Supers with honey in them, what to do?

[SarahKyne]

Hi all

I'm new at beekeeping so bare with me. I extracted the honey from my hives but there were some frames that were not capped, what shall I do with these over winter? I've read up on it and one suggestion is to leave the frames with honey in outside to be cleaned up, I have a major wasp problem where I live so I wouldn't want the frames near the hives. On an old thread on this site someone said they store the frames over winter with the honey on to give to their bees in spring? Any suggestions much appreciated.

Thanks

Sarah

 

[drstitson]

put super below BB and bees'll move the honey up.

 

[SarahKyne]

Thank you I will try that.

 

[Oscarmonster]

Never leave combs outside to be cleaned up. Not only will it attract wasps but also honey bees from miles around. Some of which could come from diseased colonies. Also if your bees have any disease you will pass it on to all your neighbours.

 

[BeeJayBee]

An alternative to putting the super beneath the brood box it to place it on feeder board (one with a hole it) above the brood box.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I've just done that with one colony.
They robbed it down in three days.
Feeders on today
Just found a partly capped super in my stack of extracted ones
Put it in the freezer. They can have it next year.

 

[drstitson]

"An alternative to putting the super beneath the brood box it to place it on feeder board (one with a hole it) above the brood box."

better still with an empty super between CB and the box with honey to be robbed.


but best not done whilst treating.

 

[oliver90owner]

Firstly , you may not have considered how you would wish to over-winter your bees. You appear to have settled for a single brood from your post.

You now need to consider their current needs. If that brood box is currently full up and you place any super above - whether directly on the brood or above a crown board with feeder hole open, they will not move it down and are likely to add to it.

There are several tricks, like dummying the super and leaving just a few frames to be filled and capped, but most are not applicable to new beeks with just the one colony.

Personally, I would advise wintering on a brood and a super as that is more bomb proof where winter feeding is concerned. I prefer a super over the bees (but I do not treat with oxalic acid in the depths of winter). Any sorting out can be done in the spring, providing the colony survives, when the new beek is not quite so new.

RAB

 

[shudderdun]

Oliver, when you say "Any sorting out can be done in the spring" what type of treatment do you mean ???

This winter I am feeding (2:1) a super above the BB minus QX, where as I did it the other way around last year so was able to treat oxalic acid direct into the BB.

Thanks

 

[oliver90owner]

Oliver, when you say "Any sorting out can be done in the spring" what type of treatment do you mean ??

I don't mean anything in particular; just anything which may need sorting out. It could be laying space, laying arrangement, excess stores not wanted in a 'next year' super. I never try to pre-empt the bees that far ahead.

RAB

 

[shudderdun]

Ok

Thanks

 

[sharonh]

Hi all

I'm new at beekeeping so bare with me. I extracted the honey from my hives but there were some frames that were not capped, what shall I do with these over winter? I've read up on it and one suggestion is to leave the frames with honey in outside to be cleaned up, I have a major wasp problem where I live so I wouldn't want the frames near the hives. On an old thread on this site someone said they store the frames over winter with the honey on to give to their bees in spring? Any suggestions much appreciated.

Thanks

Sarah

Hi Sarah, I suggest to put the super under the brood box and make sure you have the queen excluder removed. The bees will move the stores up, then in spring you will be able to take it off and use it as usual for the honey season. Wasps are bad around me also, have tried everything at this stage. Invest in a high efficiency wasp trap, works great.

 

[mbc]

To my mind by far the easiest option would be to extract the honey and store the super for next season. If there is any doubt about whether the honey is ripe, give it the shake test, (hold the frame horizontal and give it a vigorous shake and see if any drops fly out, if not then it should be safe to extract and keep the honey).