Lost my first ever colony today.

[pargyle]

Morning philip I can't explain why the colony have been in the bottom box all winter there is no barrier for them to cross,
When I removed the top box there was only three bees in it and the colony were covering 5/6 seams of bee's in the bottom.
In the autumn they were covering 7 in both.
It was the best thing to do removing the top box.

Looking at our records this colony did much the same last winter. They supersede in August to.
They also end up on double brood with out fail and are one of our biggest Amm colonys.

As to winter prep they were very light going into winter they were fed 16kgs of fondant.

My thoughts are they would benefit from being housed in a bigger hive type but then condensed into one for winter.

They were to big in the autumn to condence into one nats brood box.

I think the Poot is probaby right(ish) - I suspect they stored the fondant in the upper box, ate their way through it - if it was empty - and then clustered round what little stores they had left in the lower box. Lack of food to enable them to keep the cluster warm and the recent cold weather probably finished them off. That was quite a pile of bees on the floor so quite a lot to feed - although my black bees in poly hives are very frugal.

I'd pick the dead bees out of the cells with a pair of tweezers saves them rotting although the bees would clean them out if you reuse them, sweep the dead ones off the floor and seal the box up for future use. After the cold spell you should be OK as far as waxmoth is concerned but I tend to give stored frames a blast of Dipel just to be sure.

 

[The Poot]

If the top box is full of stores, the natural place for a cluster would be below those stores, thus mostly in the bottom box, no? Thus allowing them to eat their way up the combs as winter goes on? Assuming the hive is well insulated, anyway. If there is a problem with hive insulation they I can see that they might have no choice but to get to the top as soon as possible.

I have colonies doing both - some are permanently at the top, some are lurking below their stores and hardly visible through the perspex. Who knows what makes them decide ....

I would have left them the top box stores until winter was over myself - seems an odd time to be removing food, just as they will need it most - but I am sure either approach is fine.

I see your point BB.
I was thinking that maybe the bees started at the top for warmth as soon as the weather turned cold and then moved down.
As a double brood arrangement, I was thinking the warmth factor may have been the main one. It does seem to be pretty cold where Curly lives.

 

[Curly green finger's]

There was lots of stores in the lower box and they have loads down there enough for the rest of the winter.
By looking at them they seem to be going from left to right rather than up.
I still think it was the best thing to do.

Im also talking of two different colonys here.

The colony I lost was a single brood if you read through previous posts.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I'd pick the dead bees out of the cells with a pair of tweezers saves them rotting although the bees would clean them out if you reuse them,

just hold the frame by one lug and start a gentle continuous fast tapping of the frame against a gate post, the bees will gradually slip out of the cells - won't take that long, once they're halfway out, easy enough to just pick them out.

 

[pargyle]

just hold the frame by one lug and start a gentle continuous fast tapping of the frame against a gate post, the bees will gradually slip out of the cells - won't take that long, once they're halfway out, easy enough to just pick them out.

You learn a new trick every day on here ... I do that with frames that have the dust left from pollen mites and I've also used a vacumn cleaner on frames as well ....

 

[Curly green finger's]

just hold the frame by one lug and start a gentle continuous fast tapping of the frame against a gate post, the bees will gradually slip out of the cells - won't take that long, once they're halfway out, easy enough to just pick them out.

You make something quite sad sound so easy!

 

[pargyle]

There was lots of stores in the lower box and they have loads down there enough for the rest of the winter.
By looking at them they seem to be going from left to right rather than up.
I still think it was the best thing to do.

Im also talking of two different colonys here.

The colony I lost was a single brood if you read through previous posts.

You managed to confuse a few of us then ...

Still not sure why, at this time of the year, you would be lifting boxes and interfering with hives that a simple heft will tell you are bang full of stores ... far too early to be fiddling with them.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

You learn a new trick every day on here ... I do that with frames that have the dust left from pollen mites and I've also used a vacumn cleaner on frames as well ....

just remember to tap the top bar against the post - not the other lug as you will quickly end up with a frame to repair, especially if it's one heavy with stores (that's anothe t-shirt in my wide and varied collection )

 

[pargyle]

just remember to tap the top bar against the post - not the other lug as you will quickly end up with a frame to repair, especially if it's one heavy with stores (that's anothe t-shirt in my wide and varied collection )

Yes ... I think we've all got drawers full of T-shirts we wish we had never collected !

 

[Swarm]

Agree with tapping the frames, some refuse to budge but tweezers can help with the stubborn ones. I don't like asking the bees to remove the corpses but that's just me being anthropomorphic.
I read that one colony died and another on double was in the bottom box? I was getting confused by those who were confused.

 

[pargyle]

Agree with tapping the frames, some refuse to budge but tweezers can help with the stubborn ones. I don't like asking the bees to remove the corpses but that's just me being anthropomorphic.
I read that one colony died and another on double was in the bottom box? I was getting confused by those who were confused.

HAHA ... I probably added to the confusion - or possibly even caused it !!

 

[Curly green finger's]

We got there in the end

 

[Swarm]

The box you removed also had stores in, Mark? I'd have left it there myself. Have a think about dummying the space down this year and taking them through Winter on eighteen frames? Nice snug little format

 

[Curly green finger's]

The box you removed also had stores in, Mark? I'd have left it there myself. Have a think about dummying the space down this year and taking them through Winter on eighteen frames? Nice snug little format

Yes it did They are snug now and have lots of stores still.
Hard for a beekeeper to say what is write or wrong in a given situation.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Well 17 degrees forecast for London next week. Any bets?

 

[Newbeeneil]

Well 17 degrees forecast for London next week. Any bets?

Unfortunately 200mm of rain for you Dani!

 

[Erichalfbee]

Unfortunately 200mm of rain for you Dani!

Never rains but it pours.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Unfortunately 200mm of rain for you Dani!

Ah yes - that's an early spring for them down West then

 

[E&MBees]

Ah yes - that's an early spring for them down West then

It’s raining in my neck of the woods til Monday. There after cloud/sun, 12C max. No early spring here.

 

[Curly green finger's]

You learn a new trick every day on here ... I do that with frames that have the dust left from pollen mites and I've also used a vacumn cleaner on frames as well ....

Brilliant tip with the hoover it worked a treat I've now cleaned the frames up.
I wanted to ask and talk about one of the frames ( photo bellow) I went through all the frames and this one had small amounts of varroa poo in the cells.
This colony was treated with OA via sublimox on the 10 th of September.
Would a vape in December of saved them considering the last vape of three had varroa drop in single figures in the subsequent days?
This is the only frame with varroa poop.