Search results

South of England. Hampshire

Topped up the fondant on 5 colonies today. That means each hive has taken 1 kilo in just 7 days

This past winter I had a tree fall near one of my hives. Missed it by about 6 feet apparently. By the time I visited the site the gardeners had removed it and tidied up. Another hive was visited by a horse. Again I didn't witness this but was able to see the fence broken and a pile of manure...

My Queens sometimes lose their mark over the winter. I guess the bees are constantly cleaning her.

Topped up the fondant today. At present all colonies have made it through the winter, though one does appear light on bees. Looking forward to the warmer days so that I can have a proper look inside. It was just nice getting outside today and seeing the bees flying.

I purchased an Apisolis last year and used it at the end of the beekeeping season, by which time all my hives contained calm bees. It's quite a nice item to use. It definitely less harmful than a regular smoker. And I don't smell like a bonfire after using it. It doesn't get hot so is less of a...

Perhaps our British weather will help. Warmer weather inviting the Queens to come out of hibernation and start nest building. And then it freezes again killing them off. Or a few weeks of non stop rain so they can't forage. Though wasps seem to cope, so maybes not.

I found an alternative gasvap Cost with delivery £149

I would message/ email them and ask your question.

No definite plan other than I extracted honey earlier this year so that I was able to do my varroa treatments earlier, thus leaving time afterwards for the Queen to lay up some new Brood. (Sometimes varroa treatments stop the Queen laying). I was careful how much I fed them to make sure the bees...

Exactly what happened to me last year. Lost all my colonies except for one. Winter was late in starting, and lots of mild days here in the South. So the Bees were out flying instead of resting. Many of my winter Bees didn't make it through the winter. The Hives were full of food, but very few...

Keep to 5 colonies. (A lot of varroa treatment comes in packs to treat 5 hives). Pass on any swarms to new beekeepers. Trade in the box of wax that I have accumulated these past 10 years. Definitely have a tidy up of beekeeping equipment, and get rid of stuff I am never going to use. Try not to...

Delivered a gift of a jar of honey and a Christmas card to the land owner today. Always a nice experience as people are so very grateful. Especially at this time of year as you know they will be eating that honey on boxing day.

Checked all my Abelo hives today. Noted one of them had several bees on the floor blocking the mouse guard entrance. Gave it a quick clean. Will have to keep an eye on this one.

They do sometimes. I suggest you contact them and ask when they are likely to be having a sale. If they are not planning on one in the near future they may send you a discount voucher

Sometimes the Queen will stop laying during varroa treatment. You said you were removing the apiguard, which could the situation. One good reason not to leave varroa treatment too late into the season.

If you want to keep some jars of honey runny put them in your freezer. Honey doesn't have much water in so doesn't expand when frozen. In fact honey doesn't freeze solid in a domestic freezer. Then when you want a jar allow it to thaw for an hour, and it's ready to go. A lot safer than using heat

A weak queenless colony. I would combine. Unless there are signs of disease. One less to treat and feed.

I used to keep bees on an allotment site. The allotment keepers were always grateful to me for caring for the bees there, and would show their gratitude in the form of fruit and vegetables at times. They firmly believed that my bees increased their crops. Maybe you should point out to the...

Sorry Jo. I thought you were a new bee.