Swarm Cells in October

[stoneleighhouse]

Inspected double brood 12 swarm cells in top box
Im going for a lie down

 

[masterBK]

Any chance of uploading photo of these "swarm cells" as I suspect they may be emergency cells.

 

[enrico]

Doesn't necessarily mean they will use them for anything other than making you panic ! But then again ........ Hehe

 

[snelgrove]

Inspected double brood 12 swarm cells in top box
Im going for a lie down

probably will be emergency cells, any eggs or other brood present. is the hive queen right?

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

Any chance of uploading photo of these "swarm cells" as I suspect they may be emergency cells.

In either case, is "lying down" the appropriate course of action?

 

[alldigging]

In either case, is "lying down" the appropriate course of action?

Yes probably.

The question should be: Why are you looking in the brood box at this time of year. It wasn't that warm here until the sun came out for an hour this afternoon.

 

[Hivemaker.]

The question should be: Why are you looking in the brood box at this time of year.

To check that everything is okay i would imagine, warm and sunny all day here, but would still be checking the hives recently re queened and those brought back from the heather moors even if it wasn't.

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

There is this "Do Not Disturb" culture that would have us pour oxalic acid over capped brood and the like. Just this week I was (mildly) told off for knowing the state of my brood box a month ago. Shirley you go in when you need to and not when you don't, cognizant of the fact that you always putting the Q at risk to some degree, which MIGHT be what happened here, but does not justify always flying (or sloshing OA) blind.

But on the OA I am getting lazy, aiming at the transition brood break and puff 5 days puff 5 days puff in case I've missed it. No opening, and I last opened one of those colonies who knows when; would have to look.

 

[oliver90owner]

Too many 'right or wrong' merchants around.

There is nothing wrong with 'looking in' if there may be, or is, a problem. Doing intrusive inspections, hunting for the queen, for no good reason is rediculous at this point in the season. Some degree of common sense required, of which there seems to be a shortage these days. Get real and stop beekeeping like 'painting by numbers'. Do think for yourself.

 

[B+.]

you go in when you need to and not when you don't, cognizant of the fact that you always putting the Q at risk to some degree,

I need to get an assessment of the size of the colony around mid October. That doesn't mean pull all the frames out. Looking at the forecast: 12-13C for the week ahead but down to 6C at night. I will simply count the occupied frames. Thats enough for what I need.
Enough is enough. Any more would be too much.

 

[stoneleighhouse]

Thanks for all the advice/ comments. Ive got used to the odd snarky comment on this forum by the way, however there are more experienced beekeepers than I on the forum whose input I value Oliver, Hivemaker,and others

The lie down comment was a light hearted attempt at humour
I sensed something wrong with this colony and went into it during a sunny spell with temp at around 15c
All my other colonies(16) are in fine fettle but I always expect the unexpected particularly as 2015 has been a strange year all round
Emergency cells, yep ok .but 12? aint an emergency that's a panic

 

[oliver90owner]

Better to lie down and at least thjnk about it. Some may have panicked and broken down all of them as soon as seen! Potentially a real disaster, then, if they were one hive owners!

 

[alldigging]

The lie down comment was a light hearted attempt at humour
I sensed something wrong with this colony and went into it during a sunny spell with temp at around 15c
All my other colonies(16) are in fine fettle but I always expect the unexpected particularly as 2015 has been a strange year all round
Emergency cells, yep ok .but 12? aint an emergency that's a panic

What gave you the idea? Less pollen than the others? Less busy?

I'm genuinely interested in why you checked - hence my earlier question.

We've not got to 15'C in our apiary I suspect for over a week. Brr.

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

The lie down comment was a light hearted attempt at humour

So was my querying it as a course of action!

To be clear, I am offering no advice and agree with you that RAB and HM are to be listened to, along with a grumpy ageing hippy to the West when he is civil

 

[polomadh]

Not much you can do at this time of the year tbh. I had the same late last year, and pretty much left them to it. In the spring I saw that something was laying. I went to mark the new queen, only to see the old queen wander past! After a fair amount of messing about did it become apparent that the new queen hadn't got mated, and it was the old queen that was still laying... And that was the start of a challenging beekeeping year, I should have taken it as a sign!

 

[beeno]

Thanks for all the advice/ comments. Ive got used to the odd snarky comment on this forum by the way, however there are more experienced beekeepers than I on the forum whose input I value Oliver, Hivemaker,and others

The lie down comment was a light hearted attempt at humour
I sensed something wrong with this colony and went into it during a sunny spell with temp at around 15c
All my other colonies(16) are in fine fettle but I always expect the unexpected particularly as 2015 has been a strange year all round
Emergency cells, yep ok .but 12? aint an emergency that's a panic

I have counted 46 in the parent hive after an AS. They obviously panic in a crisis and losing the queen is just that.