Supering

[OXFORDBEE]

Currently emptying out full supers and putting back on. Bees seem to have found a field of spring sown rape which is yielding nicely....

 

[Heather]

Wow that's late rape- all finished in Sussex as far as I can see. Nice one

 

[Poly Hive]

Loads of spring rape around here flowering merrily. My bees though are not on it.

On a good flow though.

PH

 

[OXFORDBEE]

It would be nicer if they'd not found the rape as I wanted to move them to the blackberries... The mist is clearing ... one hot day coming up... Cracking flow here... nectar dripping out of combs...

 

[VEG]

Well my girls have found some himalayan balsom some where they have the tell tale stripe of pollen on their heads. I think the good weather has brought it on earlier than last year.

 

[Poly Hive]

I spent a few minutes this afternoon watching.

Thy are shooting out the doors and heading straight out for what goodness knows what that is in flow.

The weather today was very clammy, only 20 C but intensely humid and the bees were as tinky as I expected them to be.

The Brood combs were dripping with nectar and another two full supers ready to come off of comb honey.

Another two nucs made up and 8 cells ready to be caged, destined for Mini Nucs. another colony set up for grafts to go in tomorrow.

And on it goes. 7 nucs left to fill, when 6 of them have been modified for Nat.

PH

 

[VEG]

Good going Poly

 

[minifrogs]

This is my first post so hi to all .

I am not sure wether to add a super now or not, can anyone advise please.
I hived a swarm in May onto frames of foundation, the day before I had to go away for a week. The advice from my association was to leave them with plenty of food and put a super on, which I did. I have since added another super which is now almost filled. The brood box, however, is half empty, with 5 frames being used for stores and brood but the others are untouched undrawn foundation. If I do not add a super now will the colony fill the brood box with stores ? I would like them to do this before winter and they are very busy right now as I think the nectar flow has started.

Minifrogs

 

[grizzly]

Hi Minifrogs
Welcome to the forum.

If you do not add any further supers then they will draw and fill the brood, or you could pop the supers underneath the brood box and let them take it up.

Thats my thought, but i would wait for one of the experienced members to clarify before taking my word for it.

Cheers

 

[Finman]

.
How are your limetrees? Does it give yield and when?

 

[DulwichGnome]

Minifrogs, my advise would be to look at the brood frames and move any with stores only to the back and replace with undrawn frames. Try to get the brood in the centre which might mean putting a frame between the pollen at the front and the brood. Take care that the queen is in the centre as she will not like crossing these divides.

If you have another super, put it on!! If the other thread is to be believed the best place would be on top of the BB between the other supers.

Mike.

 

[Poly Hive]

"If the other thread is to be believed the best place would be on top of the BB between the other supers."

It is to be believed and the right place is UNDER the existing sups and ABOVE the Brood box.

Have faith.

PH

 

[DulwichGnome]

Poly Hive, I belive that is the best place for a new super, I was trying to credit others with more knowledge than me. Sorry if it sounded other wise.

Mike.

 

[Finman]

I have since added another super which is now almost filled.

The brood box, however, is half empty, with 5 frames being used for stores and brood but the others are untouched undrawn foundation.

There is something wrong in the hive order if brood frames are only 5 and only partly brood. You have had perhaps a small swarm and good pastures.

If you put now more supers, it keeps the the brood area cold and colony cannot grow.

Don't put another store. Let them use first 5 empty foundations.If you have excluder, take it off.

Perhaps a queen is not a good layer, but surely they have brought well honey.

********

I would get a new queen.

Your main problem is how to get more brood frames.

Restrict ventilation that lower brood area is warm. It makes drawing better too.

 

[jon]

.
How are your limetrees? Does it give yield and when?

They usually flower here at the start of July. They only flower for about 10 days and the weather has to be hot to get a nectar flow. I have never noticed anything significant, but apparently if conditions are right the flow can be impressive. I have dozens of mature lime trees within a quarter mile of my colonies so I live in hope. I checked a couple of days ago and the flowers are just about to open.

http://www.irishbeekeeping.ie/bflora/bflora.html#thelime

 

[gavin]

Hi Minifrogs

In your situation you should be trying to get them to fill out that brood box to get them into the best shape for winter. I'd just not add any supers until they use that available space in the brood box (well, much of it). It is true that moving one or both filled supers under the brood box (and adding no more on top) might persuade them to move the stores up into your brood box, but given the current good flow I'd just leave them be.

If they don't work sideways to fill the brood box you still have the option of leaving a full super on the hive for the winter, but then I'd intervene next spring (by re-inserting a Q excluder) to try to avoid the brood and a half that would bring.

all the best

Gavin