Weather

[Rock_Chick]

So frustrating with this weather. I really need to go into the bees, but it's 9c with cold winds. It's been cold since returning from the convention last weekend. Rest of weekend not looking good.
I dead to think what's going on inside.

 

[pargyle]

So frustrating with this weather. I really need to go into the bees, but it's 9c with cold winds. It's been cold since returning from the convention last weekend. Rest of weekend not looking good.
I dead to think what's going on inside.

The North West and Scotland are getting the worst of it ... -5 degrees on the top of Cairngorm this morning and you are getting some miserable wet weather in from the North West I'm afraid.

Still dry but cloudy down here and the bees are making the most of it ...

 

[oliver90owner]

I dead to think what's going on inside.

Why? Simple - they will be consuming stores for survival. Just the same as they have been doing, during periods of dearth, for millenia past. No pollen and there will be no brood, no water and they will stop brooding, no stores and they will starve. It's up to the beekeeper to avoid the worst.

 

[Plenty of honey]

yup, we could be well in to our second super by now, but lucky if one is filled this spring. cold here, max 13 again. blossom going over quickly, no rain for 5 weeks and only apple left now really!! still colonies are good but very frustrating, that beekeeping personified!!

 

[Erichalfbee]

Someone turned the sun off.
Drizzle
12 degrees
All the dandelions are shut tight
Had to put the Rayburn on again
Brrrrrrrrr and Grrrrrrrrrr

 

[Poly Hive]

Pouring with rain here and the forecast on the site I have found to be pretty good for here (netweather) says a high of 11 on one day next week and nothing better for the next 14 days. Deep joy.

PH

 

[thorn]

Sod's law. I moved three colonies to my rural apiary yesterday. Today, they should have been out and about finding the OSR and the orchards. Instead, they're staying home out of the rain.

 

[wightbees]

15.5 temp here today, helps with the painting ..

 

[Millet]

Pouring with rain here and the forecast on the site I have found to be pretty good for here (netweather) says a high of 11 on one day next week and nothing better for the next 14 days. Deep joy.

PH

Get used to it.. lol ..mine are not far from the coast not far from the border and when the easterlies start coming it can be brutal, further inland is not so bad unless snow is forecast, they always get it worse.

 

[Poly Hive]

I spent years keeping bees in Aberdeenshire/Kincardinshire so well used to this but it is still very cool for the time of year.

PH

 

[mazzamazda]

I thought the beekeeping season was going well in the UK according to other forums, early swarms, wall to wall brood. Here we have amazing weather, great forage, 25oc today but struggling to keep varroa under control and might lose more hives even with an extensive treatment program, you just cant win with beekeeping, always something.

 

[deanrpwaacs]

Had a quick look at my out apiary . Very busy even though it was cooling off . The far hive is very full with bees . 3 supers on and they are filling them with something . Will have to keep a close eye on it as they will be the first wanting to go . On the downside someone has put a large teepee up in the field . Will speak to farmer as will prob now have to move the bees . Cant have people getting stung . Would have been nice to have been given a heads up about it .
https://youtu.be/OFmA2T1aDDU

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

 

[iand]

Get used to it.. lol ..mine are not far from the coast not far from the border and when the easterlies start coming it can be brutal, further inland is not so bad unless snow is forecast, they always get it worse.

My bees are ahead of normal this year, the batch of laying started last weekend should see them kick off the season properly. Not many warm periods for much brood rearing, even though our local weather forecaster indicated a warmer March than normal, as good as 1965 apparently. We normally seem to get cold east winds once the Osr is in flower, (honey crop at the end of flowering) although that has a bit to go for full flower yet, but enough now for pollen to feed brood. The biggest worry at the moment is stores for the Buckfasts, they just don't know when to take it steady unlike the Carnies who have plenty of stores. A mate who has bees in a warmer area than mine has to-day put ekes & fondant on his strong Buckfast stocks!
We had osr at about this time & height laid flat with snow, made for interesting combining.

 

[Somerford]

In North Wiltshire we are around 3 weeks ahead of where we should be, and bees are very strong and flying strongly even at 12-14 deg. There is an awful lot of OSR around.

Have had to split one colony already and have a couple of hives with their forth Super on

 

[Briarfield]

Here in the northern fringes of Yorkshire mine are going out strongly, even today at barely 10c, although the sun was out.

Checked a 14*12 today as it had brood on 9 frames 8 days ago. Glad I did as there was a capped QC, but the queen was still there. I wonder if she would have been by 1400? Lots of big drones about too.

Made up a nuc with her and left one uncapped QC.

Forecasts is dry and 9 to 13 next week. With luck warmer after that.

 

[SDM]

Forecast is mostly dry til the end of the month now.

 

[Roola]

Forecast is mostly dry til the end of the month now.

yes but also looking below average temperature wise... could be some pretty cold nights and some chilly days before the month is out.

 

[SDM]

About right for north Wales temp wise.. light winds and sunshine even with a northerly wind and 10-14°c temps is better than average weather here..
They're finding something to put in the supers and expanding nicely. That's good enough for me in the middle of April.

 

[ShinySideUp]

yup, we could be well in to our second super by now, but lucky if one is filled this spring. cold here, max 13 again. blossom going over quickly, no rain for 5 weeks and only apple left now really!! still colonies are good but very frustrating, that beekeeping personified!!

Just goes to show how the seasons move northward. My apple blossom (on immature trees) is just about starting here in Cornwall .

 

[Erichalfbee]

About right for north Wales temp wise.. light winds and sunshine even with a northerly wind and 10-14°c temps is better than average weather here..
They're finding something to put in the supers and expanding nicely. That's good enough for me in the middle of April.

Same here. I put a super on each of three hives 10 days ago as the brood boxes were full of brood and the bees were backfilling. Then it turned cold and today was the first chance I had of getting back in. Two of them needed another super, I couldn't believe it. The surrounding fields are full of dandelions and gorse is still going strong. We have fruit blossom, Holly and Hawthorne just round the corner and Sycamore not far behind......fingers crossed, that's all you can do.