quickly. Conduct mite checks using a sugar roll or alcohol wash, and be ready to treat if counts rise above safe thresholds.
If honey supers are already on, choose treatments carefully—products like Formic Pro and HopGuard are appropriate for use during honey flows. Don’t wait until the summer heat makes treatment options more limited.
5. Watch Food Stores and Adjust Feeding Carefully
In most regions, natural nectar and pollen should now be abundant, reducing the need for supplemental feeding. However, if you're working in an area with a late spring bloom or inconsistent weather, keep an eye on colony food reserves.
If needed, continue feeding a light 1:1 sugar syrup to stimulate brood rearing—but avoid overfeeding once nectar flow is underway, as it can lead to backfilled brood nests and poor queen laying.
6. Refresh Brood Frames
Rotating out old, dark comb helps reduce disease pressure and supports a healthier brood. May is a good time to replace two or three frames per brood box with fresh foundation or clean drawn comb. Over time, this gradual replacement helps maintain a strong, vibrant hive.
7. Stay Alert for Pests and Diseases
Spring warmth also brings the resurgence of pests like small hive beetles (especially in southern states) and diseases like chalkbrood or American foulbrood.
Set out beetle traps as a precaution and keep your equipment clean. Quick action at the first signs of trouble can save a colony—and sometimes your entire apiary.
8. Expand Your Apiary Through Splits
If you have strong colonies bursting with bees, May is the ideal time to make splits. Dividing healthy hives into smaller nucleus colonies (nucs) helps control swarming, increase hive numbers, and gives you backup colonies in case of future queen failures.
You can introduce purchased queens to splits for faster buildup or let the colonies raise their own queens if conditions are right.
9. Requeen When Necessary
If you notice a spotty brood pattern, signs of a failing queen, or aggressive behavior, consider requeening now. A young, vigorous queen introduced in May will give your colony time to build strength and productivity before summer’s peak.
10. Get Ready for Summer and Harvest Season
Finally, use May to prepare for the months ahead. Repair and organize extra hive equipment, assemble honey supers, and ensure you have extraction equipment ready. Planning ahead now saves time—and stress—when the busy harvest season arrives.
Final Thoughts: May Is a Month of Opportunity
In many ways, May is the turning point for your bees. A healthy hive, well-managed through May, will reward you with strong populations, heavy honey supers, and resilient colonies moving into summer.
Stay observant. Stay proactive. And most importantly—enjoy the incredible energy of your bees as they make the most of spring.
🐝🌸 Happy beekeeping!