June Gap

[susbees]

Not touching elders here either. First of the bramble out but no bees yet, ditto clover though soil's a bit acid for a good flow. Pollen/nectar from geraniums assorted, poppies, hogweed, run-to-seed PSB (left deliberately, covered in assorted pollinators), orange blob butterfly bush (the one we use to cross to make honeybee friendly sports), heuchera and comfrey.

Temperament very varied across the apiary. Lightly feeding nucs and two swarms from last week. One nuc launched themselves *rse first. Robbing could be becoming an issue as several very strong colonies....and a load of tidying up/combining to sort asap with the smaller ones. Might ship a few out to the out-apiaries so they can grow on in peace.

 

[BeeMoustashe]

As for June Gap... Just drove past a field of OSR, all yellow and lovely still, where all the other fields of it have already gone over.

Sadly, it's about 2 miles too far for my hives

 

[VEG]

this time last year I had extracted twice. Hives have supers on to give the bees room but they are empty.

 

[oliver90owner]

As for June Gap... Just drove past a field of OSR, all yellow and lovely still, where all the other fields of it have already gone over.

That will be spring OSR.

 

[rockdoc]

Bit confused about the above comments on Lime. I was assured by a friend in the Med that the honey from these trees is highly prized. Is he wrong or do they have a different species over there? I have set up my apiary to take advantage of a large copse of Lime based on this.

 

[alanf]

Bit confused about the above comments on Lime. I was assured by a friend in the Med that the honey from these trees is highly prized. Is he wrong or do they have a different species over there? I have set up my apiary to take advantage of a large copse of Lime based on this.

There may be a confusion between lime trees (the citrus fruit in the med region, Citrus sp.) and lime trees (the widely planted park tree in the UK, Tilia sp. ). Not that they can't both provide forage for decent honey but completely different.

 

[Into the lions den]

Despite the first clover being strongly in flower here, and the last vestiges of the OSR still around the margins and tramlines, the last two days we have noticed the bees heavily into working comfrey. There are vast amounts of it around here on waste ground, field margins, and along watercourses, one native species that is done and dusted before the balsam overwhelms the place, so not actually harmed by it. Creamy white pollen btw..........was watching them in their thousands on a big stand of comfrey this afternoon.

 

[Teemore]

Checked some hives last night which, just over two and a half weeks ago, did have capped honey and a good amount of nectar in their first supers and nice arc of stores on the brood frames. As of last night there was little to no capped honey remaining in a good proportion of these hives... Summer feeding is duly under way!
If the weather would hold half decent for a week or two most of my colonies would benefit from the white clover that is coming into bloom locally.

 

[Hebeegeebee]

I get the June gap most years. But not this year.
Instead I got March,
followed by March,
followed by March.

 

[oliver90owner]

Mine were giving my asparagus a 'good going over' this week. Not a lot for them (only 40, or so, plants) but they were certainly collecting an appreciable amount for their own consumption. (That's a clue for some )

 

[darrenperrett]

I've just had to feed 6 of my hives. Normally they've already got a full super or two on them from the dandelions but they missed out this year because of the bad weather.
They just got 2 litres each to see them through a few days when hopefully they'll get out on the brambles.
So far, a terrible bee year with such a promising start.

 

[susbees]

Not touching elders here either.

Well they were today. Sun, warmish and a bit of humidity and bees visiting elder for pollen. Quite a complex procedure involving much hovering. Plenty pollen elsewhere but these had the pattern I had noticed at the hives earlier and thought it a crucifer...

...waxy looking mid-cream pollen, centre face mark and marked dusting of pollen on the underside of the abdomen.

Sorry Wedmore , got the photographic evidence