Keeping Entrances Free of Snow

We had our first real snowfall of the new winter today. About 3-4 inches. I’ve posted a couple times before about the “snow visors” I built for some of my hives. I built them last year because I had several hives that were too far away to check after every every snowfall. I’ve since moved all my hives into the same yard, but some of them still have the visors attached. When I went out today to clear all the entrances, I was once again impressed by how well my little invention works. In the picture above, the hive on the left is fitted with a snow visor. The hive on the right is not. Notice how the hive on the right has its entrance completely blocked, but the one on the left is totally free of snow. Of course, the success of these visors is somewhat dependent on how much wind we have during a snowstorm, but mostly I’ve found them to be very effective at keeping hive entrances open for the bees. If you live in an area with real winters, and if you can’t check your hives every time it snows, these snow visors may be a cheap way to ensure your bees have freedom of movement after a snowstorm.