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I had a pretty bad case in a package of bees i bought last year (last time I buy a package rather than nuc). They nevery really took off after installation and for a few weks the numbers just dwindled despite the queen laying reasonably well. I spoke to the SBI about it and she said that there...

If you feel up to it, get a cardboard box, a bee brush (if you have one) a bed sheet and the aforementioned chair. Put your bee suit on, lay the sheet on the ground beneath, climb onto the chair holding the carboard box under the swarm. Shake the swarm off the branch into the box with one...

Thanks for that suggestion, it looks an interesting idea. As it was, the cluster under the hive reduce a little but was still determinedly staying there and looked like they had no plans for going back into the hive. I was planning on nadiring the main hive to give them a little more room...

Looking after a Warre hive for a friend and my wife sent me these pictures today... Lots of bees clustering on the front of the hive, and within about 30 minutes, they had settled down into two quite big cludters, one no the front of the hive and one under the hive. I left work to go and knock...

One of my colonies swarmed on Thursday last week - I assume the sun came out and they left the hive, clustered on a small tree 3m away and were still there the next morning when I wandered down between rain showers. They were absoluitely sodden, looking very sorry for themselves and were not...

There was a very good number of bees (a decent rubly ball sized bundle that i got into the hive) so the brood should be fine, and with any luck the queen is in there too. I had a look through the hive that I think it came from, but it was not ideal conditions - no sealed queen cells but plenty...

Wandered down to the apiary this morning in between thumping showers of rain to see a swarm in a small larch tree nexto to one of the hives (swarms seem to love that tree). They were looking very sorry for themselves, must have swarmed yesterday afternoon and got caught out by the rain. A sad...

Possibly already been discussed, but this could provide some interesting data...? http://www.gizmag.com/honeybees-rfid-tags/30477/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers&utm_campaign=027864f151-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-027864f151-91074281

One hive has almost no capped stores, 7-8 frames of bees but only a frame of brood. The other has 4 deep frames of stores and pollen and probacly 7-8 frames of bees. I closed up mesh floors this morning and removed extracted supers that I had put back on for them to clean up. Hopefully this will...

I have three colonies, one of which is a string swarm from June as is doing well. Ther other two were artificial swarms from may which grew well and produced a couple of supers of honey each. Both of these colonies now have a good number of bees but very little brood? (Maybe a frame in total in...

I have been keen t try a trap out for a while. There are two different swarms in my mother-in-laws roof and one of them is conveniently placed next to a section of flat roof at good working height. Their main entrance was under a small raised section of lead flashing next to the chimney piece so...

I mean, how much honey do they take with them when they go?

Oh and yes - pretty dark and treacly now.

Interesting - don't know much about HMF. Will do some research, but sounds a pretty convincing argument.

I was called out to remove a wild nest that had died out over winter. Bees had still been seen moving in late feb early march, but I suppose this winter was just too long for them. It was in the eaves of a huge barn and had apparently been there 10 years or more (with probably multiple...

That's for your ideas guys, I'll be gentle. Sadly it looks like a case of chronic bee paralysis in a weak colony. Started from a package only 4 - 5 weeks ago, I have fed them continuously but they are just dwindling away with lots of black, shiny, shaking crawling bees in front of the hive...

I nee to do a shake-out of my bees from a Warre (top bar hive) on the advice of a bee inspector. Does anyone have a clever way of shaking bees from top-bar frames without them falling apart?

I have an apiary with a nice strong colony from an A/S in may on BS natioonal that has grown up well. In the same apiary i have a very weak colony in a Warre hive from a package in early may. Despite continuous feeding they are only taking down a pint if syrup per day and have created and drawn...

The warre hive has a pretty small entrance anyway but I will reduce it down some more as you suggest. The syrup is going down pretty slowly, they take about a pint per day. Many thanks

Interesting, but I suppose that makes sense about bees not dying away from the hive. I could ave a look at the brood, I'm more looking at minimising intervention on these than totally non-intervention. Will look, many thanks.