Colony not expanded this week - I blame yhe weather

[FullerBee]

My colony from a 5 frame nuc has been expanding every week - increasing brood and brood stores or drawing out super and honey.

This weeks inspection though I noticed for first time no real change. It’s been a tough week weather wise as it’s been dull, windy and quite wet. They’re making the most of things.

There’s 7 frames or so with brood in various stages, I clearly saw some about 3 days old and some just being capped and even one bee emerging. 2 solid brood frames of honey stores and 2 more frames mostly uncapped honey. I didn’t see eggs today but I don’t always spot them.
Super has 6 full frames of capped honey, 4 mostly drawn and uncapped and 1 just foundation.
There is plenty capped brood and although didn’t see Queen today she must have been there at least 3 days ago given brood stages.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

That's what you are going to see from now on - bees gearing up for winter, stores being put around the brood area and the queen's laying rate slowing down.

 

[Levitt53]

Yes bees work on the time of year (and reducing day light I guess) so even if the weather is lovely in August and September they will start to prepare for winter. Personally if I go into my colonies now it is generally just to see what stores they have in the brood box and to check that there is still a laying queen, I don't worry about how much brood there is. Yours sound fine to me. I think you can extract the honey from the super when you want and just leave them to get on with their winter preparations. Just make sure you don't leave any foundation in there.

 

[FullerBee]

Yes bees work on the time of year (and reducing day light I guess) so even if the weather is lovely in August and September they will start to prepare for winter. Personally if I go into my colonies now it is generally just to see what stores they have in the brood box and to check that there is still a laying queen, I don't worry about how much brood there is. Yours sound fine to me. I think you can extract the honey from the super when you want and just leave them to get on with their winter preparations. Just make sure you don't leave any foundation in there.

Thanks - reassuring to know!

I checked the honey today on refractometer and it reads 17% so happy with that. Capped honey will come off soon as soon as I’ve done my samples for the bee honey archives. I’ll be putting in varroa treatment and then letting the girls tidy up the cappings etc.