Fondant

[Stu H]

Afternoon,

I put some rolled fondant on the top of the frames of my brood box two week before xmas and replaced the super that was full at the end of summer but appeared all but empty when I had a quick look to make sure all was well after the snow.

Ive had a quick look today and a good half of the fondant is left and the bees appear well. However i had to clear the entrance of dead bees and also briefly removed the blocking plate to the large entrance and cleared out another load of dead bees from inside. I didnt break the hive up so as not to let heat out/cold in.

My question after all of the above is, does all appear normal from what I have described?


Stu H

 

[BKF Admin]

Sounds fine,in warmer weather they will clear out the dead.

 

[tonybloke]

Stu, not all appears normal (you don't list having any type of hives in your profile)

apart from that, yes

 

[Stu H]

Thanks for the replies,

I've also sorted my profile and added the number of colonies and type of hives!

 

[Silly Bee]

Tony will be pleased.

 

[louiseww]

Your location should also be more specific - the UK is a huge area and at the moment the temperature varies from minus 7 to plus 11 degrees, this can be important when asking questions
Louise

 

[Arfermo]

Afternoon,

I put some rolled fondant on the top of the frames of my brood box two week before xmas and replaced the super that was full at the end of summer but appeared all but empty when I had a quick look to make sure all was well after the snow.

Ive had a quick look today and a good half of the fondant is left and the bees appear well. However i had to clear the entrance of dead bees and also briefly removed the blocking plate to the large entrance and cleared out another load of dead bees from inside. I didnt break the hive up so as not to let heat out/cold in.

My question after all of the above is, does all appear normal from what I have described?


Stu H

No at all unusual for the bees to leave the OMF debris there until weather improves - improves insulation/reduces drafts? To remove the debris so that I can evaporate from under the OMFs I slide a hand saw (its very thin) through the wide entrance to clear the floor a bit first as there is then minimal disturbance to the cluster. Then the block goes back after.

 

[BobH1]

I wondered what you meant when ou said that you "replaced the super that was full at the end of summer"? Did you leave the Queen Excluder on between the Brood box and super as well? If so was there not a likelyhood that as the cluster moved up onto the honey in the super it would leave the queen behind in the brood, to chill and die? If you did remove the QE how did you avoid the problem of the queen laying in the super?