Closing up for winter

[Jonnyl]

Hi, as ever all advice very much appreciated. Ive fed the bees 12.5kg of ambrosia and taken the apivar away after 6 1/2 weeks. Tied the hive up due to the stormy weather. Hive feels heavy and the ivy is about to go stellar here in scotland. Im thinking...is there any need for me to go back into the hive this year except to place fondant over the feeding hole? Just leave them alone? Thanks in advance.

 

[Swift Nick]

Don’t forget the mouseguards.

 

[Jonnyl]

Yeah, on last week as its getting down to around 4 degrees here some nights.

 

[Curly green fingers]

If they need fondant in the winter I would put it on top of the cluster under the Crown board with a 1" eke.. and a deep roof 6 inch and bigger.

 

[Jonnyl]

Mmmm, dont have an eke and rather hoped id get away with just laying it on the open feed hole. Sometimes it doesnt get above freezing here for days on end so want to avoid taking the crown board off at all. My plan is to cut out a square in some insulation, fondant packet size and simply lift out that cut-out piece of insulation and pop the bag over the hole and replace the piece of insulation. Asap. Workable?

 

[Curly green fingers]

I suppose so. I live on high grounder 450 metres I know how you feel . I suppose the closer you get the fondant to the cluster the better if it's cold they'll cluster even more and not be able to get to it
I've also rolled it thin and added it under the cb . No eke but prefure to give them a bigger amount of fondant with an eke . Each to there own as they say.

 

[Millet]

Its not winter yet..and the way the weather is going its going to be a late one.. mine are still piling stores in...Balsam is in full flow and the ivy is around the corner... for all i do not like doing it... i will still be opening up any light suspect colonies just to be on the safe side.

 

[Jonnyl]

Yeah, I've thought about that too but i can't see another way round it. Im hoping that they'll be in centre and maybe smell the fondant. Its my first season and I'm aware it's touch and go. However its a 14x12 and its heavy just now so perhaps what they have added to the ivy to come will be enough in any case. Fingers x

 

[Millet]

In previous seasons i used to weigh my hives but i would always check by lifting first.. i will still weigh them but i have a rough idea they are good for Winter if i struggle to lift them..(Active Scaffolder by the way)...

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

No need to open them up again - leave them alone until spring.
Fondant in a plastic takeaway container inverted over the feed hole.

 

[Curly green fingers]

I've not much ivy locally , they would have to travel a mile to it weather permitting, I'm mainly national hives brood/half. And this will be my second winter with more hives .
The ivy flow has started up there millet? The hives down by the river have give me a hb crop it's not for me it tastes a bit buttery, I like my honey with a stronger taste.
I'm coming to like balsam but keep it down in the valley . It will spoil my blackberry's.

 

[Jonnyl]

Thanks. Much as i have grown to love inspecting them, seeing what they're up to and enjoying that gentle buzz i reckon I'm best to leave them to the God's. There's very little else i can do and i'll just be nuisance. Bees know best as I've oft timed read here. On the topic of ekes though. All being well next year i may get some honey for myself. I've read an american site recently and they spoke of a thing called an Imirie Shim in the supers? Is this a good idea?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

they spoke of a thing called an Imirie Shim in the supers? Is this a good idea?

It's just a shallow eke with an entrance in so you have an upper as well as lower entrance - never seen the need myself.

 

[Dadnlad]

Fondant in a plastic takeaway container inverted over the feed hole.

This works well

We overwinter with two 50mm layers of insulation inside an old super, the first with a central square cut out to take the takeaway container

 

[beeno]

Hi, as ever all advice very much appreciated. Ive fed the bees 12.5kg of ambrosia and taken the apivar away after 6 1/2 weeks. Tied the hive up due to the stormy weather. Hive feels heavy and the ivy is about to go stellar here in scotland. Im thinking...is there any need for me to go back into the hive this year except to place fondant over the feeding hole? Just leave them alone? Thanks in advance.

If the colony is +Q and she is laying the winter bees I would say you are done. Do heft the hive from time to time as it is not how much you have fed, but what they do with it. If they are putting it all into brood they can be starving by Christmas.

 

[Jonnyl]

Yes beeno, but i still have the ivy to come and there's a 50 feet of it 10 feet from the hive for them to top up. Its a 14x12 so lots of cells, its down to them to use it wisely. Im prepared for feeding candy from around xmas. I'll untie them and take the roof off and insert candy into a cut-out in the insulation. Then a varroa gassing and leave them once again. I hope its enough as its the only plan i have. Cheers.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

 

[Karsal]

Mmmm, dont have an eke and rather hoped id get away with just laying it on the open feed hole. Sometimes it doesnt get above freezing here for days on end so want to avoid taking the crown board off at all. My plan is to cut out a square in some insulation, fondant packet size and simply lift out that cut-out piece of insulation and pop the bag over the hole and replace the piece of insulation. Asap. Workable?

Yes. I've done that but found it a bugger when needing to put another pack of fondant on as the kingspan was cut to fit the pack I was making up at the time.. I now use rolled up bubble wrap inside my eke. Can be moved around to accommodate any size of fondant I need to pop over the hole. Insulates really well.

 

[Jonnyl]

Aren't thr packs you were using uniform in size?

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

 

[enrico]

Have you taken the queen excluders off?

 

[alfazer]

This works well

We overwinter with two 50mm layers of insulation inside an old super, the first with a central square cut out to take the takeaway container

I do exact same. Works very well for me too. Or a deep roof instead of super/eke)