Happy Days.....NOT :(

[Tom Bick]

So you removed two queen cells yesterday and also you were not able to find the queen and since removing the queen cells the hive has become aggressive. Where on the frame were the two queen cells and were they sealed by any chance.

 

[thebhoy]

hi Tom,

QC's were near the base of the frames, about two inches up (14 x 12) and not sealed.
There was plenty of eggs and bias.
Re finding the queen...I have only ever seen her twice in a year.....quite a dark queen and very fast across the frames.

 

[Tom Bick]

Ok so she was probably still there when you removed the two queen cells and may well be although perhaps now embedded into the side of a frame Next inspection if you can get in is to look for emergency queen cells that may indicate why they have become so aggressive. Good luck.

 

[thebhoy]

cheers Tom

intend to hold off until later this afternoon or tomorrow if possible.
As I will be moving it I intend to remove the super with stores / capped honey etc and add a super with frames of foundation. Purpose is to make it lighter to carry through house :O and at other end as well as giving the bees room so they don't overheat in the few hours they will be locked in overnight....journey is only ten minutes once they are in the car.

I have a spare queen (mother of this one) if I need to use it or, if push comes to shove, I could join my nuc with it as it is a queen raised in July / August last year from my good queen and brought through the Winter with some molly codling

Of course, everything could go pear shaped today......time will tell

 

[Margaret Elisabeth]

cheers Tom

intend to hold off until later this afternoon or tomorrow if possible.
As I will be moving it I intend to remove the super with stores / capped honey etc and add a super with frames of foundation. Purpose is to make it lighter to carry through house :O and at other end as well as giving the bees room so they don't overheat in the few hours they will be locked in overnight....journey is only ten minutes once they are in the car.

I have a spare queen (mother of this one) if I need to use it or, if push comes to shove, I could join my nuc with it as it is a queen raised in July / August last year from my good queen and brought through the Winter with some molly codling

Of course, everything could go pear shaped today......time will tell

You have my symathy with the swelling of the stings I have the same problem and firstly dab with damp bicarbonate of soda, then use Anthisan to help reduce the reaction. If they are that bad do you really want to inflict them on someone else?

 

[thebhoy]

generally Margaret they have been fine all of last year and it has just got bad this week after I went in in bad weather then had to go in again to deal with some QC's.
I am sure once they are out of the garden I can manage them and re-queen if required.

They have just started again...two hits...one on arm, one on head.

 

[thebhoy]

Well, bees all in new locations (except nucs)

Many thanks to Kevin for helping me out with a temporary space....eases the pressure big time.

My others all passed their disease checks and are now located in another location this morning...with one cock-up, it is less than 3 miles away now have some 'homing' bees so I am using one nuc in middle of where the last two hives were to catch any that return.

After several years of relative stress free bee keeping with hives in my garden, I can safely say that it is not much fun when they go tetchy and, although I had no complaints from any neighbour, the worry that something could happen when they are like this is just not worth it.

Thanks to everyone who offered some temporary help, it was reassuring to know that fellow beeks that have never met can offer so much support to other members of the forum.