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Hi, my local apiary lays strips of fondant across the tops of the frames which i tried last year. It worked ok ish but when i tried to administer oxalic acid by dribbling it in the seams any remaining fondant had to be scraped off first. Bit messy, and awkward if bees are feeding on it so this...

Is the comb stuck to the underside of the crown board? If so i had a similar prob earlier on. perhaps mine were not quite so bad as they did have brood in the brood box. I made sure the q was in the bb then put a q excluder between bb and super. Then just waiting for the brood to emerge. I have...

I did not clip in my first year and lost a swarm followed by a second cast swarm. mostly due to inexperience on my part. However unlike the books which say the swarm will land on a nearby gate post, mine always go as high up a tree as they can get. Last year clipped my queens and although i did...

Thanks Finman and Oliver. Always found you both very helpful. Nuc

When uniting with newspaper does the q- colony make emergency cells immediately or does the new q's scent get through the paper? I presume a check for q cells after 5 or 6 days is a good idea or do they tear them down by themselves when the newspaper has gone?

Hi Yorkshirebees, if you do not leave any brood with the queen, does it not make absconding or swarming more likely or have you not found this to be an issue. Also read how some folk prefer foundation in lower bb where as others say only drawn comb will do. Surely foundation is nearer to what a...

hi, just to clarify, with a demaree should you leave 1 or 2 frames of brood with the queen and make the frames up with foundation or have i got it wrong. Only asking as i want to try demaree this year. Many thanks, Nuc

Thankyou dr stitson for your consideration but please dont jump to conclusions. They were indeed in polynucs to start but reached the stage where i had no alternative but to put into full brood boxs. Absolutely crammed in with all 6 14x12's full of brood and stores. They even started making...

Thankyou all. Will wait till spring. 8/9 frames of drawn comb with stores and any brood they have. Neither busting with bees but nice small colonies which were made up late summer as part of swarm control. They have done ok but not had enough time to fill the bb completely, though too big for...

Hi, been thinking of combining two hives,both similar size (8/9 frames)but not full brood box's. One colony is prone to rob others so would do away with their Q and combine with newspaper. Am i too late this year or is it still possible if the bees are not clustering during the day? Also if i...

Over the last 3 winters (my entire beekeeping life) i have fed syrup with small 2 pint rapids, home made contact feeders, bought 1 gallon contact feeders and a home made ashforth feeder without any problems. This year i bought some 4 pint rapids of the type you commonly see for sale but found...

How soon after starting to lay can I clip and mark a new queen? I have managed to get 3 nucs mated and laying and would like to re queen a large colony with a nuc. I would rather try to find and identify hm prior to combining. Many thanks, nuc

Many thanks Enrico. This is the first year i have split to make nucs (3) and all have started to lay after 3.5 weeks at the same time. Think i might celebrate somehow, maybe beer. Cheers.

Hi again, I have a spare nuc at present which a chap down the road has expressed an interest in. He is about 1.5/2 miles away. If he has the bees will stuffing grass in the entrance for 24 hours make them re orientate or will they come home? Or other suggestions please. Thanks, nuc.

Hi all, think I need a new suit. Old one has fencing veil which is ok but wondered if the round hat type are better or worse? Any good reasons which please or just personal preference. Thanks, nuc.

Thanks for all replies so far. I've not used Demaree before and on this occasion just wanted to keep the colony together without making Q cells. D Cushman seemed to use the technique with success for swarm prevention and control. I have taken a six frame nuc from this colony last week when...

Tried similar last year for the heather and worked a treat.

Hi all, been reading mr Cushmans website regarding Demaree. What is the purpose of a second QE under the top BB? I presume it's intended for hatching Queens up there and not needed if no Q cells. Have I missed something?

Hi folks, i recently bought my first poly's which are P****s 14x12 nucs. I am initially very pleased with them but had to press one into action before having time to paint the internal feeder. Should i feed only fondant in it or am i ok to feed syrup. Also is the wooden float any good or should...

If your bees were swarmy they generally have a lot of Q cells. With just the one i would say emergency or supercedure. I would leave it be and see what happens. Do you have eggs present or have you seen the Q and is the Q clipped?