For those interested in AMM

[Finman]

Finny
After loosing 4 out of 5 Italian Queens, you definitely need some Rufty Tufty AMM.

I had ready own reared mated Italian queens. No losses.

The whole world has abandoned AMM, why me then?

 

[B+.]

The whole world has abandoned AMM

I'm not sure that this is entirely accurate, but, I wonder if beekeepers in the UK are ready for (or, would accept) the sort of authoritarian imposition of a specified race (whatever it was) to control mating on a large scale. Something tells me they would not.

 

[mbc]

Bit of a bold statement..... this last season the NZ Aml were swarming/ superceeding all the time... caught a good few of the requeened colonies as I had taken care to clip the queens... can not remember a worse year for NZs
The Carniolians tended to be swarmy, but for Surrey were good allrounders!

Yeghes da

Well yes, never say never (or "bees do nothing invariably'), but on a commercial scale in an ordinary season it becomes uneconomic to swarm check current year queens.
This season was a bit odd for swarming, many colonies which wouldn't normally have gone jumped ship during that exceptionally hot weekend end of June, strangely lots ignored bait hives and ended up going into odd cavities like boats and wheel arches instead.

 

[For want of a better word]

Well yes, never say never (or "bees do nothing invariably'), but on a commercial scale in an ordinary season it becomes uneconomic to swarm check current year queens.
This season was a bit odd for swarming, many colonies which wouldn't normally have gone jumped ship during that exceptionally hot weekend end of June, strangely lots ignored bait hives and ended up going into odd cavities like boats and wheel arches instead.

One Devon beekeeper even had one in a lady's bush.... true it was on Spotlight on the Royal Devon show special!



( pause for guffaws from the TV crew behind camera!!)

Yeghes da

 

[mbc]

Norman Carreck no less related his test results on black bees and ONLY the Cornish were found to be worthwhile.

Anyone know where this work can be found?

 

[Into the lions den]

Anyone know where this work can be found?

I do not have any references to give to you I'm afraid. It was part of a presentation he did at the BFA spring meeting maybe 3 or 4 years back. I did not keep any notes other than memorise the parts that were of potential value to me.

Have to qualify the 'only Cornish' bit by adding that the list of provenances tested was far from exhaustive, but DID cover most of the currently fashionable Amm sources.

 

[B+.]

I do not have any references to give to you I'm afraid. It was part of a presentation he did at the BFA spring meeting maybe 3 or 4 years back. I did not keep any notes other than memorise the parts that were of potential value to me.

Have to qualify the 'only Cornish' bit by adding that the list of provenances tested was far from exhaustive, but DID cover most of the currently fashionable Amm sources.

Do you remember what criteria were examined (productivity, swarming, susceptibility to disease, etc) or was it just a test to see that they were Amm?

 

[Into the lions den]

Do you remember what criteria were examined (productivity, swarming, susceptibility to disease, etc) or was it just a test to see that they were Amm?

It was a test they did to establish if they were actually worthwhile bees, and did they perform under a set of key indices sufficiently well to be worth working on. I believe they were tested for Amm characteristics as well.

However this was more about whether they were stock with merit against other types rather than an Amm selection per se.

Again...IIRC.....most were actually still very closely related to French Amm, and in most case the percentage Amm was quite high, and at least one line from France was included in the tests, which were done in several places. He put a map up but as I say, I have no idea where you would find it.

I doubt it would be a welcome document to Amm enthusiasts anyway as it did not really paint most lines in a particularly positive light.

 

[Nige.Coll]

Does anyone know where I can get my hands on a Cornish AMM Queen ?
I don't want anymore Irish ones.
Thanks

 

[Swarm]

I doubt it would be a welcome document to Amm enthusiasts anyway as it did not really paint most lines in a particularly positive light.

I think Amm enthusiasts are used to that.

 

[pevanstone]

Jimy, excellent news for the native irish bee society...although they have taken their time confirming this...but repopulate Europe with them...sorry....I know you are copying and pasting but whoever wrote that article wants hanging.......the Germans virtually eliminated their native Amm's as not really a serious beekeepers bee. Who wants a bee that sits around drinking Guinness all day? To put it politely despite all the enthusiasm for for the "old English/Irish Amm...who wants them? other than the local bring back the Aurochs societies?

They exist ,Amms' that is (see Colonsay and other local populations)but currently they are not good bees for beekeepers to work with. Despite the extravagant claims of their fans.

I did love this article.The last two lines interested me are all Irish amm bees a bit excitable.l told a four hundred hive beekeeper that my amm bees had become less bad tempered he said he thought it was my management.but this was forty years ago.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I did love this article.The last two lines interested me are all Irish amm bees a bit excitable.l told a four hundred hive beekeeper that my amm bees had become less bad tempered he said he thought it was my management.but this was forty years ago.

There's a much better thread HERE
This is how the forum used to be with a good few of the protagonists either banned or jumping before they were pushed