Time and commitment

The amount of time you need to spend be keeping will depend up on the season and how many colonists you have.
Spring and Summer are the busiest times. expect to spend around 2 hours a week or more inspecting the colony to make sure it has enough food and is free from disease.
Regular inspections will be necessary to ensure that the colony will not swarm. Swarm control will take extra time.

Honey extraction takes quite a few hours in the Autumn depending on how many colonists you have. Expect to spend least 2-3 days.

October onwards: when you have settled the bees down for the winter there is less work. Inspections would only be quick and only necessary if you are concerned that their food stores are in short supply.

The hive would have to be checked on a regular basis to see if it is sound especially after snow or bad storms and winds.
Now is the time for cleaning up spare equipment (this can take quite a while) and planning and preparing for the new beekeeping year.

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