Search results

I am not sure that it is quite a simple as that. Three of my colonies went really, really agressive this year. Anyway, I got in some new queens last weekend and guess what, the bad colonies were mild as anything so it turns out the new queens were not needed. I have requeened, however, as I will...

I felt the same until last Sunday. Not many yet but they are hanging around my hives all day now

Me too. It turns the water brown or green ( I am colour blind) but never seems to get the propolis off our gloves. So - should they be soaked for hours or what ?

The problem comes when you have to deal with hugely aggressive colonies. You can get 10 sleeve stings in seconds and then your gloves are simply crawling with bees. There is simply no way that you can get the stings out

near a town called Pezenas - not far from Cap D'agde

These chaps visited the garden daily in South West France earlier this week. Des anyone know what this is ?

This is interesting as I am right on the OSR - these hives produced 147 lb of OSR honey despite the failing queens

Yes, all early season and were all laying well but, as you say, seeme dto have run out of fuel.

I had 4 hives in excellent condition all with 2011 queens going into winter. All came out well but since emerging from winter 3 Queens have failed and are currently being superseded. I am wondering why this might be and was thinking it could possibly be due to the Queens not mating well last...

I am NOT an expert but I belive that bees get rid of all defective colony members and fly off with them to get them and their ailment as far from their healthy home as possible

I had a Queen who flew off but she definitely found her way back Good luck

2 of mine which had been the gentlest you could imagine have turned more than nasty. On one hive inspection they stung my gloves literally hundreds of times. We were trapped in the house for 40 minutes and the poor dog who ventured out was stung. I strongly beleive that they are Q- combined with...

OSR seems to be unfairly made a bogey in my view. If you are close then it is exciting trying to keep ahead of the bees. If you extract early then there really is no problem and it is the only honey I personally like to eat. I am very sad that although this year my bees will have to travel a...

I have a hot tub and the bees are attracted to it and once they find it simply keep coming back. They have ponds closer but prefer heavily chemicalled water - quite why who knows!

Mine are in Surrey and my wife says that they are not flying currently even with OSR a mile away. It looks too cold to open up thsi weekend which is a worry as I have deliberately encouraged them to build QC's in one hive in order to split.

I would add the super as indeed I have done on mine. I have left the insulation in the roof. My reason is that last year, in Surrey, I left it too late to react to OSR right next door and did not appreciate how frenzied they become and quite how much they can harvest in such a short space of...

Opening up too frequently, IMO, causes distress and a lessening of the Queen Pheremone. 7 days is enough to anticipate and deal with swarming. Sometimes you need to open up more often but not ususally

I had that same situation last year. I was sitting down some way from the hive and I was randomly attacked. It had never happened before and has never happened since. What it did make me realise after a year sitting 2 ft away in a pair of shorts and nothing else that their mood can change for no...

I can be a little on the clumsy side when I make up brood frames and sometimes cause a little damage. Is it ok to heat up a bit and mend the cracks - it does mean that the pattern goes on that spot though

It is the only honey that I eat myself - I sell the runny stuff or give it away. "Buyers" tend to be put off because it sets but you can pile it on your toast really thickly and for me it tastes divine. I was caught off guard by quite how quick the colonies expand/swarm if they are right on it.