this season's yield

[beecology]

As the title suggests and hopefully a thread that can be added to for future seasons like the 'what did you do in the apiary' thread.

So, how have you done this year in terms of main flow honey crop? Has it been as bad as many thought early on or did your bees turn things around?

For what its worth, I haven't extracted yet but from 8 hives (united down to 5), I have 5 heavy supers, maybe in the region of 100lb of honey which I'd be very happy with.

 

[Newtobees]

Checked my two hives at my out Apriary very little summer flow this year brood boxes empty of stores. Queens reduced laying although I have about 5 full supers between these two hives most of it is spring blossom honey they collected in April and beginning of May, very little come in since. Will leave supers on untill last week in August but don't hold much hope of getting anymore more waiting on them capping it all.

 

[For want of a better word]

A lot of supers still full of uncapped honey... the Italians are starting to eat them... the pure native black Cornish Amms have produced very well.. on a par if not better than the NZIs.. The black bees cappings are incredible... white and uniform.. look fantastic in cut comb boxes and sell for a premium... I did 100 frames ( a weeks winter sun & diving in Teneriffe looks on the cards).
Risking leaving supers on as there is still bramble and H balsam in flower... and need to be capped.

Yeghes da

 

[enrico]

At one point up to eight hives with foreign swarms. Reduced to six. I think I will be really lucky to get 40 lbs of honey this year. Compare that with 400 last year!
E

 

[Arfermo]

5 hives 25 lbs to date (all OSR) and not much more unless there is some decent weather and a flow so they get on with capping what is there instead of eating it!!!

 

[Finman]

At one point up to eight hives with foreign swarms. Reduced to six. I think I will be really lucky to get 40 lbs of honey this year. Compare that with 400 last year!
E

What has been problem there? Low temps or rain or boath, hot, dry,

How do hives rear winter bees in those conditions?

 

[wessexmario]

the problem is Britain gets a different season each week.
just when plants get ready to flower because of the warmth, it then cools off and rains disrupting either the plants or the bees when there would otherwise be a flow. it's happened a number of times this year, my blackberry flow has just been a big disappointment.
Too much random cool and damp weather, while the long term climate is plodding along as normal, the short term weather fluctuations seem to have reduced many flows compared to last year.

 

[Obee1]

What has been problem there? Low temps or rain or boath, hot, dry,

How do hives rear winter bees in those conditions?

So finny when will you be harvesting your crop?

 

[Michael Palmer]

Starting harvest today. Lots of colonies with 120+ lb. on. Most of the rest have 80, and of course there are always those that filled no supers. Overall, there is a good hundred pound average on 600+ colonies.

 

[Obee1]

Starting harvest today. Lots of colonies with 120+ lb. on. Most of the rest have 80, and of course there are always those that filled no supers. Overall, there is a good hundred pound average on 600+ colonies.

What do you think is the main key to your success - in a nutshell!
Large colonies? Young queens? Good forage? Good weather?
All of the above?

 

[Tremyfro]

Since the OSR...when I had a tiny harvest. I have been waiting for a flow to start! The last few days have been good...lower temperatures than we should be having but at least sunny and a little less wind. My bees are out in force today. Unless the HB is found by my bees....I think only a few more pounds to take! I am feeding all my new colonies.

 

[Suzi Q]

I've had a good year, weather window in July was just right for the blackberry, and whatever else the bees forage on at that time of year. Last year was better but not grumbling with what the bees have given me.

 

[enrico]

What has been problem there? Low temps or rain or boath, hot, dry,

How do hives rear winter bees in those conditions?

i have no monoculture farm crops. I only have tree crops. The sycamore flowers were all blown off with cold winds. It has been so dry the lime has had flowers with little nectar. The hives always survive. I just have to keep an eye on stores. Winter bees? Who knows? But next spring they will still be there hoping like me for the weather and the trees to work in unison. They bring in small amounts of bramble and gorse and general wild field flowers but the ivy is generally too late. Hey ho. Some good years some bad!

 

[Vortex]

I have 3 apiaries and the situation has been different in each.
The woodland apiary hasn't produced anything this year in comparrison to the last 2 years when it's yielded the bulk of my crop.
My home apiary which is urban-sub-urban, hasn't produced anything for the last 2 years, but I've have 70lbs off 2 hives so far, and 1 of those has at least as much again on at present.
The 3rd apiary, for which this is really the first cropping season, will likely produce about 70lbs. I was expecting a Rape crop from this one but got nothing. I can only assume the local farmers took a year off from planting rape.

 

[Obee1]

I have 3 apiaries and the situation has been different in each.
The woodland apiary hasn't produced anything this year in comparrison to the last 2 years when it's yielded the bulk of my crop.
My home apiary which is urban-sub-urban, hasn't produced anything for the last 2 years, but I've have 70lbs off 2 hives so far, and 1 of those has at least as much again on at present.
The 3rd apiary, for which this is really the first cropping season, will likely produce about 70lbs. I was expecting a Rape crop from this one but got nothing. I can only assume the local farmers took a year off from planting rape.

Hmm I'm noticing lots of the Beeks with a decent crop seem to be urban. Maybe gardens and managed parks are the reason. human intervention in the form of watering the plants could have helped with nectar flow?
My very urban hives - one biggie I split in April and one overwintered nuc have brought in 75 lbs between them which was taken off 3 weeks ago - quite a bit more still in the supers.

 

[daroco]

105lbs average - but the bulk was from rape and field bean. The suburban gardens seem to have kept them ticking over, but not produced a significant yield, and I think the blackberry was a bit of a washout. Here's hoping for ivy!

 

[Finman]

So finny when will you be harvesting your crop?

Summer has been rainy and cold. Mad swarming year.
I have not extracted yet, but hives are full. I must hurry up that queens get space to lay.
I must make frame parts now that I get foundations hives. Even splits are full.

Last 2 weeks have been good. Foreast to next week is very good. Then flowers are over. Red clover perhaps later.

 

[Jeff M]

Its' my first year and I bought a hived colony and have 2 united swarms in a second hive. The hive I bought took a bit of sorting out so they were slow to get going. I had 2 brood frames of OSR honey in May and have a full super nearly all capped on the hive. Sounds like I should count myself lucky!

 

[Erichalfbee]

What do you think is the main key to your success - in a nutshell!
Large colonies? Young queens? Good forage? Good weather?
All of the above?

Obee,
Probably good weather and forage with more predictable seasons?
Plus the TLC of a famous and skilfull beekeeper
We have to contend with the vagaries of our maritime climate and, I gather, El Niño this year.

I've had 30lb from two hives (of four supposedly producing)
There is a three quarter capped super on one colony that I am leaving while I am away in Canaries for a week. Who knows what I will find on my return?
Will my bees be there?
Will they have emigrated to Vermont?

 

[MuswellMetro]

Hmm I'm noticing lots of the Beeks with a decent crop seem to be urban. Maybe gardens and managed parks are the reason. human intervention in the form of watering the plants could have helped with nectar flow?
My very urban hives - one biggie I split in April and one overwintered nuc have brought in 75 lbs between them which was taken off 3 weeks ago - quite a bit more still in the supers.

not noticed much difference between urban or countryside in the South East, My good production hives with new Queens in 2014 made in excess of 120lbs, the difficulty this year was stopping the swarming and that i had several badly mated 2015 and 2014 queens all going drone layers

unlike the west Englands wet weather the SE has been very Dry, this is yield from the best hives

Claudia (5ft 2) is with a hive in a London Garden and I(6ft 2) am with a hive in Hertfordshire Countryside 10 miles away (though that also poduce a further 30lbs of OSR in May)