The flow is on.....Finally!!

[Poly Hive]

Super on 8+ frames of brood.

Flow?

Bees returning with fore aft position noticeably aft down. Heading straight in ASAP no messing about.

Nectar in the brood combs. Supers full of busy bees.

Evening, hives "roaring" with the fanning going on and if a sultry evening the scent can be impressive.

PH

 

[REDWOOD]

I've also got another dumb question - lot of people refer to people as the flow is on, to a new beekeeper what are the signs? I'm taking it a lot of traffic compared to normal.....

Heavy supers

 

[herefordshirehoney]

Would this be considering a small flow?

http://youtu.be/v3TBNfjEHB4

 

[victor meldrew]

Would this be considering a small flow?

http://youtu.be/v3TBNfjEHB4

I shouldn't think it a flow at all
You wont need telling when you witness a full flow ,followed by standing behind the hives in the evening listening to the air conditioning going full belt
VM

 

[Andy Duff]

Ours are stacked, hovering to get in, like a reverse swarm. It's like machine gun fire as they exit the hives. Most impressive

 

[Easy Beesy]

Nowt to speak of in my neck of the woods

 

[psafloyd]

I'm with VM. And the smell is incredible. It's a Bisto moment, but with honey. You can smell it from feet away.

 

[TBRNoTB]

Would this be considering a small flow?

http://youtu.be/v3TBNfjEHB4

.....or maybe a go slow!

 

[Polyanwood]

What do you think the flow is from?

 

[victor meldrew]

Nowt to speak of in my neck of the woods

Lancashire is a largish county but the forage around you may be poor ?
Or someone has taken up beekeeping in your area , maybe more than one ! Bee keeping has been heavily promoted of late !
VM

 

[Easy Beesy]

Not a lot of balsam in the middle of Preston!

 

[victor meldrew]

Not a lot of balsam in the middle of Preston!

Not too many sites too far from the Ribble I guess Lots of balsam there I think
VM

 

[Gardenbees]

Balsam really kicked in about 3 days ago here in the middle of Stroud: rather later than usual (possibly due to a conservation effort cutting the tops off the first flowers along the canal; they have now re-flowered!). Weather is very patchy but warm, and all three hives are very busy even in light rain. Damp, ghostly-looking pollen-covered bees firing into the hives at lunchtime. Busy roaring in each hive this evening and a balsam-y smell.

Just as well. I was poised to start feeding as they were getting so low again.

 

[margob99]

.... round the back of the hives this evening , only one had the air conditioning switched on
VM

Hahahahaha! Brilliant comment, I love it, and so true. Mine has been "Aircon ON" every night for about the past 10 days, it has been glorious!