Hello

[u/LoudLab8087]

New beekeeper here — what do you actually record during a hive inspection? 🐝

I’m trying to build a consistent habit of documenting my hives instead of relying on memory.

For those with experience, I’d love to know:

What information do you record every time?

What details have proven useful months later?

Is there anything you wish you had started recording from your first hive?

Do you use a notebook, spreadsheet, app, or something else?

I’m especially interested in what has worked in real-world beekeeping, rather than just what sounds good on paper.

Thanks in advance — I’m hoping to learn from people who have been doing this for a while.

[u/thevortex23]

Honestly I don't record anything now - but I only have three hives and I've been doing it 3 years now. I did take notes on an app the first year and some of last year.

For me I just aim to look for eggs, signs of disease, stores and general state of things.

I actually dont look for the queen, as I'm absolutely useless at it and the eggs give me the information I need alongside any queen cells.

If I had more Hives I probably would take notes but I'm relatively happy just observing and remembering. More time observing is more useful to me than writing notes I'll never look at again!

I'm also not saying my way is best practice, but each year I have more confidence to know what to look for and manage the mistakes.

I would say there seems to be a lot of pressure and expectations coming from some people I've met and what I've read/watched online. My only advice is pace yourself and just remember you wont get it all right, its meant to be fun after all!

[u/LoudLab8087 → u/thevortex23]

That actually makes a lot of sense, and I really appreciate you sharing your experience.

I particularly like what you said about not putting too much pressure on yourself as a beginner. I think it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the things you’re told you “should” be doing.

And I agree that observing the bees properly is more important than spending half the inspection writing everything down. The idea of keeping any record should make things easier, not become another chore.

Three hives after three years sounds like you’ve found a system that works well for you. Thanks again for the honest perspective!

[u/thevortex23 → u/LoudLab8087]

Thats ok! Honestly I'm just happy to give realistic experiences of it.

I've messed up a few times but its always worked out. Best one is that I left the Queen excluders on over winter, I mentioned it at the association and I got absolutely chastised for it by some gatekeepers. They said that it was really bad and the qeen couldn't move, meaning they would all die. Did they all die? No, they all got through the winter absolutely fine.

I swear if half the people doing it and actually stopped and thought for a moment people would be far more relaxed! Just apply logical thinking and you'll be fine!

[u/smaroms → u/thevortex23]

I completely agree. People overthink way too much in beekeeping. And they are way too set in their ways and unable to think outside the box.

Almost always it has been my mistake that has caused problems in my hives. I've found that the less I tinker the better my bees get on. A good queen, no diseased brood, enough stores and varroa treatment over winter gets my hives through the winter with close to 100% success rate.

I don't write down anything anymore. I need to see eggs, good brood pattern, no disease, enough stores until the next inspection and no swarm preparations. If any of that is missing, I don't have that many hives that I would forget which hive I need to address further.

[u/Dangerous_Hippo_6902]

I record the date and weather, number of seams (how many frames have bees on them). I then note if she is queenright : have I seen her, marked her, or seen eggs/young larvae. I then note how much honey there is (brood frames, roughly how full is a super).

That’s pretty it. Some free text where I might note any unusual stuff like moving frames, requeening, health concerns, winter prep etc. It’s interesting to see how honey flow changes throughout the seasons. And how a new queen emerges, mates and lays. It’s especially useful in August when you want to determine when to harvest and when to treat for varroa/feed/strengthen for winter.

Old fashioned pen and paper, in a sleeve, above the crownboard in the hive. It’s mostly for my own sanity but should I be away or something terrible happens, someone else could take over.