I pretty much did a hands off in my bee hives this year. Just 3 hives and 2 we're pretty small coming out of winter.
At one point I had about 40 hives which required way too much time to try and manage.
Anyway I pulled about 30 lbs off the strongest hive to crowd them down to 2 boxes for the winter.
They still have a lot of honey for them to consume this winter.
I can always make a sugar block for them if they run low before spring nectar flow.
Moisture content is well below fermentation level.
At one point I had about 40 hives which required way too much time to try and manage.
Anyway I pulled about 30 lbs off the strongest hive to crowd them down to 2 boxes for the winter.
They still have a lot of honey for them to consume this winter.
I can always make a sugar block for them if they run low before spring nectar flow.
Moisture content is well below fermentation level.