- Joined
- Oct 16, 2012
- Messages
- 17,706
- Reaction score
- 8,912
- Location
- Fareham, Hampshire UK
- Hive Type
- 14x12
- Number of Hives
- 6
Spent the day talking bees to the public at Open Farm Sunday today .... came across two beekeepers (separately) who had got their bees last year at the end of the season after a weekend's course .. which cost them £400 and was held in a local hotel ... They paid the additional £200 for a Nuc ...
Both of them in a heck of a mess ... bees fine but already swarmed - one of them hadn't inspected since March as his neighbour had been stung when he openeid them up last time ... the other had caught a swarm from his hive and was advised to put a Queen excluder under the brood box to stop them absconding ...unfortunately, he wasn't told to remove it and had left it on for the last two weeks !! It was the second swarm out of his hive so probably a virgin ... not hopeful for him ... no eggs or brood in the hive apparently. I offered a frame of eggs as he's local to me ... but not in our association.
Another new beekeeper had two hives - no course completed, not an association member, Is leaarning via Youtube he said, 'just bought 'some bees because they are in trouble' ... He has a big garden but the colonies are very aggressive and he's frightened of them, bought them on line about a month ago from someone on Facebook !! He's a bit too far away for me to help so told him to get in touch with his local association.
A bit worrying .....
Both of them in a heck of a mess ... bees fine but already swarmed - one of them hadn't inspected since March as his neighbour had been stung when he openeid them up last time ... the other had caught a swarm from his hive and was advised to put a Queen excluder under the brood box to stop them absconding ...unfortunately, he wasn't told to remove it and had left it on for the last two weeks !! It was the second swarm out of his hive so probably a virgin ... not hopeful for him ... no eggs or brood in the hive apparently. I offered a frame of eggs as he's local to me ... but not in our association.
Another new beekeeper had two hives - no course completed, not an association member, Is leaarning via Youtube he said, 'just bought 'some bees because they are in trouble' ... He has a big garden but the colonies are very aggressive and he's frightened of them, bought them on line about a month ago from someone on Facebook !! He's a bit too far away for me to help so told him to get in touch with his local association.
A bit worrying .....