Heather starting to flower.

[TOBY-3652]

couldn't believe mine when I looked.. only been there 3 weeks and nearly filled 2 supers.., had 2 put a extra one on 3 hives {heres me hoping} will leave till end of month or maybe beginning of oct???

 

[Into the lions den]

Heather only now in full flower in much of our range, particularly the north and west.

Bees down to winter cluster size in many cases and now working flat out, which can be critically damaging for wintering when it comes this late, as these bees doing the work are the ones that are meant to still be alive in March and April. Now the risk of burning out way too early is very high. (This is a particular heather phenomenon as it is a very harsh environment. If your bees are in a benign area and working something else it is not a concern.)

Teams were out stripping hives all this week and the last two days report a lot of fresh nectar coming in, and this is now comfortably the latest date either myself or my father have seen ling being brought in in other than tiny amounts since he started in 1950. All going into the bottoms where the brood has hatched out and leaving those boxes very heavy and devoid of young brood or eggs (no space). Some parts, especially nearest the east coast, are not seeing this happen, and remain very light and with a negligible crop. Averaged out it is a very poor calluna harvest in our area, but it is running about 3 to 4 weeks late, and way way later than our main competitor area in the bulk market, Yorkshire.

Now viewing the winter with some trepidation....... thank goodness we have a large number of nucs up our sleeves sitting on the balsam, intended for spring sale but will now be held back until we see what the losses are like on the bees that have suffered so badly at the heather.
7 weeks of starvation and then, when they should be bedding down for winter, nature turns on the tap. This happened several years ago in almost the same way. 60% winter losses (lees bad in polys that made an extra cycle of late brood) followed across much of eastern Scotland as the colonies dwindled away far too early in the wintering cycle due to the winter bees being aged by working when they should not have been. Not much we can do about it now. Impossible to strip and haul our numbers off the hill in a short time so they will just have to keep working as nature dictates.

 

[mbc]

Heather only now in full flower in much of our range, particularly the north and west.

Bees down to winter cluster size in many cases and now working flat out, which can be critically damaging for wintering when it comes this late, as these bees doing the work are the ones that are meant to still be alive in March and April. Now the risk of burning out way too early is very high. (This is a particular heather phenomenon as it is a very harsh environment. If your bees are in a benign area and working something else it is not a concern.)

Teams were out stripping hives all this week and the last two days report a lot of fresh nectar coming in, and this is now comfortably the latest date either myself or my father have seen ling being brought in in other than tiny amounts since he started in 1950. All going into the bottoms where the brood has hatched out and leaving those boxes very heavy and devoid of young brood or eggs (no space). Some parts, especially nearest the east coast, are not seeing this happen, and remain very light and with a negligible crop. Averaged out it is a very poor calluna harvest in our area, but it is running about 3 to 4 weeks late, and way way later than our main competitor area in the bulk market, Yorkshire.

Now viewing the winter with some trepidation....... thank goodness we have a large number of nucs up our sleeves sitting on the balsam, intended for spring sale but will now be held back until we see what the losses are like on the bees that have suffered so badly at the heather.
7 weeks of starvation and then, when they should be bedding down for winter, nature turns on the tap. This happened several years ago in almost the same way. 60% winter losses (lees bad in polys that made an extra cycle of late brood) followed across much of eastern Scotland as the colonies dwindled away far too early in the wintering cycle due to the winter bees being aged by working when they should not have been. Not much we can do about it now. Impossible to strip and haul our numbers off the hill in a short time so they will just have to keep working as nature dictates.

Worrying times.
My trucks in dry dock with the bees on the heather two hours drive away, and here me tapping on the internet rather than getting the spanners out

 

[Thymallus]

Heather has virtually finished on Western edges of the North Yorks Moors just a few patches here and there. Bees sat in hives eating. Harvesting and moving the few colonies I have up there off ASAP. Some queens have stopped laying, partly lack of room and possibly cold.
Higher moisture content than most years on my site. Capped is running at 23% and uncapped is slightly less than this. Re-calibrated refractometer to be sure I was getting right reading.
Last years capped ran at 20%.
Looks like I will have a lot of bakers honey.....

 

[Into the lions den]

Heather has virtually finished on Western edges of the North Yorks Moors just a few patches here and there. Bees sat in hives eating. Harvesting and moving the few colonies I have up there off ASAP. Some queens have stopped laying, partly lack of room and possibly cold.
Higher moisture content than most years on my site. Capped is running at 23% and uncapped is slightly less than this. Re-calibrated refractometer to be sure I was getting right reading.
Last years capped ran at 20%.
Looks like I will have a lot of bakers honey.....

Jeepers. Ours is like porridge. First test is a sliver under 18% and the gel is very thick indeed. Next one testing at about 18.5. Extracting just starting but even with the best of plant it is going to be a long and tedious effort.

Crop looking like an overall level of maybe 11Kg. West areas still to be assessed. Might be better, might be worse. Our long term average 21.5. Break even about 16Kg, in the total absence of a blossom crop, as was the case this year.

 

[snelgrove]

Had a very good crop of heather honey hence my advert, started bring my hives back , mine were on wear dale, always like them back before October. o

 

[Thymallus]

Jeepers. Ours is like porridge. First test is a sliver under 18% and the gel is very thick indeed. Next one testing at about 18.5. Extracting just starting but even with the best of plant it is going to be a long and tedious effort.

I need to test samples off other hives and see if it is hive dependent. This was an exceptional hive with quite a large overall crop which may explain their hurry to cap it. Highest capped water percentage I've ever had.
Will update.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Looks like I will have a lot of bakers honey.....

Or just reduce the moisture content.

 

[Thymallus]

Yes, the thought had crossed my mind. Dehumidifier route or warm air flow?

 

[Hivemaker.]

Yes, the thought had crossed my mind. Dehumidifier route or warm air flow?

Bit of both, a warm reasonably well sealed room with a powerful dehumidifier works...or with a dedicated honey drying machine.

 

[Thymallus]

or with a dedicated honey drying machine.

I'll order a couple in case in the first one breaks down.

 

[Thymallus]

Just dusting off my old heather press, the woodworm is getting worse.
Time to upgrade.

 

[mbc]

I wouldn't want the eho to see that press

 

[Thymallus]

I wouldn't want the eho to see that press

Don't they appreciate historic beekeeping items?

 

[mbc]

Don't they appreciate historic beekeeping items?

Present it as a museum piece and twould be fine, let them know you sell honey pressed through it and I imagine they may have an issue.

 

[Thymallus]

You assume too much. Did I say I sold honey pressed through it?

 

[mbc]

You assume too much. Did I say I sold honey pressed through it?

I assume nothing, read it again.

 

[For want of a better word]

This afternoon took off last of the supers prior to ApiG and feeding, from a new little apiary close to and at the base of Kit Hill.
Difficult to extract ... honey has a slight reddish tinge has a slightly floral tang... but not as much as my usual multifloral.
The red /purple blush of Ling seems to have come back to the steep slopes... but so has blueberry... could this be heather honey?

Yeghes da

 

[mbc]

This afternoon took off last of the supers prior to ApiG and feeding, from a new little apiary close to and at the base of Kit Hill.
Difficult to extract ... honey has a slight reddish tinge has a slightly floral tang... but not as much as my usual multifloral.
The red /purple blush of Ling seems to have come back to the steep slopes... but so has blueberry... could this be heather honey?

Yeghes da

Dig your hive tool under some honey in the frame and if it smells like heather and sits up where it's been pushed out without settling, it's heather honey.

 

[For want of a better word]

Dig your hive tool under some honey in the frame and if it smells like heather and sits up where it's been pushed out without settling, it's heather honey.

Well I never did... looks like heather honey...

Thymallus... can I borrow you heather press?

Yeghes da