prep for 2014 OSR

[Teemore]

Pete's comments in post #20 could easily apply to my own situation. I'm drawing to the close of my third full season as a beekeeper and hive side observations/experience counts for a huge amount. I joined this forum before I got my first nuc.
I am back down to 20 odd stocks across four apiaries for over-wintering plus some Nucs and Mini Nucs. I still help my mentor most weeks and he is currently sitting with a similar number of stocks. Prior to my working with him, the most colonies he had was 12. I find it strange that he says he is learning from me now - Ta forum!
Strong colonies are key to a good crop - RAB, Finman and others have stressed this ad nauseum. As Chris notes, learn from your mistakes. I'll add that we can all learn from the mistakes and experiences of others on this forum and in our associations: just learn to sort the wheat from the chaff.......

 

[For want of a better word]

More bees make more honey, not more hives

to quote the Tractor Man... 100% WRONG QUOTE]

I could take 10 hives containing 30k bees each to osr and not get any honey crop. Unite them to 5 hives ie more bees in a hive (60k) and would get a crop.

I stand by it, more bees equals more honey crop not more hives.
It's about the number of bees / foragers available in each hive to produce the surplus honey than the number of extra hives just making enough for themselves.

​

Exactly what I said........ a colony that is BIG BOG BIG.... will produce a surfeit of honey..... but if the same colony of bees was split into 3.. each in its own hive, then they would nay produce anything like the BIG BOG BIG colony in one hive

Seems even Tractor Man with half a century of beekeepering under his belt muddles colony with hive!!!

Hive is just a box... like a pigsty is just a box....goes to show we are all novices in reallity

( Except Finman of course!)

 

[user 6228]

​

Exactly what I said........ a colony that is BIG BOG BIG.... will produce a surfeit of honey..... but if the same colony of bees was split into 3.. each in its own hive, then they would nay produce anything like the BIG BOG BIG colony in one hive

Seems even Tractor Man with half a century of beekeepering under his belt muddles colony with hive!!!

Hive is just a box... like a pigsty is just a box....goes to show we are all novices in reallity

( Except Finman of course!)

there are other things you can do to increase honey yield ... as has been shown in research and practice...

Add significant insulation all year round

 

[Nige.Coll]

glad someone posted this saved me doing it.

talking to the farmer other day and they have planted 400 acres all around my hives.

 

[For want of a better word]

Add significant insulation all year round ....

... and that goes without saying !
And the BHS pollyhives are a tad lighter to move, I have made up a special door blocker to facilitate an easy stress free relocation!

 

[sipa]

Feed a Good protein supplement for 6 weeks before OSR time. Then you will have a lot more foragers.

more foragers = more honey

Good luck

 

[garethjbarry]

So just to check that I have read this correctly, I will need to feed my bees 6 weeks or so in advance to get my bee numbers up. When I get them there put plenty of supers on and fingers crossed the OSR crops as normal and then a very quick exstraction before it sets in the frames? Have I missed any details?

 

[oliver90owner]

No, you prepare with plenty of supers. You add them as required. The 2012 season did not need supers in most cases until the last week or so. I put two on initially, because i was going away for a week or so. On my return I removed most of the second supers and did not need them for several weeks.

One has to consider the situation at the time.

Like feeding. If they have more than sufficient stores, there is no point in giving extra. They may need feeding at any time before the OSR provides a surplus. They most likely will need a water supply to be able to feed the larvae from their honey stores - the usual way, in the past, has been to feed thin syrup - and they might need some protein (again, depends on pollen stores and foraging opportunities at the time).

Most foraging in the very early springtime will be for pollen and they will only be short of water during periods when the bees are confined to the hive in cold periods. The point being that they cannot stop and start brooding heavily once the spring build-up is initiated, without severe losses of developing brood.

RAB

 

[Skyhook]

So just to check that I have read this correctly, I will need to feed my bees 6 weeks or so in advance to get my bee numbers up. When I get them there put plenty of supers on and fingers crossed the OSR crops as normal and then a very quick exstraction before it sets in the frames? Have I missed any details?

Have plenty of spare hives, nucs, split boards or whatever you us for swarm control, because when you need them is too late to order them, and early build-up means early swarming- less with young queens of course, but be prepared.


.

 

[sipa]

Feeding the right protein blend stimulates brood production and royal jelly production by up to one third, this will then lead to increased quantity and longevity of the workers.

More bees = More honey

 

[mbc]

Feeding the right protein blend stimulates brood production and royal jelly production by up to one third, this will then lead to increased quantity and longevity of the workers.

More bees = More honey

If they are short of protein this is true, however, if there are other more pressing limiting factors rather than protein shortage, plopping pollen subs on them isnt going to help.

I think in my locality I would have been better off offering them a protein patty in august rather than the spring, when they seem to always have abundant pollen sources.

 

[drstitson]

don't forget that any pollen feeding must START NO LATER than 6 weeks before OSR flow starts.

 

[Stiffy]

Have been offered a site on an airfield which is about 1.5 miles from fields of OSR each spring. I know I will find out next spring but does anyone have hives at this distance and do they travel this far to get at it?
S

 

[For want of a better word]

Have been offered a site on an airfield which is about 1.5 miles from fields of OSR each spring. I know I will find out next spring but does anyone have hives at this distance and do they travel this far to get at it?
S

So that is what Cornwall Council are going to do with Newquay Airport when they close it down !

 

[Stiffy]

Nothing to do with CC more RAF involvement lots of RAF camps down this way
S

 

[For want of a better word]

Nothing to do with CC more RAF involvement !
S

First the British Fleet ... and now all our aircraft all being sold off to the Argentinians !

 

[Limousin Lass]

First the British Fleet ... and now all our aircraft all being sold off to the Argentinians !

Ironic!