What happens when hives are completely covered with snow. We did not have as much snow as we would have liked this year but we did have one set of four hives that were completely covered this spring. In the background is the beautiful North Saskatchewan River valley.

After removing part of the snow cover, we can see the cavity that was created around the hive wraps. The heat melts the snow and moisture from the hive causes ice to form on the walls. Hives seem to do really well in this protected environment.

Now that the snow is removed we can see the entire cavity. As these are singles they do not have a top entrance. I will shovel the snow from the entrances to make sure the bees can get out of the hives.