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Amazing the regional variations we see. It was just starting to frost up as i left for work this morning. I haven't looked into all my colonies as yet but in spite of frequent nighttime/early morning dips below freezing over the past few weeks, I am seeing sealed drone brood in a lot of...

County Armagh = Prunus family in bloom (Blackthorn, damsons etc) Whin (AKA Gorse) Willow, a lot of pollinator varieties of apple are coming into bloom ahead of the cropping caroeties, dandelions are really starting to show their heads and OSR is well into bloom in some areas. In Belfast i...

Lecture Details Further details about Alan Riach's lectures - see attached. Please note this is an open lecture. Members of the INIB, Clogher Valley BKA and Mid Ulster BKA have a reduced entry fee for the event. Membership applications can also be made on the day of the event to any or all of...

The INIB in conjunction with Clogher Valley Beekeepers Association and Mid Ulster Beekeepers Association are hosting Mr Alan Riach, President of the Scottish BKA, on Saturday 20th April. Alan will be presenting two lectures. Venue: Salleys Restaurant, Aughnacloy, 2pm to 5pm. See INIB Website...

I haven't been posting much on the forum of late however, following a conversation this morning, a request for your considered observations. Nuc transfered into full hive day 1. Queen present and laying. Emerging brood/brood-in-all-stages present. Eggs and various sized larvae present. Bees...

Thought it would be of interest to share this: NIHBS News Update June 2018 The long-awaited Research Paper has been published in the Journal of Apiculture Research and NIHBS have paid for ‘Open Access’ so the full work is available for all to view – just follow this link...

That sounds OK. IF there was a problem with your Queen, what can you do at present to mitigate? Very little is the likely answer unless you have another mated and laying queen to hand. Introductions could be problematic at this time of the year also..... I know this may come across as harsh but...

Yes. I would not agree that the efficacy of thymol based products tails off in Setpember. I generally try to start treating in August but it continues into September and often cooincides with a good brood break. As Hivemaker commented, in some areas the Winter bees are being produced well into...

Probably no need to look at them for a while. there is a "BUT" coming... what did you see last week. Read the bees and that will dictate when you need to start more frequent inspections. It is always useful to keep in mind Hooper's questions and given the year so far, I would have to ask, how...

Get a copy of "At the hive entrance" by Storch and content yourself with external observations about your colony (ies). If you have an open mesh floor, examining what is dropping through it will also tell you lots about your colony.

If your bees gathered a crop from the Whitethorn, this may be the root cause of your hazy honey. A number of lifelong beekeepers have separately advised/identified that hawthorn/whitethorn honey is hazy/cloudy. You might also be seeing micro bubbles in your jarred honey. What was your jarring...

See - learn from other people's mistakes!! :biggrinjester:

Ambrosia is a brand of commercially produced liquid bee feed. A gross simplification is that it is a pre-mixed syrup. Other variations on the same theme are Api-Suc, Invert-Bee etc. Sometimes when you cost buying sugar in bulk plus preparation time, it is more cost effective to buy the liquid...

The more stocks of bees I have to look after, the more I appreciate the KISS principle.

It is always good to learn from others - not only have you inherited wisdom to glean through, you also have this forum! people learn from their mistakes but it is better to learn from the mistakes others have learned before you ;)

Don't disturb them needlessly. Checking if they have propolised the CB down would really only be for your benefit.

:lurk5::winner1st: Love that! Please may I plagiarise?

Past experience! PS - was off work on Monday and whilst it was a nice enough day, the numbers of flyers at my home apiary are much diminished. Looks like they are all set for Winter.

My prediction is that we'll get shorter days and longer nights with corresponding increases in the numbers of bored beekeepers having "fun" on the forum, debating on the proper use of matchsticks and the suitability for over-wintering of various strains of bees! All this will be followed by...

I know an expert beekeeper who "gives away" honey in such jars....