Feeding and this weather

[drstitson]

"They age from the exertion of foraging of which there has been and still is an abundance"

1. not been many foraging days round here recently
2. undepleted nurse bees don't forage.

 

[ichbinpaul]

Apart from the jocularly mentioned super efficient AMM's, no one here is saying anything about bad blood! ie plain sh#tty bee's with perhaps bad genes or toxified brains, surely with the best made plans there is room for dumb ass bee's from time to time or is it generally accepted that bee's dont tend to fail big?.

 

[Polyanwood]

Your first Winter is a worrying time. If in doubt, put on some fondant.

If not confident that they won't starve, check whether the block of fondant has been eaten by quickly looking under the lid. (Do not lift the crown board) If fondant mostly gone, replace it with another block. Even if you are worried, don't keep lifting the lid. Ration these quick peeks under the lid to maximum of every 3-4 weeks.

 

[Dishmop]

the weathers wet and blustery the bees are busy when they can be(?) BUT
what about the feeding could they be consuming more stores than they are producing?

How would they manage to do that?

Credit card?

 

[BILL.HEARD]

i don't really advise waiting in this job if in doubt feed
if you ram them up with feed till they are as heavy as lead when you lift with two hands( not one) you wont go far wrong
simples

I agree, feed in September then leave until the following March.
That means no more going into brood chambers to check, no sheets of foundation being inserted, just get the mouse guards on and leave well alone unless you feel it is necessary to give Oxalic around the turn of the year.

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

Your first Winter is a worrying time. If in doubt, put on some fondant.

If not confident that they won't starve, check whether the block of fondant has been eaten by quickly looking under the lid. (Do not lift the crown board) If fondant mostly gone, replace it with another block. Even if you are worried, don't keep lifting the lid. Ration these quick peeks under the lid to maximum of every 3-4 weeks.

As a newbie, I have learnt a HUGE amount from this forum. Probably the single most important thing I have learnt for late summer and winter-amid MASSIVE competition; eg thymolating syrup-is to knock up a clear crown board. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

 

[mbc]

2. undepleted nurse bees don't forage.

Thats a new one on me. Why invent such a fallacy ?

 

[itma]

As a newbie, I have learnt a HUGE amount from this forum. Probably the single most important thing I have learnt for late summer and winter-amid MASSIVE competition; eg thymolating syrup-is to knock up a clear crown board. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

All converts are welcomed!

As long as you have good easily removable insulation above, it allows winter checking without real opening of the hive.

 

[Luminos]

All converts are welcomed!

As long as you have good easily removable insulation above, it allows winter checking without real opening of the hive.

It also makes checking syrup levels in feeders much quicker

 

[Cazza]

As a newbie, I have learnt a HUGE amount from this forum. Probably the single most important thing I have learnt for late summer and winter-amid MASSIVE competition; eg thymolating syrup-is to knock up a clear crown board. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

How times have changed on the forum! I am sure a remember severe criticism from ???Polyhive ??? with regards to the use of clear crownboards which I have always used and couldn't understand why they were seen as so awful.
Cazza

 

[oliver90owner]

After a decade or more with a simple sheet of ply as a cover board, I still maintain that you will learn little more than from other indications, particularly throughout the winter. Also, there would likely be _ugger all one could do about it if it did. After settling down for the winter they need to be left in peace, as long as the hive is heavy enough. Any unecessary interference must be deemed as bad for the bees and that includes peering through a transparent cover board on a regular basis.

 

[Cazza]

After a decade or more with a simple sheet of ply as a cover board, I still maintain that you will learn little more than from other indications, particularly throughout the winter. Also, there would likely be _ugger all one could do about it if it did. After settling down for the winter they need to be left in peace, as long as the hive is heavy enough. Any unecessary interference must be deemed as bad for the bees and that includes peering through a transparent cover board on a regular basis.

I'm not in the habit of peering in on a regular basis(certainly never between November and January as it is as you say pointless) but it can be useful in late Winter to have an idea of where the bees are in the hive vertically which gives an idea regarding need for fondant and also to have an idea where the bee seams are if one wished to use Oxalic/Hiveclean. Later on you can tell when to add a super without messing them about by taking the crown board off.
Horses for courses as ever.
Cazza

 

[itma]

... Any unecessary interference must be deemed as bad for the bees and that includes peering through a transparent cover board on a regular basis.

Yes. But.
Peering in occasionally through a clear coverboard can facilitate discovering when interference IS necessary, and then there might be fewer of those tragic March and April stories of "looked for the first time since October and they are all dead. What happened, please?"

 

[alldigging]

I'm not in the habit of peering in on a regular basis(certainly never between November and January as it is as you say pointless) but it can be useful in late Winter to have an idea of where the bees are in the hive vertically which gives an idea regarding need for fondant and also to have an idea where the bee seams are if one wished to use Oxalic/Hiveclean. Later on you can tell when to add a super without messing them about by taking the crown board off.
Horses for courses as ever.
Cazza

You can put the inspection board in underneath for a day and work out where they are eating honey.

 

[Erichalfbee]

"You can check in late winter particularly when there has been a prolonged cold spell and the bees might not be able to move over to a food frame.
If the frame adjacent to the cluster is empty you can move a full one over".
......That's what the SBI looking at my hives told me.

 

[oliver90owner]

You can put the inspection board in underneath for a day and*

Yes, there is that. Warmth, or specifically temperature of the crown board compared with ambient . Both confirm life in the hive. The stethoscope is better than banging the hive for a response.... little to do if there is no signs of life, just hope...

RAB

 

[pargyle]

I've got 6mm polycarbonate crown boards ... lots of advantages as have been detailed above ... don't advocate regular peering in during the winter but if you do need to have a quick peek under the lid I think polycarb of 6mm thickness is an excellent insulator so the heat loss (as long as you don't have to remove it) is going to be negligble ... and you can see a great deal by peering down into the gaps between the frames with a torch to assist,