Recent content by Mushy Bees

Neatly cut and folded Rizla papers can make excellent "bee nappies".

Yep, blocked off mine too.

Don't forget to remove the queen excluder! But you knew that :-)

If you fancy a novel. You've already read Ted Hooper who would be my first choice. If you fancy a light novel and want to stay loosely on the bee theme, may I suggest "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd. It's an easy read but got a load of awards. That's where my Black Madonna avatar...

What "track record" are you referring to here RAB? And where exactly do you go for an "apprenticeship" in beekeeping these days? I started attending my local beekeeping association meetings at the end of last year. I bought and read four books on the subject over the winter. I've attended a...

Hello I started beekeeping this year and have tried so hard not to kill a single bee when working on the hives. Every little clumsy "crunch" was taken to heart and I thought I was doing pretty okay. No smoke and few casualties either way. Yay the beeking God cometh!! Oh how different it is...

Hi Flatters, I know exactly how you feel! You are not the first and certainly won't be the last to feel unsure about what you've done. I'm still in my first year beekeeping and uniting colonies is the scariest thing I've done. It sounds like it went well though if there ain't loads of dead...

Well spotted there RAB. Comparing the only two occasions I have ever united colonies, it seems the first time did indeed go beautifully with only a hundred or so dead bees. It is now a flourishing colony. This second time around there was a small mountain of carcasses! I'm still in my first...

Hopefully all those Jaspers will be dying off soon and we won't have to worry about them. B*****ds!

Very public spirited of you! I just wish you had done it 12 hours ago - I bought a queen only this morning!

I previously united two colonies (one being queenless) using this method and it worked beautifully. I guess this is another case of asking three beeks the same question and getting three different correct answers. It makes the hobby richer in my mind.

PMs!!! I've never checked my PM folder before and there were so many offers of help there. You people are fantastic! Thankyou so much!! I now have a queen on her way this weekend! After speaking to Eyeman, he pointed out where I went wrong. I culled the queen immediately before uniting. I...

Thankyou for the links. I've tried them both and it's too late in the year. They are doomed it seems and I'm kicking myself. Hard.

Hello I united two nucs on the 1st September using the spray method, and it all went horribly wrong! They fought terribly and I suspected the queen was murdered. I've just carried out the first proper inspection and my fears were confirmed. No brood and really aggressive bees. Main lesson...

Hello, I'm already thinking about how I'm going to keep them warm over winter and was thinking about the addition of two expanded polystyrene slabs (the white rigid stuff) either side of the frames (with OMF and crown board insulated - no vent). Maybe about in inch thick cut to the full size of...