I’m a new be keeper and just made it through my bees made it through the first winter. It Ontario winter was abnormally warm but they made it. They are out flying and it appears that there are many. I have not opened the hive yet. I’ve read that i should remove the insulation until the end of May as our nights are still cool. Close to zero and chances of a bit cooler. Day forcast is 10-14°C. For the next couple weeks.
I still have the rodent reducer on. Should i be removing it now?
I would love to split into a second hive this year. The hive is already set up in place. When and how should i do this cost effectively?
Should i be treating for mites soon and with what?
Are pollen packs recomended this early?
Thank you for your replies
Fantastic! Congrats 
You can do a partial inspection on a sunny low/no wind day in the 10-14c range. Higher would allow you to spend a longer time looking at frames, but you can see enough to do a split and may have to imminently to avoid a swarm.
At this point your bees will be active in the hive and patrolling the entrance, so yes you can remove the mouse guard.
It’s a good possibility! I am a fan of walkaway splits because they’re simple & usually work fine. Timing is very important though and I suggest you read up on splitting to preempt swarms to ensure you’re taking the right steps at the right time.
I put oxalic acid sponges into all my hives this week and last when I inspected them for the first time this season. The sponges create a slow-release of OA throughout the hive and have worked very well for me. But there’s a lot to learn about varroa and various treatments, so I suggest reading up on that too so you can get a well-rounded perspective.
If you see bees bringing pollen home then there’s probably no need to supplement.
Good luck & keep us posted!
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Ok. I did the split today…
The hive was full of brood, ample pollen, drone larvae etc.
The timing was good; I was given a free Italian queen and needed to pick up today.
I had the second hive ready to go. all was set up
I could not find my written in the hive. I spent a lot of time coming through to find her. The split was later in the afternoon early evening. 430. I know a bit late in the day but work cuts into my new hobby.
I still completed the split with the appropriate frames. I babe NOT introduced the new queen yet. I’m leaving the hive , i think, queen less for a couple hours.
Any suggestions?
Put the queen in the hive and hope for the best?