Colony meters
- Colony strength and Brood pattern (%).
- Honey stores in pounds against a winter target of 75–100 lb (colder zones need more; winter adds 5).
- Queen quality and queen state (prime, mature, aging, poor pattern, queenless, supersedure, replacement pending).
- Varroa in mites per 100 bees, against an action threshold of 1 (winter and spring) or 2 (summer and fall).
- Capped honey super (target 95%).
Actions
| Action | Cost | Effect | Rules |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inspect | Free | Records strength, brood, stores, queen and symptoms; +3 XP | Good weather; once per farm week. Due every 4 weeks, every 2 weeks in May–June swarm season |
| Sample Varroa | Free | Measures mites per 100 bees (does not treat) | Good weather; due monthly and after treatment |
| Record IPM action | 22 coins | Cuts mites by about half; brood −3; a follow-up sample is due | Needs a sample from the last 4 weeks at or above the threshold; not with AFB-like signs |
| Add honey super | Free | Adds surplus space that fills with capped honey when bees forage | Strength 55%+; one at a time |
| Feed if indicated | 12 coins | +18 lb stores (+12 with dry sugar in cold weather) | Only when stores are below target and no super is on |
| Schedule requeen | 85 coins | A new queen is judged next week (92% acceptance) | Not while one is pending |
| Make managed split | 35 coins | Creates a daughter colony (+7 XP); the parent loses strength and brood | May–June only; strength 82%+, brood 68%+, queenright, good weather |
| Quarantine & contact regulator | Free | Stops movement and extraction for AFB-like signs | Shown only when flagged |
| Install replacement nucleus | 190 coins | Restarts a lost colony | Needs a mapped yard |
What happens each week
- Weather, forage and habitat change strength, brood and stores; cold weeks eat stores.
- Mites grow faster in warm weeks with lots of brood; stress rises above the threshold, with low stores, without a queen, on wet or windy sites, and with disease.
- Queens age; past two years they can fail.
- Chalkbrood or Nosema risk can appear in damp or cool weeks; a very rare AFB-like flag can appear in weak colonies.
- A colony is lost if strength reaches 4% or it runs out of stores in severe cold. Its record stays for review.
Tips
- Sample first, then treat only above the threshold: the game blocks treatment without a current sample.
- Check stores in fall: the Apiary Scout reminds you in September–October.
See also
Written from the game itself. Spot something out of date? and our farm team will check it.
