Bingowings said:

The weather has been pretty crap this year but the bees are back and in greater numbers.

That's great news. If it was a mild winter, the colonies would build up to full strength much faster. They would also have more food on hand (stored honey not eaten during the winter) and flowers would be blooming earlier - more pollen for babies. They build up to full strength based on availability of food (stored or otherwise).

I have a feral hive up in a Pecan tree that was fully exposed throughout the winter and they survived. I was very surprised by that. The entire hive is exposed and subject to winter temps and storms. They are about one third their summer size, but they made it.

They're high in the tree. I'm not sure how I could do it, but I'll try to move them into a hive this summer.