Recent content by DALEGREEN

Merely that before I could organise my kit they flew over the hedge and over a farmer's field into which I could not go.

I need to relocate a couple of National Hives. Can anyone recommend the best ratchet straps to keep the hive together when moving. 25 mm straps seem a bit flimsy?

So having caught and hived two swarms in the past week or so there was another today. The ones I caught before are still in the new hives so is it likely that to be a new swarm. I hade one hive and a colony in a roof. Two weeks ago a swarm formed which I was too slow to capture so this makes 4...

I have put on cardboard box inside a second and will lift them up on a stand with a cover over to keep off the rain(if any comes). So sounds like they could stay for long enough for the new kit to arrive. That will be one hive to three inside a week. Yikes!

ok so the swarm from saturday seem to be settled in the nuc. I hae ordered a new national box ready to transfer them when ready. Today however I have a new swarm. The bees in the nuc still seen to be in there so this looks like a different swarm. I have no kit at present so I have caught them in...

So here they are an hour later. All in now so I,ll move the nuc to its place tonight. Hopefully thet will be my second hive started. Should they stay in a nuc this year?

So another swarm in my garden today. I caaught it in a box and tipped into a nuc but the are not all inside. Do I leave them to it or sweep them in and close it up. Last one disappeared into the distance before I caught them at all.

Ah thanks. WAited too long and although they gave the nuc lots of attention they disappeared into the distance.

So I have a bait hive out(Poly nuc) and a swarm has settled in a tree 15 yards away. There are scouts checking the nuc. Should I wait to see if they go to the bait hive or capture the swarm and try to pour it in. The bait hive is in a differnt tree and I would have to move it to pour them in.

I have had a colony in my roof space continuously for 5years. I collected a swarm from it 2 years ago and both the original colony and the hived swarm survive without treatment. Not saying that they are very productive but they do survive untreated

Will do

I have bought a poly hive for use next year. My national has an open mesh floor with no inspection tray (just how it came and I knew no better) I'll try to get a varroa count and some strips. Have to gen up on sugar roll. Thanks member: 9418"] Varoosis

I understand that they will have it but wild colonies survive without treatment and I am not trying to produce honey for sale just keeping them as a hobby. Is living in a hive more problematic for them than living in the wild

I have seen so many conflicting threads about varoa treatment that I confess I haven't treated. The bees in my roof seem healthy enough without and have been there 3/4 years. I live in a very rural location my nearest neighbor being across several fields. Not sure if there are any other...

What's the approved wear for us fatties?