The cold weather has started after a pretty mild autumn. With the lack of honey flow during autumn along with the overall mild season means that some hives may not have enough honey, to get through winter. It is important to make sure your hives have plenty of supplies. To check you can lift the hives at the back. If they are heavy, they should be good. If they are light they will need feeding. If you are unsure and the weather is good, then maybe have a quick look. If the weather is not great or you are not sure, then it is a good option to put a feeder on and start feeding.
There have been detections of varroa at Helensburgh and Vincentia. This brings varroa a little closer to our region. I also note that there has been no further development of the Varroa Heatmap through the Wollondilly. This is good but vigilance will still be required coming into spring meaning testing for varroa will be important.