well thats summer over,she stopped laying

[MuswellMetro]

looked at 15 hives today and a few nuc, all the queens had stopped laying even 4 frame Nucs being fed 50% syrup

so that the summer over,all downhill from now on,

some forage still coming in but very little and most bringing lots of Balsam (the fed nucs taking in lots of pollen but still no eggs

or do i need to go to specsavers

 

[Winker]

looked at 15 hives today and a few nuc, all the queens had stopped laying even 4 frame Nucs being fed 50% syrup

so that the summer over,all downhill from now on,

some forage still coming in but very little and most bringing lots of Balsam (the fed nucs taking in lots of pollen but still no eggs

or do i need to go to specsavers

I was in at mine today, and the queen's are still laying, come to think about it, they are still working the brambles and there is still quite a bit of nectar comming in.

 

[MuswellMetro]

I was in at mine today, and the queen's are still laying, come to think about it, they are still working the brambles and there is still quite a bit of nectar comming in.

Brambles, lot gone, i picked a pound of blackberries walking back from one of the apiaries

 

[psafloyd]

looked at 15 hives today and a few nuc, all the queens had stopped laying even 4 frame Nucs being fed 50% syrup

so that the summer over,all downhill from now on,

some forage still coming in but very little and most bringing lots of Balsam (the fed nucs taking in lots of pollen but still no eggs

or do i need to go to specsavers

Sure it's not just the awful weather?

 

[madasafish]

Lots of rasps here to come.

Plus balsam, rose bay willow herb ,more balsam, poppies, blackberry,etc etc.
When it's not raining, bees bringing in lots of pollen and nectar.

Hint: see I do NOT live in soft southern England

 

[MuswellMetro]

Lots of rasps here to come.


Hint: see I do NOT live in soft southern England

but can you sell your Honey for £7 per lb

 

[viridens]

Queens still busy here, and hives very full of bees, but like you, forage here still not coming in as it should and for the first time in a long time I'm unlikely to be able to harvest this year. How about you?

 

[greatbritishhoney]

My main flow hasn't really even started yet here in sunny Wales. The Rosebay willowherb is out, but the Common Knapweed is the main source and is just about to bloom.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Sorry to here this MM, sounds pretty grim.

 

[rockdoc]

Hey Madasafish, check out the weather for the open in Sandwich and then tell me we are soft in the south!
Seriously though, this is awful weather and I'm having to feed two small swarms in the vain hope of getting them through the winter. How does the saying go "A swarm in July ain't worth a fly"!

 

[huntsman666]

<..or do i need to go to specsavers>

I'd certainly say yes. Check again and report back.

If you have a digital camera, take a few shots. You can zoom in for great detail on your pc later.

 

[Flatters]

Is it normal for summer to be over in midJuly down south? Last year in Lancashire mine were still bringing in forage right through September and into early October (HB and ivy). I am hoping for the same again this year as I have some small colonies that need a bit more building up to get them through winter.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Is it normal for summer to be over in midJuly down south?

Not in the area i live in no.

 

[victor meldrew]

Is it normal for summer to be over in midJuly down south? Last year in Lancashire mine were still bringing in forage right through September and into early October (HB and ivy). I am hoping for the same again this year as I have some small colonies that need a bit more building up to get them through winter.

Summers definitely over today as you will no doubt have noticed
Hammering down, blowing a hooligan , car headlamps on during the afternoon !
Still Indian Summers are becoming the norm around these latitudes .
Lot's of forage until the first decent frost kills the balsam ,then there's still ivy to go at.
Last year I thought 'poor harvest , the it piled in,in September ,yielding slightly above average for the year

VM

 

[MuswellMetro]

Is it normal for summer to be over in midJuly down south? .

we had an extreme period of dry weather, remember they appointed a Drought Guru, then we have had a series of down pours

The drought has shorten the flowering period around here but i aM not saying the flow has finnished just it is downhill from now on

The workers are are saying reduce the brood, i am running 14x12, they are heavy with bees but no eggs and a just few larva in fifty p size patches, almost constant across all the hives, HM just ticking over whether they had two, three or four supers on

 

[huntsman666]

<we had an extreme period of dry weather, remember they appointed a Drought Guru, then we have had a series of down pours>

Setting ideal conditions for a heavy flow assuming we get some lovely weather shortly. Flowers that 'are in bloom' witll produce lots of great nectar.

Keep an eye out for early field mushrooms.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Keep an eye out for early field mushrooms.

Had plenty of those around for the last two months,and horse mushrooms.

 

[MuswellMetro]

<we had an extreme period of dry weather, remember they appointed a Drought Guru, then we have had a series of down pours>

Setting ideal conditions for a heavy flow assuming we get some lovely weather shortly. Flowers that 'are in bloom' witll produce lots of great nectar.

Keep an eye out for early field mushrooms.

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

 

[Hivemaker.]

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.

 

[huntsman666]

Thistle not yet in flower here, brambles still flowering, seems you're scuppered.