Recent content by breezybee

Great. Thats what I was hoping. The rate they are working at the moment should mean the stores will be OK but it gives me peace of mind re nosema if they have at least a gallon of thymolated syrup.

I have reduced the entrance and the colony is the only one on the site. Wasps also not a problem at the moment. One hornet only seen so far.

Just placed a super three quarters full of uncapped honey beneath the broodbox of a colony who have not laid down any stores in their broodbox. I would like to give them some thymolated syrup as well but am worried that it might contaminate the super frames. If I wait until they move the honey...

I picked up a good tip from the forum. When putting wet supers back for clearing, put them on top of a crown board with just a small space left for access. The bees will clear the supers as though they were robbing and the leave when they have finished the job.

Fine if kept in the freezer apparently.

Bleach is great for removing propolis. Used neat it comes off easily.

Hi Sean I am just about to treat with MAQs. Any idea how often it can be applied on each hive?

violet

Small leaved limes are common around here on the Welsh/English border but I think the further east you go the less common they become. Nectar release can be a problem if weather conditions are not favourable

I find that making a wick out of a thin piece of cloth and draping it down from the feeder into the hive seems to be the best thing for getting the bees to take down medicated syrup

I find that if I cut the oasis to size, lay them out on a strip of cling film, prick each pad all over with a fork down through half its depth the 20 ml of mixture will soak up easily. Then fold up into the clingfilm and keep in a sealed plastic container until required. The recipe is very...

I have used propagators. I stand the propagator floor onto a 2 inch slab of polystyrene then stand the honey bucket in the propagator. I then wrap the lot in a thick duvet. I have managed to get the temp up to 52 C. Over 2 days even OSR is fluid and crystal free.

Thanks for all the replies. I managed to work out where hivemaker operates from. In fact I got my first two hives from him 5 years ago and they are still as sound as a bell. Heres hoping he has a queen. The following trait is a real pain. I moved my bees this winter as my husband was being...

Hi, Anybody got any tips on the best way to buy a mated Buckfast Queen. I started with Carniolans five years ago and my two colonies now have a following trait which I have been unable to sort out. I was warned that 2nd and third generation Queens could have feisty workers and this has proved...