well thats summer over,she stopped laying

[Tom Bick]

Strange this one Geoff I have hives in West London although they are starting to reduce in size the queens are still laying away (apart from one with I hope a queen to come into lay) and three nucs expanding fast.

I will be inspecting this week and hope not to expect anything different but taking into account the bad weather this past few days and the week to come.

I hope it’s a glitch as it’s a bit early, perhaps a test for nosema?

 

[Busybee123]

Can't believe you are picking blackberries already MM!

Dreadful weather here - more like November. Driving rain all day - even the chickens wouldn't come out!

Brambles flowering here and Rosebay Willowherb, but the latter has taken a real hammering thanks to the wind and rain. Most of it is now lying flat

It was all going so well.......

 

[psafloyd]

what flowers, you missed the bit, has shortened the flowering period

brambles finished 4 weeks ago
rosebay willow herb almost over
lime over two weeks ago
little or no balsam here
flax and spring OSR in seed
Thistle seeds blowing around
honeysuckle setting berries

what else have i got to look forward to ? Ivy perhaps late white clover and a bit of balsam if the local authority does not cut it down

it a very strange year, hives that average 80lb barely topping 30lb, shows that your location in ireland has no parity with north london's micro climate

What about the likes of buddleia? That is everywhere.

 

[Tom Bick]

If only, unfortunately Buddleia is no good for bees.

 

[MuswellMetro]

Sounds like an ideal time to get your supers off MM and treat for varroa,get the little buggers while they have nowhere to hide,and well before the bees start brooding again on the ivy.

done two, today with thymol patties, as i found a bit of DWV crawling about wingless as well,sacrificed half a super of nearly capped

i will recheck the others next week and take off the supers if no improvement, perhaps it is the race, they are from italian stock ten or so generations back, i have requeen one hive but not recently opened with a bedfordshire mongrel , i will see next week if that is different

i just thought it was me at first until another beekeeper said i have no eggs and I checked mine more thoroughly

 

[huntsman666]

You seem to have a problem few else are experiencing regardless of weather conditions.

If you want to do a Nosema field test, then get a few live bees (you can kill them beforehand if you want) and with a tweezers grasp the last section close to the sting (A6'ish) and pull out firmly but steadily over white paper until the main gut (ventriculus) appears. If it looks amber'ish in colour, no Nosema; if not, send samples for laboraty test.

 

[rae]

We are literally 40 miles west from you. Yes, you've got the "london is a bit further ahead" thing, but for us, blackberries are still being worked by the bees. Indeed, they are rejecting two limes that they normally adore in favour of the blackberries. There are one or two blackberries that are "ripe", but 99.9% are still in flower or early bud.

All of our queens are still laying hard, either expanding or maintaining 8 - 10 frames of brood. Some brood cells at the edges of the nest are getting filled with nectar, but not all. So they are starting to ramp down, but still going strong. (As of a very hurried inspection last Saturday)

 

[Steve Dyer]

snip... How does the saying go "A swarm in July ain't worth a fly"!

In these days of global warming isn't there a competent poet here who can re-write that?
It needs to start: "A swarm in March dum de dum....
April...
May...
June..
then: "A swarm is July is perfectly viable in a modern hive"
and: "A swarm in August may make it with food.."
and "A swarm in September dead by November"

but there are some rhyming problems there which are beyond me

Steve

 

[Mike a]

Limes are still in Flower and smell wonderful, yesterday I walked pass 5 in our local park and the volume of noise standing under them was amazing you would of thought a swarm had landed.

Still it is depressing to see the Summer fly by so quickly, wondering if the heather is worth going to this year now to help them fill the brood chambers for Winter.

 

[psafloyd]

If only, unfortunately Buddleia is no good for bees.

Really, Tom? I saw a video last year with honey bees all over it and as a result, I left my buddleia trees at the allotment alone. If they're of no use, perhaps I shall get rid, even though they have offered some useful shelter.

 

[victor meldrew]

Really, Tom? I saw a video last year with honey bees all over it and as a result, I left my buddleia trees at the allotment alone. If they're of no use, perhaps I shall get rid, even though they have offered some useful shelter.

Buddleia Globosa are very attractive to honey bees !

VM

 

[greatbritishhoney]

MM, not wishing to worry you, but I've heard a few people mention queens being stolen from hives (just the queens - the remaining bees left in place).
No chance it could be that?
Seems unusual for 15 odd queens all to go off lay in the middle of July.

 

[Tom Bick]

Hi Floyd if it’s the common blue spiked buddleia that is all over the south east then the individual flowers are to long for the bees to get to the nectar but as the bush is so common you may get the odd plant that can be worked by the bees, it is a great bush for butterflies so its still good to keep but best kept under control.

I can only imaging what our honey harvest would be if the common blue spiked buddleia was good for the bees all I can see at the moment is blue flowers everywhere.

If the flowers are reasonably small orange and spherical then this is buddleia globosa and as VM points out is worked by the bees, its just a pity its not as rampant as the other.

 

[MuswellMetro]

Can't believe you are picking blackberries already MM!

Dreadful weather here - more like November. Driving rain all day - even the chickens wouldn't come out!

Brambles flowering here and Rosebay Willowherb, but the latter has taken a real hammering thanks to the wind and rain. Most of it is now lying flat

It was all going so well.......

shows how different london's micro climate is, see photo taken this morning of brambles, 50% of berries , massive bank at the bottom of my garden

re: other post, the queens were seen so it is just off lay, or my eyesight

 

[Winker]

One of my hives wanted to swarm last week, so i had to do an AS on it. They must have thought they have enough time to raise a new queen and get her laying before winter comes in or they would not have wanted to swarm, i would have thought. But worst comes to the worst i can combine them back into one hive latter

 

[RoseCottage]

Today is the 18th of July ....summer is stil/ in swing no? For me the last 10 to 15 years has always provided a lively summer until 2nd week of October. Flow was on throughout September and caused angst about take or leave...

Sam

 

[psafloyd]

I suppose it all comes down to what is available. What you say makes sense, Tom, but I did find that short video of a guy filming bees on his buddleia.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyH2tbuR7uE[/ame]

Although not the blue one, they're in spikes, so not quite like the globe ones. I'll keep my fingers crossed tha they'll use it as an emergency source of forage.

 

[Stiffy]

shows how different london's micro climate is, see photo taken this morning of brambles, 50% of berries , massive bank at the bottom of my garden

re: other post, the queens were seen so it is just off lay, or my eyesight

Crikey they are early, just starting to turn green down here in the far SW!
S

 

[Tom Bick]

Floyed I just had a look at Wikipedia and they mention 100 variations and some are good for bees so I hope yours is one of them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddleja

 

[milkermel]

Its school holidays it allways rains in Cornwall!!! but summer isnt over yet! once they go back to school we should have another month of good weather!