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Fair enough - I know I'm tight for time this week so was hedging bets a bit. Still, she's there now, hopefully all will work out.

Installed a new queen this lunchtime who arrived in the post today - now in nuc in the travel cage - and also set a couple of wasp traps in the apiary as they are starting to bother and enter the colonies on occasion. Lots of interest in the jammy cidery concoction already.... Was looking at...

Yesterday made up a Nuc to accept a queen arriving on Weds, gave them a little feed at the end of the day to ensure they don't starve.

Made up some boxes and then added a super of foundation each to two colonies. Not ideal, but they are drawing comb and looks like they need a bit of breathing room. All had a lot of activity today yet quite overcast and humid.

Wow! How big was the colony it came from!

Thanks for responses - going to go down the Nuc route, and then merge back. Will keep an eye out for supercedure when she's going.

Inspection - torn down next set of QCs from swarmed hive to ensure hopelessly queenless pre-requeening. Filling supers nicely still - some frames almost capped off. Other two look good - bit of rearrangement to open up brood nest. Need to make up a super for one of them as they appear to be on...

I have a recently swarmed hive that I was looking to requeen this summer (productive but a bit agressive, and already needed 2x swarm control already this year - third time lucky for them...). I'm thinking of trying asap to get a new queen (if available) and to keep knocking the QCs down on...

Watched a swarm disappear over the farm next door. They have not been reading the books: Albeit I was a few days late on inspection, but they managed to swarm despite having 4 whole empty frames of drawn comb in brood and free room in supers. :hairpull:

(BTW, if you were not made aware of a restrictive covenant when you purchased the property, then you are entitled to take action against the conveyancer...) Often these things are in place to stop it becoming a shop, or preventing lots of customers visiting with a side effect that it stops...

I think that only the covenant holder can take action if there is a breach of restriction (but IANAL). Are they the covenant holder?

:iagree: Looks like they've missed the entrance, but think they'll sort it out - there already looks to be a trail of bees going back down to the entrance on the right of the image. Hard to know without knowing what's going on inside, time of day, temp, etc

Noticed limes in Oxford have started to open - those in the countryside appear a little off still.

Hives haven't moved much in terms of stores in the last week, maybe decreased if anything, but a bit more brood laid up by all queens. All colonies have space in both brood box and super(s) - weather set to turn hot this week; just need the lime to start opening up!

I found a couple of empty QCs on a frame for a colony (caught swarm) that I believe to be superceding. They've torn down another couple that I assume were charged, but left those two. BIAS present, but odd nonetheless.

Exactly this observed earlier. Some cells with 4 eggs, yet others with one egg in prime placement. Some nice frames of BIAS so think she's just still working it all out.

Used the green pen. Couldn't find the other one or could have been twice! Think I need to requeen my biggest colony, very defensive as soon as I opened up. Her daughter colony is very placid, but her lot aren't! When would be a good time to do this, bearing in mind potential flow coming up?

Have BB Wear one - find it comfy, haven't yet been stung through it, but it did come up a little small size wise so I had to go one bigger.

I was concerned that two of my colonies had been piling a lot of nectar into the brood chamber and I might need to do something. That was 2 weeks back. I'm less concerned now...

Made up a load more super frames in anticipation of summer flows... somewhat ironically while the rain beat on the windows. Again.