What Most Beekeepers Decide Too Early Before Spring
Most beekeepers think January is still neutral.
It isn’t.
By January, a lot is already “decided”.
Not on paper.
In the head.
Which colonies will matter.
Which ones probably won’t.
How many hives spring will really start with.
Nobody says it directly.
But the season already has a shape.
What usually gets decided too early:
- which colonies are worth attention
- which ones will just be carried along
- how many splits feel “realistic”
- how much room there is for surprise
None of this feels like a decision.
It feels like realism.
The problem is timing.
January information is thin.
Spring behaviour isn’t visible yet.
Still, the picture hardens.
Once it does, it rarely gets updated.
Later, when conditions change, decisions don’t.
They just get justified.
Most spring outcomes are not caused by weather.
They are caused by what was quietly ruled out weeks earlier.
January isn’t dangerous because people act.
It’s dangerous because they conclude.
If something can still move in spring,
don’t freeze it now.
That’s it.