Winter Management

Winter Hive Management

Most colony losses happen between November and March — and most are preventable. SunnyBee gives you a complete winter management system: heft check rounds designed for gloves, step-by-step winterization checklists, spring opening records, and year-over-year winter history for every hive.

Download Free

Available on iOS and Android. No subscription required to start.

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Season Phase Tracking

Move each hive through PREPARATION → WINTER → SPRING phases manually — you decide when the season changes, not an algorithm. Every hive's phase is visible at a glance on the apiary screen.

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Glove-Friendly Heft Rounds

Tap one button per hive: Heavy, Medium, or Light. SunnyBee walks you through every WINTER hive in sequence, shows the previous result for comparison, and flags LIGHT colonies immediately. A full apiary check in under two minutes.

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5-Step Winterization Wizard

A structured checklist for every hive: Varroa treatment status → honey reserve level → queen confirmation and cluster size → physical setup (entrance reducer, mouse guard, super, ventilation) → notes and confirmation. Drafts auto-save so you can complete it across multiple visits.

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Spring Opening Records

Record survival, colony strength, queen signs, remaining honey, and hive condition in six guided steps. If a colony didn't survive, record the cause for future reference. SunnyBee automatically compares the reserves you entered winter with against what you found in spring.

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Fully Offline

Apiaries rarely have signal. Run complete heft rounds with no connection — every check is stored locally and synced automatically the moment you're back in range. Session keys prevent any data from being duplicated on sync.

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Winter History Per Hive

Every hive builds a winter record over the years: winterization details, heft check timeline, spring opening outcome, and year-over-year reserve comparison. Identify which colonies consistently struggle in winter before it costs you.

How It Works in the Field

01

Open the Apiary

Tap 'Start Heft Round'. SunnyBee automatically queues only your WINTER hives.

02

Check Each Hive

Three large colour-coded buttons — Heavy, Medium, Light. Designed specifically for beekeeping gloves.

03

Get Results

The summary screen shows counts by category and highlights any hive with critically low reserves.

Questions About Winter Hive Management

What is a heft check and why does it matter?

A heft check is a quick assessment of a hive's weight by lifting the back edge slightly — no opening required. Heavy means good honey stores, light means the colony is at risk of starvation. SunnyBee records every result and alerts you immediately when a hive drops to LIGHT during the winter months.

Does SunnyBee alert me if reserves are critically low?

Yes. After every heft round, SunnyBee highlights LIGHT hives in a summary screen and creates a reminder. If the colony entered winter with MEDIUM or HEAVY reserves and now reads LIGHT, that comparison is shown explicitly in the hive's winter history.

Can I record a spring opening before changing the phase?

Yes. If you open a hive early and it hasn't survived, you can record a spring opening — including cause of death — without first changing the phase. SunnyBee accepts emergency spring openings at any point during WINTER.

Does the winterization checklist work offline?

Yes. The entire winter management module — heft rounds, winterization wizards, and spring opening records — works with no internet connection. Data is stored locally and synced in the background when connectivity returns, using unique session keys to prevent duplicates.

Don't lose colonies this winter

SunnyBee Winter Management — heft checks, winterization, and year-by-year history, all in one app.

Download Free

Available on iOS and Android. No subscription required to start.

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