The allotment bees were super defensive yesterday. I had warned the students and told them to wrap up carefully. One of the colonies was so bad that I ended up having to plunge my head into the stinking water butt again. They are always bad when you take the honey off, but I one colony in particular was terrible. It was thundering and lightening, which didn't help.
I made up the thymol oasis patties according to Hivemaker's recipe and have put them on all the hives on all 3 sites, with the varroa inserts and the entrance blocks in. I made up half doses for the nucs.
I haven't finished extracting, but not such a good crop this year. I think the very high number of bees in this vicinity is the reason. I'm going to move a couple of the hives away from the allotment as this is the second year in a row of a bad crop from there.
One of the colonies was very low on stores - a problem that can't have been helped by all the rain - so feeding syrup will start as soon as possible and I topped them up with fondant for now. ( I've been back today and the mean colony was mean again and stung a plot holder on the allotment. I've put fondant on them though to tide them over until I start the syrup)
I made up the thymol oasis patties according to Hivemaker's recipe and have put them on all the hives on all 3 sites, with the varroa inserts and the entrance blocks in. I made up half doses for the nucs.
I haven't finished extracting, but not such a good crop this year. I think the very high number of bees in this vicinity is the reason. I'm going to move a couple of the hives away from the allotment as this is the second year in a row of a bad crop from there.
One of the colonies was very low on stores - a problem that can't have been helped by all the rain - so feeding syrup will start as soon as possible and I topped them up with fondant for now. ( I've been back today and the mean colony was mean again and stung a plot holder on the allotment. I've put fondant on them though to tide them over until I start the syrup)
