Recent content by drex

I used to have hives on an allotment, but had no problem. I would find a different site for yours though. Put them on the allotment and you are asking to have them nicked. Security devices just slow the thieves ( and you) down.

Checked the hive that I thought was a goner 3 weeks ago. At that time just a couple of handfuls of bees and a queen, but no brood. I compacted them down and today was amazed to see them flying. A palm sized patch of brood and also fresh pollen. I might boost them with a frame of brood and bees...

You shook the bees into the box at the new site. At the old site you had one frame of brood plus an open queen cell. The flying bees will return here. There will be no nurse bees, so the potential virgin queen larva will not be well fed. Undersized queen will be the result.

I empathise with Gregior. I have had to do this too. It was a last resort. The bees were super horrid over a long period and in a Warre hive, so not easy to pull apart to find queen.

I find it great for delaying, even preventing, swarming

Swarms will settle anywhere that suits them. Rather than anecdotal evidence, Tom Seeley actually did some scientific experiments to determine their preferences.

I too put on the frame the year when it was made up. Rarely does that relate to when it's condition tells me it needs pulling

Lots of white specks of varroa poo round the lips of empty cells. I would say that your treatment was not effective. It is not important how many mites you kill, but rather how many survive

I would put a second BB on ( under the current one, as HM works downwards), and add a super. My bees love double BB. Nothing to fear. Depending on weather might need yet another super soon after with OSR near

Have taken over as Apiary manager in my new home in Devon. Only 3 colonies. I took the opportunity of a good weather window to do a first inspection ( no rain today, so far, first time in weeks). All 3 had brood, one strong, one fair, and one weak. Rationalised boxes, cleaned up brace comb...

All depends 🙂. Do you actually need to do anything? How many frames of brood? Is there still space for queen to lay? I run double broods and rarely get signs of swarming.

I can see lots of white varroa poo on the lips of some cells.

As Dani implied above, Nosema can only be diagnosed for definite by microscopy. It may cause dysentery with poo staining in or on the hive, but there are other causes too

Same problem here. Did a quick inspection as was sunny and 15C, and will be out of action for a few weeks. Queen seen but no eggs or brood. Bee numbers dwindling. Dummied them down and will see in time. My last remaining colony of the 3 I moved from Essex. They obviously don't like Devon...

Mine were well out of the way too, with trees between them and rest of site. Still had to go. It started with a chicken ban