Low stores warning

[drex]

All my hives went into winter with enough stores for a normal winter. Today all but one were hefting light, and on checking stores were very low. Gave them enough fondant to be going on with. Will have to get more at the bakers tomorrow. One hive still had plenty of stores. They are all my own mongrel queens, bred from the best I had. No accounting for bees.
An odd winter so far. Just cut my grass for the first time ever in Jan.

 

[Hivemaker.]

All my hives went into winter with enough stores for a normal winter.

What is a normal winter there, when did you finish feeding for winter.

 

[BrianO]

" Normal Winter ", afraid that is terminology of the past.

Pictured yesterday Snowdrops about to flower to join some of the Daffs' already in flower .

Normally late February flowering !

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Always see snowdrops early January around here in certain locations (News Year's day in fact in Bethlehem)

 

[drex]

What is a normal winter there, when did you finish feeding for winter.

Live in the driest part of the country and am on the coast, winter not normally harsh, but there has been a lot more flying than normal. Apiary on edge of town so gardens and farmland. Finished the feeding end Sept, early Oct which is my norm. It was too wet though for them to benefit from the ivy.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Live in the driest part of the country and am on the coast, winter not normally harsh,

On the coast here as well, but seems to be one of the wetter windier places, and your just about finished feeding for winter when I am just starting.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

most of my hives still almost too heavy to lift, finished feeding late November if I recall

 

[BrianO]

Hefted mine at weekend, mixture some heavy dome lighting, will need fondant

 

[protheroe]

Wasps still in and out of hives at one apiary.one colony gone and empty of stores and another that was chocca block with stores in November was nearly empty with wasps still going in.i hope it freezes soon before I lose any more colonies

 

[Karol]

Wasps still in and out of hives at one apiary.one colony gone and empty of stores and another that was chocca block with stores in November was nearly empty with wasps still going in.i hope it freezes soon before I lose any more colonies

I did try to alert forum members to this threat. When bees cluster they don't defend their stores and if temperatures hover around 10'C hives remain vulnerable to unfettered robbing by wasps. Hives therefore need greater vigilance to prevent starvation.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Wasps still in and out of hives at one apiary.one colony gone and empty of stores and another that was chocca block with stores in November was nearly empty with wasps still going in.i hope it freezes soon before I lose any more colonies

Whereabouts is that then? haven't seen hide nor hair of a wasp since last November down here - or is it the landfill site at Abernant which is giving them plenty of scope to forage?

 

[protheroe]

One of my apiaries on drymmau in birchgrove.landowner still has them in and of his house as well.have had no trouble this end.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

what a difference a few miles make eh?

 

[protheroe]

Yes it is a big difference.here,ponty and glais which is only a mile from drummau are fine.

 

[Millet]

All my hives went into winter with enough stores for a normal winter. Today all but one were hefting light, and on checking stores were very low. Gave them enough fondant to be going on with. Will have to get more at the bakers tomorrow. One hive still had plenty of stores. They are all my own mongrel queens, bred from the best I had. No accounting for bees.
An odd winter so far. Just cut my grass for the first time ever in Jan.

I weighed my hive on the 15th Oct it weighed 97lb on the 20th of Dec it weighed 95lb, so unless they get a serious case of the munchies they surely should be fine.

 

[Roola]

Fondant has gone on to 3 of mine... the rest seem fine for the time being.

It is looking like next week will see much colder temperatures and there are also some early signs of a significantly colder period towards the end of the month and then into Feb.

 

[madasafish]

I weighed my hive on the 15th Oct it weighed 97lb on the 20th of Dec it weighed 95lb, so unless they get a serious case of the munchies they surely should be fine.

If they go on like that, you 'll need to remove honey frames in spring or queen will have no room

 

[user 6228]

I did try to alert forum members to this threat. When bees cluster they don't defend their stores and if temperatures hover around 10'C hives remain vulnerable to unfettered robbing by wasps. Hives therefore need greater vigilance to prevent starvation.

Classic argument for the clustering temperature to be lower ... i.e. a higher colony mass to hive conductance ratio, in other words more bees and/or less hive heat losses.
Honeybees win out against their predators if they cluster at temperatures BELOW the minimum active temperatures of their predators.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Honeybees win out against their predators if they cluster at temperatures BELOW the minimum active temperatures of their predators.

No they don't.

How cold would that need to be for woodpeckers and badgers then.

 

[Millet]

If they go on like that, you 'll need to remove honey frames in spring or queen will have no room

Thank you for that, we are supposed to be getting a cold snap in the next several days so that should put pay to a few pounds of stores.