Poor bees

[Popparand]

+19c deg yesterday then -4 overnight and snowing all morning. Poor bees, it's bad enough indoors with no central heating because Calor have run out of gas.
Can't believe it's May in 6 weeks time.

 

[Swarm]

+19c deg yesterday then -4 overnight and snowing all morning. Poor bees, it's bad enough indoors with no central heating because Calor have run out of gas.
Can't believe it's May in 6 weeks time.

All conditions native bees are used to Just typical British weather.

 

[madasafish]

All conditions native bees are used to Just typical British weather.

My Carniolans appear to enjoy it as much as my AMM do. My Buckfast just sit and sulk .

 

[Beefriendly]

My Carniolans appear to enjoy it as much as my AMM do. My Buckfast just sit and sulk .

You need to change your Buckfast breeder, mine are out flying whenever the weather permits. It's my Amm hives that are showing little activity, some but not as much as I would expect.

 

[taurus]

It's just above freezing here and snowing on and off. Also blowing a strong easterly wind. My Buckfast colony have decided it's fine to pop out for a quick whizz round the garden. They're bonkers. All the other colonies are taking one look at the weather and staying firmly indoors.

 

[Finman]

My Carniolans appear to enjoy it as much as my AMM do. My Buckfast just sit and sulk .

Bees enjoy about British weather, when temps are under 10C. That really needs imagination.

I like that bees stay in hives in bad weather. They cannot forage in cold weather. They only kill themselves for nothing.

 

[pargyle]

2" of snow this morning on the Costa del Fareham ... it's mid March, my Victoria Plum is in full blossom ... what is happening. There will be no plum jam from the tree this year ... this weather predicted to continue through till late tomorrow.

You alpine types in Wales and Staffordshire may be used to it but it's brought the place to a standstilll again down here - I saw a woman in Tesco yesterday hoarding bread and milk (and telling people around her that she was stocking up on staples as 'we might be snowed in').

For goodness sake ... ridiculous in all respects ...

 

[enrico]

2" of snow this morning on the Costa del Fareham ... it's mid March, my Victoria Plum is in full blossom ... what is happening. There will be no plum jam from the tree this year ... this weather predicted to continue through till late tomorrow.

You alpine types in Wales and Staffordshire may be used to it but it's brought the place to a standstilll again down here - I saw a woman in Tesco yesterday hoarding bread and milk (and telling people around her that she was stocking up on staples as 'we might be snowed in').

For goodness sake ... ridiculous in all respects ...

Ah! That will be Michael Fishes wife!!!!!!
E

 

[Wingy]

+19c deg yesterday then -4 overnight and snowing all morning. Poor bees, it's bad enough indoors with no central heating because Calor have run out of gas.
Can't believe it's May in 6 weeks time.

I sympathise with you re the central heating, my boiler packed in last week fingers crossed it can be sorted on Monday when British Gas get out to us. Heating I can do without but no hot water is a pain. Should have had an electric shower fitted.
As for the bees they are out at every opportunity - mad.

 

[oliver90owner]

Should have had an electric shower fitted.

Should have fitted an immersion heater. More economical.

 

[pargyle]

Ah! That will be Michael Fishes wife!!!!!!
E

Goodness knows what she would be doing if she lived where you are - my daughter in Frome tells me they have 6" of snow and it's so cold the children were only out in it for 5 minutes before coming indoors ...

 

[Millet]

Goodness knows what she would be doing if she lived where you are - my daughter in Frome tells me they have 6" of snow and it's so cold the children were only out in it for 5 minutes before coming indoors ...

You have it easy further south, try living on the North East coast with a brutal easterly wind, here is one of the breakwaters taking a battering god knows how it is still standing..

 

[enrico]

Goodness knows what she would be doing if she lived where you are - my daughter in Frome tells me they have 6" of snow and it's so cold the children were only out in it for 5 minutes before coming indoors ...

Compared with Shropshire it's not much at all. It will be gone by tomorrow!

 

[simonforeman]

Looks like we've had it good here in south east Lincolnshire....even tho we were under an amber warning yesterday no snow.... allthough the easterly wind is biting... I can see my 2 hives out the window no movement in last 2 days as you would expect.... Friday was 16 degrees today feels like minus 16!!!!!

 

[pargyle]

You have it easy further south, try living on the North East coast with a brutal easterly wind, here is one of the breakwaters taking a battering god knows how it is still standing..

Just remember you are talking to an exiled Yorkshireman here ... I endured the winter of '63 .. with only cardboard boxes for shoes with bits of old carpet as insoles, we had one piece of coal to last the week; we burned the back and front doors to keep warm and so the wind whistled through the house from front to back. It was so cold the condensation from our breath froze on the inside of the windows and the candle in the outside toilet was not enough to keep the toilet cistern from freezing. There was lino on the floor in the bedroom and your feet froze to it when you got out of bed ..

We used to go and stand by the railway lines to get a bit of heat from the steam engines as they went past ..

You would never have survived in those days ... central heating, carpet, double glazing, cars with heaters, insulated footwear and thinsulate hats and gloves ... You have it really soft in the North East ... you should try Bridlington in July !

 

[Millet]

You would never have survived in those days ... central heating, carpet, double glazing, cars with heaters, insulated footwear and thinsulate hats and gloves ... You have it really soft in the North East ... you should try Bridlington in July !

We also had no central heating as kids and certainly no double glazing the windows used to freeze up on the inside, we had to sit in front of the oven in the kitchen on a morning to get warmed up ready for school when we had no coal, we never had a car much of the time so it was on foot in the snow and all weathers with carrier bags in our shoes to keep our feet dry, so i think i would have survived in 63 or any other year.

 

[pargyle]

We also had no central heating as kids and certainly no double glazing the windows used to freeze up on the inside, we had to sit in front of the oven in the kitchen on a morning to get warmed up ready for school when we had no coal, we never had a car much of the time so it was on foot in the snow and all weathers with carrier bags in our shoes to keep our feet dry, so i think i would have survived in 63 or any other year.

In 1963 we had to tunnel through the snow to get to school ... there were no polythene or plastics in those days - so we had to contend with chapped legs and fiery jack .. we had folded newspaper under our hand knitted balaclavas to keep warm ... nothing moved on the roads - even the electric trams could not get through ... Joe Brindley delivered some fruit and veg with his horse and dray and even the loose vinegar he sold from a barrel had frozen solid.

You've never had it so good ...

 

[Millet]

You've never had it so good ...

So you think you are the only era that could survive such weather.. i bow to your superiority .

 

[SDM]

So you think you are the only era that could survive such weather.. i bow to your superiority .

I bow to both of your seniority, 63' !! Sheesh , it was another decade til my dad got that twinkle in his eyes.

 

[Stiffy]

All conditions native bees are used to Just typical British weather.

Yep, my black bees have also dwindled to a couple of frames and will take until around June to be sufficiently large a colony to start a surplus. Buckfast are nearly filling brood boxes and ready for the off, thankfully a large enough cluster to maintain the colony during this brief cold spell.
S