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First snow arrived before I finished my list — what genuinely must be done before the snow stays, and what can wait?

Hokkaido, fourth year, seven colonies. We had a proper fall of wet snow on Friday, and it caught me with half my autumn jobs undone. It's melted now and I've got maybe a fortnight before it comes back to stay, so I need to triage rather than work through my list in order. What's done: mite treatment finished and counted, colonies fed to weight, roofs weighted. What isn't: mouse guards on four hives, insulation above the crownboards on three, the entrance on one hive still at summer width, one floor with a cracked corner I meant to replace, netting against woodpeckers, and a stack of supers still sitting outside under a tarpaulin. My instinct on priority order: entrance and mouse guards first; insulation next; the cracked floor only if I can swap it in one lift on a mild afternoon; the supers moved into the shed whenever; netting last because the woodpecker risk here is in February. Does that order look right to the people who deal with real winters? And is there anything on the "can wait" list that actually can't — I'd rather be told now than find out in March.
#winter-prep#triage#snow#hokkaido
▲ 8 votes 💬 4 replies ✅ Solved
4 replies
QuebecBees · Nov 1, 2026 · ✅ Accepted answer
Quebec. Your order is right and I'd change only one thing: move the cracked floor up, not down. A floor that cracks further under snow load, or that lets a draught straight under the cluster all winter, is worth one careful lift on a mild afternoon now. Everything else on your "can wait" list genuinely can. Entrances and guards first, absolutely — that's twenty minutes that decides whether you have seven colonies in April.
SkaneBees · Nov 1, 2026
Skåne. Agreed. And get the supers under cover before the snow, not because of the snow but because wet comb under a tarpaulin in a mild spell is a wax moth nursery and a rodent hotel. It's ten minutes and it's on your list as an afterthought.
AlpineCarnica · Nov 2, 2026
Tyrol. One thing not on your list at all: walk each hive and check the roof actually sits down properly with the insulation in. Every year someone here adds a thick crownboard or a fondant eke and then the roof perches on it, lifts in the first storm and the colony winters with the lid ajar. Do that check when you fit the insulation.
HokkaidoHachi · Nov 2, 2026
Guards and entrances went on yesterday afternoon, floor swap tomorrow if it stays above 8°C, supers in the shed tonight. And I will absolutely be checking every roof sits flat — that's exactly the kind of mistake I'd make and not notice.
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