Never had colonys like it.

[Curly green finger's]

Do you have any photos of the Hairy Vetch in flower ? Where did the farmer source the seed from do you know ?

KR
S

Yes here you are Steve.
I'll find out about the seed and message you but not on here

 

[deemann1]

The vetch is all over the field ditches in my area

 

[Curly green finger's]

The vetch is all over the field ditches in my area

I've seen it on the road sides to.
It's been flowering in the fields for weeks.
And the fields left are still flowering well... It's some stuff though the hives have been hard to work.

 

[deemann1]

I've seen it on the road sides to.
It's been flowering in the fields for weeks.
And the fields left are still flowering well... It's some stuff though the hives have been hard to work.

To be honest I didn't realise honey bees worked it

 

[pargyle]

To be honest I didn't realise honey bees worked it

They don't normally to any extent in the UK... it's grown extensively in the USA and I think over there the bees tend to work it more as there is not the diversity of forage where it is grown as silage and a cover crop. It's not grown as extensively in the UK and I think that the yield for honey bees is not as good as other available forage whilst it is in flower - honey bees are opportunist and will go where there energy expended has the most value in terms of return.

 

[jeff33]

Let's hope I make it back in the country before all my hives swarm after being honey bound and all the extra supers added filled with now capped honey.

 

[manek]

Let's hope I make it back in the country before all my hives swarm after being honey bound and all the extra supers added filled with now capped honey.

Would they abandon a hive full of stores?

 

[jeff33]

Would they abandon a hive full of stores?

Not abandon but could swarm if left that way for too long.

 

[Curly green finger's]

Hi, update on the big colony I've extracted just over 110 lbs of vetch honey from the big colony a crazy amount really on the 24th of July they still have 5 supers on know and there is fresh Nectar and some capped frames back in the frames.
The vetch is going over now but what has been done is in 4 fields vetch and white/red clover has been sown together and the clover is know flowering.
Also some of the field margins have been sown with nectar rich flowers so I'm hoping to see what comes of them.
By the time I've processed the honey so far we will have 1100 jars of spring honey, vetch, clover, and whatever else is in the honey, lime etc..
I have 6 buckets still to process and averaging 45/60 jars per bucket.
Im now concentrating my efforts on heather and late summer forage plus some splits I want to do.
But after today i spent 4.5 hrs making boxes and frames which have gone out and now I'm back to dregs again!

So far including the spring honey of this colony they are upto 145lbs of honey from just that one.

 

[Karol]

Is there any correlation between honey yields and the severity of following winters?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Is there any correlation between honey yields and the severity of following winters?

no

 

[rolande]

Is there any correlation between honey yields and the severity of following winters?

Surely you mean is there a correlation between honey yields and what's already happened, not what might happen in the future?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Surely you mean is there a correlation between honey yields and what's already happened, not what might happen in the future?

Like the berries on trees and a harsh winter

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Just a vain attempt to sow some doom and gloom to take the edge off a decent harvest

 

[Erichalfbee]

Lots of folk say that though don't they? If there are masses of berries on the trees it will be hard winter.....nothing about it being a cracking preceding spring.
What I can report though is that last year was an Oak mast year and I have hundreds of saplings in the apiary field

 

[Curly green finger's]

Folklore has been passed down the generations, there has to be some sort of truth in it unless it has been changed through the ages?

 

[rolande]

Folklore has been passed down the generations, there has to be some sort of truth in it unless it has been changed through the ages?

Nah. No truth.
..... Although, some years back Michael Palmer did write on bee source about some French bees which allegedly could control their brood cycle ahead of a change in weather. Something like that but I can't remember the exact details nor do I have the time to trawl through years worth of posts to find it. But the suggestion was that the bees were definitely acting in anticipation.....

 

[Curly green finger's]

Nah. No truth.
..... Although, some years back Michael Palmer did write on bee source about some French bees which allegedly could control their brood cycle ahead of a change in weather. Something like that but I can't remember the exact details nor do I have the time to trawl through years worth of posts to find it. But the suggestion was that the bees were definitely acting in anticipation.....

Well they do know before us when the weather is going to change, after all they are in tune with the world on different levels to use.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Nah. No truth.
.....

Yes. Perhaps climate change has put paid to much.
I know my bees pile back home at the threat of rain but I can usually see that threat too, especially if I have washing out
I don’t think they are any better than my weather apps

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

after all they are in tune with the world on different levels

A bit like some on here