How's Your Winter going?

[Fusion_power]

it is an interesting counterpoint to compare my climate. My bees have had weekly flights all winter with less than 10 days of seriously cold weather (-4C or lower). By comparison, 25 years ago for a typical winter we had 2.5 months with zero flights. My bees have been collecting abundant maple and willow pollen for 2 weeks. A colony I checked today had 4 frames with brood and about 100 cells of drone brood. The oldest drone larvae were about 8 days from the egg being laid. Winter survival for my colonies so far is 100 percent. A pear tree at the side of my yard has about 25% open blooms and should hit full bloom within 2 or 3 days.

 

[madasafish]

First decent day of 2019. sun shining, 7C and minimal wind. Bess flying from every hive in some volumes - first I have seen this year.

Took a quick photo of bees on top of frames so I can see what - if any - correlation between now and summer's bee volumes (none I suspect)..

The last picture is of a home made mini mating nuc with overwintered queen (50mm celotex - design by FatBeeman Youtube )

All hives, and nucs have survived - so far.

 

[GuyNir]

Same here. All hives out today. First pollen seen coming in this year (bright orange). Tons of snowdrops around, hoping the bees will make good use of it this week

 

[Hivemaker.]

The last picture is of a home made mini mating nuc with overwintered queen

Well done, Mike...they are looking good.

Been out today and weighed about 140 six frame nucs, most still okay for food stores.
Introduced a new queen to a strong queen-less colony and planted nine blackcurrant bushes in the apiary, now just going out to weigh another 12 nucs.

 

[Poly Hive]

Planting a hawthorn hedge here, 70 odd in and 110 to go.

Snowdrops were open for a while but nothing being worked that I saw.

Bees orientating though so newbies out and about.

PH

 

[Swarm]

Dropped by the apiary today as temps hit 12 degrees and the sun was out. Lots of activity, all colonies flying and a surprising amount of pollen coming in. I counted four different colours, yellow, orange, white and a pale green, some bees had a distinct green tinge to them.

 

[Michael Palmer]

Introduced a new queen to a strong queen-less colony.

You already have mated queens?

 

[Mr C]

So far all is good topping up with Syrup

 

[Millet]

You already have mated queens?

My guess is HM has loads of 2018 over wintering Queens in Nucs..

 

[Ian123]

Checked my small nuc that was cut out of a large yew in October, bees flying and pollen going in. Added some fondant as getting a little short

 

[B+.]

planted nine blackcurrant bushes in the apiary,

You must like blackcurrants! What variety are they? I have Ben Sarek in my garden.

 

[Hivemaker.]

You must like blackcurrants! What variety are they? I have Ben Sarek in my garden.

I don't know what variety they are, Paul, took them originally as cuttings over 40 years ago from my great uncles farm... and they had been on the farm for lord knows how many years at that time, have kept them going all these years by taking new cuttings every so often, quite large and very heavy cropping whatever variety they are.

 

[B+.]

I don't know what variety they are, Paul, took them originally as cuttings over 40 years ago from my great uncles farm... and they had been on the farm for lord knows how many years at that time, have kept them going all these years by taking new cuttings every so often, quite large and very heavy cropping whatever variety they are.

When I prune them, I look for pencil thickness side shoots. If you pull them backwards off the main stem, they have a "heel". Then, I just leave them in a bucket of water over the winter. Invariably, they have white "water roots" by the end of summer. This gives me plenty of plants. I do the same thing with red currants
I had an allotment 10+ years ago and these are the same bushes I had then. I just keep taking water rooted cuttings whenever the old ones need replacing. The black currants are as big as marbles and are ready in July. The good thing is that, unlike the red currants, the birds don't touch them.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I just take whatever pieces I prune of whatever thickness, stick them in the ground, they root - not often do I see one failing

 

[madasafish]

When I prune them, I look for pencil thickness side shoots. If you pull them backwards off the main stem, they have a "heel". Then, I just leave them in a bucket of water over the winter. Invariably, they have white "water roots" by the end of summer. This gives me plenty of plants. I do the same thing with red currants
I had an allotment 10+ years ago and these are the same bushes I had then. I just keep taking water rooted cuttings whenever the old ones need replacing. The black currants are as big as marbles and are ready in July. The good thing is that, unlike the red currants, the birds don't touch them.

Could you teach our blackbirds not to eat ours? Gave them up as they decimate the fruit - after the tits have pecked at all the young shoots..

 

[B+.]

Could you teach our blackbirds not to eat ours? Gave them up as they decimate the fruit - after the tits have pecked at all the young shoots..

Blackcurrants are safe here but red currants have to be netted to stop the birds getting them. I also have a morello cherry tree that the birds clear before I get them. I once got 22lbs of cherries off it. The birds get them most years

The rabbits sometimes go for the tips of flowers (crocus, etc) at the cemetery but I was told to spray them with cheap hairspray many years ago. It works.

 

[Millet]

The rabbits sometimes go for the tips of flowers (crocus, etc) at the cemetery but I was told to spray them with cheap hairspray many years ago. It works.

I have that problem with voles and if that works i will give it a go..

 

[Goran]

Bunch of cats and feathers are flying around.. I always wonder, how are they so efficient in bird catch.. Also they observe and on what birds are attacking they set up ambush. Not rarely I saw my cats hidden on fruit branches..

 

[gregior]

Well all of mine are still alive so far,even one that i had completely written off last autumn as it went into winter in a poly nuc with about 400 bees (grapefruit sized cluster in between 2 frames) they're still alive somehow! No pollen going in yet but crocus is out and it looks very mild the next few days so expect to see some soon.

 

[beeno]

When I prune them, I look for pencil thickness side shoots. If you pull them backwards off the main stem, they have a "heel". Then, I just leave them in a bucket of water over the winter. Invariably, they have white "water roots" by the end of summer. This gives me plenty of plants. I do the same thing with red currants
I had an allotment 10+ years ago and these are the same bushes I had then. I just keep taking water rooted cuttings whenever the old ones need replacing. The black currants are as big as marbles and are ready in July. The good thing is that, unlike the red currants, the birds don't touch them.

Makes me think of a cold glass of kir on a hot summers evening. Interesting that the birds don't go for them.