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    Requeening / Nucs for sale?

    Hi everyone. I'm based in east London and need to requeen a colony asap. Does anyone have nucs for sale at the moment? Thanks!
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    It's too late to put on a super, BUT...

    Hi everyone I have a very strong colony, which has a new queen following an unexpected swarm in May. I took off a full super of honey in late July. When I went to inspect at the weekend, expecting to have to feed them, I found instead that the hive was still really packed full of bees, and...
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    Pollen in Super

    I have a colony that was part of an artificial swarm about a month ago, with last year's queen. After the AS, all was good and she was laying well. Inspecting yesterday, she seems to have been off laying for a while, which I'm assuming is because the weather's been so bad - not much brood...
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    North/East London - Requeening

    Hello all I need to re-queen one of my colonies, and I'm just wondering if anyone on the forum has any queens available to buy at the moment? I'm in Hackney, east London, and would prefer to get a locally reared queen. Please get in touch if you can help Thanks a lot David
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    Cold Wet Weather and Swarms

    It's so cold and wet at the moment, can we assume that swarming is less likely, even though strictly speaking we're into swarming season? I can't imagine why any bees would venture out in search of a new home in this weather, but I don't know if the urge to swarm overrides any weather related...
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    Black Powder on Varroa Tray

    Hello I did a mite drop count over the weekend (hardly any - very pleased) but was very surprised to see quite a lot of dead brood (about 40 larvae) on the tray under one of the hives. There's been a little bit of chalkbrood in this hive, which I hadn't been worried about as I always get a...
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    Moving a Colony

    Hello I am moving from London, where I have 2 hives, to north Yorkshire, and will be taking my colonies with me. Any advice on whether it's best to move them now or later in the spring? And if anyone's moved colonies that far before (about 200 miles) and has any travel tips (I'll be in a car...
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    Lots of pollen - and nectar too?

    Like lots of others on here my bees are bringing in loads of pollen at the moment. I've noticed some posts and answers about whether we need to be feeding because of this late activity. But if there are flowers with pollen, won't the bees also be bringing in nectar - in which case why would we...
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    Late extraction/uncapped cells

    I've been away with work for a few weeks so I'm only now getting round to taking off the supers and extracting. In one super, there are 5 or 6 fully capped frames and the remainder which are partly capped and about 10 - 20% uncapped. This late in the year, I just want to get them off and...
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    Q re. timing of taking super and starting Apilife

    Hello I'm going away with work from 22 August to 26 September, right through the period when if I was here I'd be taking off the super and treating for varroa with Apilife Var. The super I've got on is about half full, and about half of that capped, but there's a huge field of michaelmas daisy...
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    Adding Another Colony's Brood to a Weak Colony

    Hello I've got a new but very strong colony in a national brood chamber in which I've managed to squeeze an extra frame. It keeps getting jammed so I want to take a frame out... I have another colony which is pretty small and slowly building up with a scrub queen, in which there are some...
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    Emergency Queen & Patchy Laying - will it improve?

    Hello everyone I posted the other day about an emergency queen that was only laying drone. I had another look yesterday and now there is some capped worker brood as well, but not much, and it's very patchy. In another hive with a new queen the brood is perfect and profuse (she's not an...
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    Looking to Buy a Local Queen - North East London

    Replacing the missing thread... Is there anyone in north east London or hereabouts who is rearing queens? I fairly urgently need to requeen one of my colonies before going away on 3rd June Many thanks David
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    Looking to Buy a Local Queen - North East London

    Hello everyone I need to re-queen one of my colonies (an emergency queen that hasn't mated properly and is barely laying) and I'd like to get a replacement from someone reasonably local, rather than going down the mail order route. I'm based in Hackney, NE London. If you're a local-ish queen...
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    Which is the best queen cage for marking?

    Hello everyone Just a quick question about trapping the queen for marking. I wondered whether you think it's better to use the press in cage (crown of thorns) or the plunger-based system. Which would you recommend I go for? Thanks a lot David
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    Bees Making a Lemon Smell

    I have two colonies, both with new queens (one from an old colony on which I did an artificial swarm; the other fromm emergency queen cells from a colony that lost its queen a few weeks ago). Just inspected and no sign of a new queen in either hive. A lot of bees were fanning and there was a...
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    Very Dark Comb

    There's some very very dark brown brood comb in my hive (overwintered from a new colony last year). Does this just mean it's old? Does it matter that it's so dark? Does it maybe need replacing?
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    At What Age Should A New Queen Start Laying?

    I did an artificial swarm on 10th April, and left some uncapped queen cells in the original hive. I reduced down to just one capped queen cell on 17th April. A few days ago I found a queen outside the hive, very dirty and unable to move properly. I tried to get her back in the hive but she...
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    Did an artificial swarm...and then they went and swarmed anyway

    I did an artificial swarm a week ago, as I'd been surprised to find a dozen queen cells, some capped, in my colony. Today I had a quick look in the new hive (the one I'd put the old queen in) as there didn't seem to be much going on... and she wasn't there, so they must have swarmed anyway...
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    Can an Artificial Swarm become a Shook Swarm?

    Hello... I'd started another thread yesterday seeking advice about whether it was better to do an artificial swarm or use a brood trap, to try to get a problem with a heavy varroa infestation under control. In the meantime, when inspecting this morning, I found several queen cells, including 2...
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