Mile Hi Bees®

Availability & Timing

Our Colorado‑raised nucs are available April–May — and tend to sell out quickly. Package bees come from large producers, usually in California or Southern states, and typically arrive in March or April. If you prefer starting with a nuc, reserving one in December–January helps ensure availability.

Shipping

Our nucs are pickup only — transporting 5 frames of brood, honey, and a laying queen is simply too risky and costly to ship. Packages are usually shipped via the postal service or by semi-trailer, over long‑distances. 

Queen Acceptance

A nuc arrives with a fully accepted, actively laying queen whose pheromone signature the colony already recognizes. Queen failure in a well‑made nuc is rare, reducing the early season failure rate. In a package, the queen is a total stranger. Workers must first accept her as theirs and then chew through a candy‑plug to release her over several days.  

First‑Month Timeline

 A package colony spends its first 3–4 weeks drawing comb and waiting for new brood to emerge while the original workers age and die out. This is the danger window: small population, no comb, no stores, and total dependence on feeding. A nuc skips this phase. It arrives with drawn comb, emerging brood, food stores, and a growing population from day one — a critical head start of 3–4 weeks, which matters in Colorado’s short season. 

First‑Winter Survival

Nucs enter winter with larger populations, more stores, and queens that have been laying longer — all factors that improve overwintering. Surveys show package colonies have higher first‑winter loss rates. Both require proper Varroa management before winter bees are produced, but a nuc’s head start gives you more of a runway to get the colony ready for Colorado's cold, unpredictable winters.

First‑Year Honey

Beginners should not expect a surplus honey crop in year one, regardless of which option they choose. However, if conditions are ideal, a strong nuc placed in April can sometimes produce a modest surplus (20–40 lbs). A package installed at the same time is weeks behind and almost never produces a surplus in year one. 

 We believe in keeping things pure and simple. Our honey comes straight from the hive, harvested with care, gently extracted, and lightly strained. We then bottle it as is, just as nature intended: no additives, no artificial colors, no extra ingredients, and absolutely never pasteurized. Just pure, golden goodness for you to enjoy. 

The color and taste of honey can be shaped by various influences, including processing methods, climate, and seasonal changes. However, the primary factor is the flowers from which bees gather their nectar. Our light clover honey boasts a mild, delicate flavor, while our rich wildflower honey offers a bolder, more distinctive taste.

When stored correctly in a cool, dry place, honey has an indefinite shelf life. All raw honey—meaning honey that hasn’t been diluted or pasteurized—naturally crystallizes over time. This process is completely normal and can be reversed by gently warming the container in warm water, restoring its smooth texture without compromising its quality.

Please reach us at info@milehibees.com if you would like to ask us more great questions