Search results

Apilife Var and Apiguard are both based on Thymol. However Apilife Var is easier to use and similarly effective. I used to buy large tubs of Apiguard as it was cheaper than the single use foil packs but now its not available in those tubs for some strange reason, so Apilife Var is preferable to...

Feeding in winter - means that you have not fed enough before-hand.

Result!

I would be inclined to move 'em to your main apiary - shrink them down into less boxes a little if easier to move. Divide and conquer:- Site them next to a strong hive. After a couple of days so they have reorientated, move them so the flyers return to the strong colony. A couple of days later...

Agreed; leave them for the queen to get mated. The colony is unlikely to be that large for winter so one brood box should be enough. You'll be back to the equivalent of a 5 frame nuc again (!) - but will have learned a lot in the mean-time.

The timing will depend on how desperate the bees are to replace their mum. However I would anticipate that after 7 - 10 days you would see another queencell sealed. Before you remove it, do check that the old queen is still present or at least eggs are present.

Most queens that fly off do come back - however they are much more flighty when young so it's best to leave marking them for a few weeks by which time they have settled down a little.

Apart from a few significant issues with CBPV, I've had colonies with it that do seem to improve after varroa treatment, so it does seem reasonable that if you reduce one stressor to the colony, it definitely helps. This also coincides with a reduction in colony size in later summer, so they...

Thi This is broadly similar to a colony of mine this year. However they managed to produce a scrub queen which mated with a good brood pattern and the CBPV stopped. The colony is still small in bee numbers but with 7 frames of brood and has thrown up one supercedure queencell which I have...

You can harvest supercedure cells for only so long; with an old queen 2 or 3 cycles would be my best guess - but as you say, they are well-fed and can produce good queens.

Pallets can rot quite quickly. A problem more in the summer as supers go on and then a strip of wood snaps when you are not there to see the hive tumble over. :(

I assume that there is just one queen in that hive? Is she tooting "Git orf my land" to a queen in a mini-nuc within 'taking distance', not realising that they are in seperate boxes?

I have seen no issues with transfer of CBPV to colonies nearby (2 or 3 feet either side), so no need to seal up. I'd leave them to it. If they want to supercede, let them. One bee with CBPV is not uncommon and not serious.

The comb will almost certainly sag and collapse - tried it. You can keep the OSR honey for winter for the bees - not long to wait now. OR put it under a brood box with an excluder over it. Close off the hive entrance and put in an entrance eke just above the excluder. The bees will remove the...

Yes, I have seen that chalkbrood follows the queen. I haven't had it for a few years however the suggestion is to replace the comb to stop it happeneing again. I don't think that's necessary.

I usually have my supers off by about now, however when the weather is OK, bees are still bringing in nectar.

I tend to use the yellow plastic cages. Fondant in one end and held between two frames horizontally so there is only access by bees on the two long sides. Then the queen can't get nibbled feet as she can escape if she wants to (has been reported on here in the past). generally good sucess - but...

It's fair to assume that the introduced queen was killed. If killed by the workers, then you have had a long time without brood or a queen in which case laying workers may be your next situation to deal with. Otherwise if there have been a few days of decent weather where you are, then a young...

I tend to inspect colonies that I'm concerned about rather than all of them all of the time. Sometimes I am unlucky, most of the time, not.

With the queen constrained, I have seen emergency cells as you describe; more likely if there is a queen excluder between the two boxes. I would be inclined to leave them for a few days.