What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Millet]

Took up some hive stands to another new out apiary and put them ready for the colonies I shall be moving up there next week.

That last picture look's like my Teeth..

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

That last picture look's like my Teeth..

what - covered in sheep sh!t?

 

[dpearce4]

What did you do about the old queen, or was it Q-?

I had removed her a week ago and got 40 or 50 stings that time of which 5 had got through the suits. They had to be moved to a site a mile away from all humans in march as they were causing issues last season, farm workers were getting stung in their tractors and stuff and were getting annoyed that they couldn't work with the windows open even 500m away from the hives.

I was hoping it would get better this year as it was my best producing hive last year, 3 supers more than any other hive, it didn't work out that way and even getting out the car 50m from them I was getting stung so she had to go.

Braver man than me. I would have petrolled them.

see above as to why I didn't want to.

 

[pargyle]

I had removed her a week ago and got 40 or 50 stings that time of which 5 had got through the suits. They had to be moved to a site a mile away from all humans in march as they were causing issues last season, farm workers were getting stung in their tractors and stuff and were getting annoyed that they couldn't work with the windows open even 500m away from the hives.

I was hoping it would get better this year as it was my best producing hive last year, 3 supers more than any other hive, it didn't work out that way and even getting out the car 50m from them I was getting stung so she had to go.

I've only ever had to deal with one colony like that - and oddly enough it was at someone else's apiary in West Sussex ... vile experience and one that I never ever want to have to repeat. Even when you feel bullet proof (I had two suits, welding gloves, duct taped cuffs and welly tops, covered in Olbas oil and smoker on full bore and a water spray) it is still very intimidating when lots, I mean LOTS, of bees are seriously trying to get at you.

We were under some trees for 20 mins after shutting them down and they would not go away. Thought it was safe, headed for the patio 50 metres away and a cup of tea and two of the buggers had followed us still ... two stings on my left eye as soon as I threw my veil up.

Just awful ... had I known you could have asked me for help ... and I would have probably been washing my bee suit and unable to attend ...

 

[Millet]

what - covered in sheep sh!t?

Nah that will be your pipe when you missed the target on that owld ewe..

 

[The Poot in Somerset]

Swarm arrived into poly nuc bait hive. Gave them six frames of foundation, and added second brood box of six more frames above. Intend to let them build up and overwinter in the poly for transference into cedar hive in the Spring. Will feed in three days time and once established, will vape. It was a large swarm - just need to see if it came from one of my colonies...

 

[Beefriendly]

even getting out the car 50m from them I was getting stung so she had to go.

Wow, I though I had had a few bad ones in my time....but I doff my hat to you Sir... You are the man who has had the worst bees I have ever heard of.

 

[Wingy]

Checked in on my nuc from a split a few weeks ago last weeks saw eggs now found the Q and BIAS this will be ready for a full hive next week.
Main hive that swarmed leaving only 1 Q cell. last week no eggs and no sign of Q. Now eggs on 2 frames and a beautiful dark Q going about her business. This hive despite swarming still has lots of bees and filling a 3rd super

 

[Bakerbee]

Checked on a hive i introduced new buckfast to 17 days ago. Nearly full of stores and bias so added a bb beneath and super above.

 

[The Poot in Somerset]

Made a stand for the newly arrived swarm in poly nuc to make inspection comfortable

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Went round the apiaries preparing for next week's extraction, inspected a few of the hives, one, was a blue queen first inspection in spring, but by the second there was no sign of her and in her stead was a lovely unmarked queen which i marked yellow, today, saw the queen and it looks as if all the paint had worn of, went to re-mark her and could just see blue paint!! The next frame, the yellow queen happily laying away

 

[user 6228]

retrieved a swarm. put it in nuc with some drawn comb & fondant to see if queen right. If so it will be a candidate for AT 7

 

[Erichalfbee]

Went round the apiaries preparing for next week's extraction, inspected a few of the hives, one, was a blue queen first inspection in spring, but by the second there was no sign of her and in her stead was a lovely unmarked queen which i marked yellow, today, saw the queen and it looks as if all the paint had worn of, went to re-mark her and could just see blue paint!! The next frame, the yellow queen happily laying away

Can you come and search for one of mine please
Stan and I spent two hours looking for one this afternoon

 

[Angry_Mob]

Went round the apiaries preparing for next week's extraction, inspected a few of the hives, one, was a blue queen first inspection in spring, but by the second there was no sign of her and in her stead was a lovely unmarked queen which i marked yellow, today, saw the queen and it looks as if all the paint had worn of, went to re-mark her and could just see blue paint!! The next frame, the yellow queen happily laying away

Should you not have marked her red?

 

[pargyle]

Can you come and search for one of mine please
Stan and I spent two hours looking for one this afternoon

Yehhh ... drop down to me whilst he's doing .. I've got a colony where the queen is refusing to lay more than a hand sized patch of brood .. she's there, I can see eggs at the bottom of the cells - just not that many of them. Can I find her ? Hopeless .. been through the hive three times, tried all the tricks for queen finding short of seiving them through an excluder .. she's not marked and must be very small ... when I do find her she's for the gatepost but where she is I've no idea.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Should you not have marked her red?

No - she was a late supersedure from last year. One of about eight from last season.

 

[JWF]

Shook out a DLQ colony.
Carried out an AS on a big colony which has shown signs of swarming.
Introduced 2 new bought in queens in cages, which seemed to be accepted. Will go back in tomorrow to remove the plastic tabs from the cage.
Put a couple of filled supers over a clearer board ready for the first extraction if the year.

That's it I think

 

[Anduril]

Yehhh ... drop down to me whilst he's doing .. I've got a colony where the queen is refusing to lay more than a hand sized patch of brood .. she's there, I can see eggs at the bottom of the cells - just not that many of them. Can I find her ? Hopeless .. been through the hive three times, tried all the tricks for queen finding short of seiving them through an excluder .. she's not marked and must be very small ... when I do find her she's for the gatepost but where she is I've no idea.

After trying all the usual tricks, my last trick is stacking all the frames on the roof of another hive, the sunlight keeps a queen in one place, between the frames. Any flying bees go back to the hive. I have found I only need to go through the frames once after checking the brood box first.

 

[pargyle]

After trying all the usual tricks, my last trick is stacking all the frames on the roof of another hive, the sunlight keeps a queen in one place, between the frames. Any flying bees go back to the hive. I have found I only need to go through the frames once after checking the brood box first.

Now that's a new trick ... I'll let you know how I get on ... it's not a huge colony and that would work. I'd even gone through and transferred frame by frame to another box and STILL could not find the little beggar ..

 

[Machonachos]

Busiest week ever

Bought a nuc last weekend, got a call and picked up a swarm from work yesterday (first time catching one). Loads of dead bees, thinking they were starving as they’d been hung up for >24h in the rain. So fed them and they seemed much happier flying today. Then at 16:00 realised I’d caught a swarm in bait hive. Transferred to a full hive and had to dispose of some burr comb from the bait hive (shame as it’s so beautiful) put an “empty” frame on the floor. As I stood up I saw a very small HRH scuttle across the frame. After a quick seizure I brushed her in and closed up the hive.

TLDR: went from 0 to 3 colonies in 7 days. Phew. Time for a cuppa.