Missouri weather is a roller coaster, and the past weeks had a few nice days we couldn't ignore. With the sun finally peeking out and the temperatures jumping, it was time to pull lids and face the music.

This is the "raw" part of the journey I promised you.

We went into the winter with 30 hives. After a full inspection, we are sitting at 25.

Losing hives never gets easier. You spend the winter wondering, hoping your preparations were enough, but the reality of beekeeping is that not everyone makes it to the finish line.

On the flip side, the remaining 25 hives look fantastic. Opening a lid and seeing a cluster of bees humming with energy is the best shot of adrenaline a beekeeper can get. We’re already seeing pollen coming in and small, healthy patches of brood starting to develop. The girls are officially punching the clock for Spring, but we are not out of winter yet.

The brood is starting to grow, which means the energy demands of the hive are skyrocketing, but the nectar flow is still a ways away. To get them across this "starvation gap," we’ve placed fondant on every single hive. It’s our insurance policy to make sure they don't run out of fuel just as they reach the home stretch. As we start to see warmer temperatures in March, we will start to feed thin sugar syrup to stimulate them—and hopefully, we'll be ready to split in April.

Scaling to 100 isn't a straight line up; it’s a jagged path of steps forward and steps back. We lost some ground, but the 25 that remain are the foundation of our survivor stock for the year.

Stay tuned, as we prepare for queen grafting and making splits.

— Licking Mo Honey