Supering Dilemma - Lothian

[gwt_uk]

Hello all,

I did a check of my colonies last weekend in the warm weather. All building up with brood on 5+ frames.

The OSR is beginning to flower here in Lothian (there seems to be a lot of it around again this year) but the weather has turned very cold again.

I am having to go away from the 9th to the 16th April and was going to super the hives in the hope that the weather improves and to ensure there was enough room for the bees foraging in OSR but the forecasters are predicting mediocre temperatures and still cold at night.

Should I wait until I get back or just add supers anyway (I will keep the insulation on)?

 

[Newbeeneil]

Hello all,

I did a check of my colonies last weekend in the warm weather. All building up with brood on 5+ frames.

The OSR is beginning to flower here in Lothian (there seems to be a lot of it around again this year) but the weather has turned very cold again.

I am having to go away from the 9th to the 16th April and was going to super the hives in the hope that the weather improves and to ensure there was enough room for the bees foraging in OSR but the forecasters are predicting mediocre temperatures and still cold at night.

Should I wait until I get back or just add supers anyway (I will keep the insulation on)?

You could try putting sheet of newspaper with a small hole in it between BB and supers. This would keep some of the warmth in the BB but if they needed the space they would use it above the paper

 

[Boston Bees]

Hello all,

I did a check of my colonies last weekend in the warm weather. All building up with brood on 5+ frames.

The OSR is beginning to flower here in Lothian (there seems to be a lot of it around again this year) but the weather has turned very cold again.

I am having to go away from the 9th to the 16th April and was going to super the hives in the hope that the weather improves and to ensure there was enough room for the bees foraging in OSR but the forecasters are predicting mediocre temperatures and still cold at night.

Should I wait until I get back or just add supers anyway (I will keep the insulation on)?

No need to do anything IMHO.

The BBC forecast for your area goes out to the 14th (and by the 9th, will go out beyond your return date).

Currently it shows max temps of 10C, and very cold overnight. You even have a serious hailstorm in a few days - lovely!

Your issue over the next 2 weeks is, I suspect, not whether your bees will need a super, but whether they will have enough food and warmth to survive. They will be ploughing through their food, with so much brood.

Adding supers will reduce the warmth, and thus possibly increase their food consumption, thus increasing the chance of colony death.

 

[Finman]

Put the super under the brood frames.
And give the super as brood frames.

 

[gwt_uk]

No need to do anything IMHO.

The BBC forecast for your area goes out to the 14th (and by the 9th, will go out beyond your return date).

Currently it shows max temps of 10C, and very cold overnight. You even have a serious hailstorm in a few days - lovely!

Your issue over the next 2 weeks is, I suspect, not whether your bees will need a super, but whether they will have enough food and warmth to survive. They will be ploughing through their food, with so much brood.

Adding supers will reduce the warmth, and thus possibly increase their food consumption, thus increasing the chance of colony death.

Thanks- may just make sure they have enough stores and if not add some fondant to keep them going.

 

[Finman]

Hello all,

I did a check of my colonies last weekend in the warm weather. All building up with brood on 5+ frames.

What is 5+ frames? It does not tell, how big is the colony.

 

[enrico]

I am with Finman on this one.i am a great believer in .... If you are unsure then add a spare box underneath...... They will use it if they need by moving brood down and storing food above.

 

[gwt_uk]

What is 5+ frames? It does not tell, how big is the colony.

Brood on 5-6 frames.

 

[Boston Bees]

Thanks- may just make sure they have enough stores and if not add some fondant to keep them going.

I suspect that the next two weeks are going to see a lot of colony deaths in the UK, as the bees are caught out by a period of cold weather after ramping up the brood levels. This is going to be exacerbated by beekeepers adding supers too early.

"Isolation starvation" is going to be a trending term on Facebook beekeeping forums over April, I think.

 

[Finman]

You are away 7 days. Away or not, a hive with brood consumes so much food that you take care that they do not die.

You may calculate that the hive uses 1 lbs/day.

One full capped langstroth frame has honey 2,5 kg. Im a week the hive needs 2 full frames food.

Now 2+6 frames are used and the box has 2 another frames. Calculation tells that the hive needs next box. Pollen must be stored too around the brood.

Second brood box under, and you do not need to worry.

 

[Finman]

In Finland next 10days we will have snow fall every day and about - 5C night temps.

H

 

[Boston Bees]

In Finland next 10days we will have snow fall every day and about - 5C night temps.

You are just showing off now

 

[Poly Hive]

Here in the Borders the OSR around me is at 15% so time to move if you migrate. However it only now flowers here for three weeks and so will be over by the end of April which is far too early to make a crop here. 30 years ago in Aberdeenshire it started to flower in the 3d week of April and ran through to mid June and my word it produced. I used to take a good ton every year and now not a drop. Yet others are saying it still is a good yielder for them. Obviously different strains are being sown.

PH

 

[Into the lions den]

Hello all,

I did a check of my colonies last weekend in the warm weather. All building up with brood on 5+ frames.

The OSR is beginning to flower here in Lothian (there seems to be a lot of it around again this year) but the weather has turned very cold again.

I am having to go away from the 9th to the 16th April and was going to super the hives in the hope that the weather improves and to ensure there was enough room for the bees foraging in OSR but the forecasters are predicting mediocre temperatures and still cold at night.

Should I wait until I get back or just add supers anyway (I will keep the insulation on)?

Active extensively in the Lothians.
Early flowering fields are largely a waste of time and mostly serve to get the inexperienced all excited.

We have a lot of bees there and in all honesty the number with that amount of brood is ver few...they barely have a bee hatch yet despite coming through very strong. TBH we are not at all worried about them over filling and swarming...more concerned about them dying of hunger.

A full feed of syrup is your best bet now. We stopped fondant feeding a good three weeks ago. Also..hear a lot on these forums of folk feeding 100g...or small chunks in cut comb containers, or even up to Ikg. Fine if you want to be in your bees every few days. Give then at least 2.5Kg....never mess around with tiny feeds.

So...feed generously as there will be no nectar despite the flowers, and immediately you come back super generously or double deep them. Too much head space now really sets them back rather than aids them as it gives them issues keeping the nest warm.

 

[pargyle]

Even down here on the Costa del Fareham it's been bloody cold for the last two days ...I know people who, in the false spring last week, were adding supers ... Big mistake. I have to admit I've not been into mine yet. Look fine through the clear crownboards, loads of pollen going in and they are still hefting heavy, Season has still not started as far as I'm concerned ... even in my temperate climate.

 

[Nige.Coll]

If it's cold it won't make nectar so a super is pointless.

 

[The Poot]

If it's cold it won't make nectar so a super is pointless.

Succinct. Enough said

 

[andrew_r]

14 degrees and warm in the sun yesterday. I went to see my three hives expecting to have a quick peep through the clear crown board and be done….

All were really busy, but one hive was jam packed with bees wall to wall with brood and a about three frames of stores, including fresh nectar. I had no choice but to add a super as the queen had ran out of space. Hopefully they’ll move the stores upwards and give her some more room. All are 14x12s, so this queen is really going for it!

Andrew.

 

[Murox]

Brrrrr! I hope your weather holds down there and that they are in a cosy poly hive.....8/9 degrees again here with a brisk wind and rain.

 

[Etton]

Useful postings, as a result I delayed my plan of putting supers on today. One exception was a heavy one with the eke filled with comb…containing larvae. Decided the BB must be full of stores and Q has limited space to lay. Placed the super above the BB with a QE. Didn’t inspect, too cold with wind chill.

I then, on reflection… took the the QE off to allow the Q more space… so now hive is brood and a half.