kazmcc
Queen Bee
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2010
- Messages
- 3,147
- Reaction score
- 3
- Location
- Longsight, Manchester, UK
- Hive Type
- National
- Number of Hives
- None, although I have my eye on one ( Just don't tell Dusty ;) )
Hi everyone, I have MORE questions, and have nearly hijacked a few threads as the questions pop up, so I thought I'd start a new thread and get them answered in one go ![Smile :) :)](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
1. Our bees are Carnis, they are very dark. A few posts I've read seem to say darker bees are more temperamental. Is this true? The bee inspector supplied our bees and he knows all about the project and that children will be accessing the hives to some degree, and Paul kept them for a while to make sure they are gentle, but they are very dark. They are stunning, very unusual, for me anyway as I've never seen a dark bee![Smile :) :)](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
2. When they were in the nuc, they were starting to outgrow it. Carnis are very swarmy, and i am sure Paul checked the night before, but is there any chance they could have started making queen cells due to lack of space? The queen is marked green, so she is, by my reckoning, about 1 year old. What should I be looking for when I visit next. Paul will be there but I would like the chance to try and check myself before he confirms or denies it.
3. We didn't give them water. The allotments are very big, and there is a river running through the middle of it. Will the bees find their own water, will they use the river? Do they need a pool of water or will they find water by licking it off leaves?
I am sure I had more but for now I can't think of them. As these are answered, no doubt more will be created
Looking forward to all your opinions and advice.
Karen
1. Our bees are Carnis, they are very dark. A few posts I've read seem to say darker bees are more temperamental. Is this true? The bee inspector supplied our bees and he knows all about the project and that children will be accessing the hives to some degree, and Paul kept them for a while to make sure they are gentle, but they are very dark. They are stunning, very unusual, for me anyway as I've never seen a dark bee
2. When they were in the nuc, they were starting to outgrow it. Carnis are very swarmy, and i am sure Paul checked the night before, but is there any chance they could have started making queen cells due to lack of space? The queen is marked green, so she is, by my reckoning, about 1 year old. What should I be looking for when I visit next. Paul will be there but I would like the chance to try and check myself before he confirms or denies it.
3. We didn't give them water. The allotments are very big, and there is a river running through the middle of it. Will the bees find their own water, will they use the river? Do they need a pool of water or will they find water by licking it off leaves?
I am sure I had more but for now I can't think of them. As these are answered, no doubt more will be created
Karen