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Our hearts bleed!! My best year by far just to rub it in.

Yes you can put the fondant straight back on. I wouldn't use Oxalic in December unless there has been a decent cold snap, it is only effective on phoretic mites so most effective when the colony is broodless. At the moment I suspect most colonies will still have brood. Wait until there is a...

Done. Just a caveat; lots of people keep trying to improve beehive design; most are just variations rather than improvements.

Just been round to weigh all mine and club hives this afternoon. Some had gone up by 1 or 2 kg since last month, most about the same, some lost 1 or 2 kg. All have plenty of stores for the moment.

Bad idea to use frames from unknown source. Burn them.

Conkers spelt with a B !!

Ditto

'Not fit for purpose' entitles you to refund. Don't think that has a time limit.

The first one takes the longest!! Throw away the nails and get screws. I use evo stick exterior glue, an extra pair of hands is helpful on the brood box until you get the hang of them. Considerably longer than one afternoon for a whole hive if your not practised.

Not the case round here, very strong uptake in last ten years, beginners course oversubscribed every year.

UK actually voted against the ban. Neonics is another can of worms. Jury very much out at the moment, disappointing lack of independent research. Now there's an opportunity for you.

Quote from Beebase website: "Welcome to BeeBase BeeBase is the Animal and Plant Health Agency's (APHA) National Bee Unit website." which would seem to answer your question.

It is a highly invasive species; you might think it's alright for you to grow your bit on your plot, but what about all the people downwind of you who will be overrun with an unwelcome weed? I have a feeling that it was once a notifiable weed and you weren't allowed to sow it; I may be wrong.

Pretty certain it is a communal mining bee Andrena Carantonica. Doesn't sting, does no damage to your building, surprisingly late in the year to be around still, but it's been that kind of year.

Not a wasp Looks like some kind of mason bee to me. Shouldn't cause you any problem.

I had a call from a guy down the road from one of my out apiaries in September to say he had a swarm on a bush in his garden. When I went to take a look it was an ivy bush absolutely covered with insects I couldn't identify at the time. Having looked at this article I'm pretty sure it was the...

If you are near hedgerows your bees should do well. Most of my crop comes from hawthorn in May and bramble in July.

If you start with nucs you may not have any honey to harvest in your first year anyway, quite possibly you will, but it's not guaranteed. I'm with ITMA and JBM here. Don't make life more difficult from the start. Learn how to use a conventional hive, take as much or as little honey off as you...

Sounds more like laying workers from what you describe. Very late in the year to do much with them, I fear they are doomed. If you get a nice day I would throw them in the hedge and close up their hive. No point trying to introduce a queen or combine if they have laying workers. Some of them...

My old brood frames get burnt!! I buy seconds, it's not worth the hassle and mess of cleaning them up in my opinion