Keeping bees in this state

Florida is long. A hive in Orange County is not a hive in the panhandle.

Keeping Bees in Florida, UF/IFAS, says that unlike northern climates, honey bees here can fly, and queens can lay eggs, almost any time of year. Warm months also mean Varroa does not get a northern winter off. As of December 2022 that paper counted nearly 5,000 registered Florida beekeepers, about 85 percent of them backyard, 0 to 40 colonies.

The management calendar splits the state into three bands so a January job in Gainesville is not a January job in Orlando.

Three bands

• **North Florida.** Panhandle through Alachua, Levy, Putnam, and Flagler. Cooler winters. Brood can slow.
• **Central Florida.** Marion County through Sarasota County. Orange, Seminole, and Osceola sit here. Long brood year. Summer dearth.
• **South Florida.** The rest, including the Keys. Even less winter pause.

Read the state overview. Then the Central Florida calendar on the year page. Then the Orange County club UF actually names.

• Keeping Bees in Florida, Keeping Bees in Florida
• Florida Beekeeping Management Calendar, the Florida Beekeeping Management Calendar
• FDACS Beekeeper Registration