What did you do in the Apiary today?

[drdrday]

Overnight heavy rain and lots of thunder and lightning.
My lawn is beautifully green... and I never (have to) water it.

Only green on our lawn is the cobnut leaves the squirrel keeps knocking down whilst collecting all the nuts. We have no grass, only straw!
We had a brief thunderstorm yesterday morning, but really looking forward to a proper storm and rain overnight and tomorrow - I love storms, and especially that petrichor smell of rain hitting dry ground. ⛈🌩

 

[beeno]

Only green on our lawn is the cobnut leaves the squirrel keeps knocking down whilst collecting all the nuts. We have no grass, only straw!
We had a brief thunderstorm yesterday morning, but really looking forward to a proper storm and rain overnight and tomorrow - I love storms, and especially that petrichor smell of rain hitting dry ground. ⛈🌩

I don't have any lawn either on a/c of my bees and drought. Lawn presently full of hawkesbeard which the bees forage a lot of pollen from don't know about nectar perhaps someone else does?

 

[drdrday]

I don't have any lawn either on a/c of my bees and drought. Lawn presently full of hawkesbeard which the bees forage a lot of pollen from don't know about nectar perhaps someone else does?

Ah, well, we reserve the front garden for the hawksbeard . It's the only thing that flourishes in the desert that used to be grass. Unfortunately I've never seen a bee on it.

 

[beeno]

Thanks Angie I am in. Had contemplated starting my own "What did I do in the Apiary today" on account of thinking my bees were on a flow and discovering this morning a national brood box full of honey on one colony less in others. They are backfilling the brood nests, so hopefully they move some more into supers when they get a minute. Deffo some jelly like heather honey in there.

 

[rampino]

Quick inspections today, mainly to check on the supers. What do the bees know that I don't?
They are ramming the brood boxes with honey leaving supers near empty. I would expect to see this during winter preps. I scored the cappings to encourage them to move it up, but feel I will probably end up removing full frames and putting in empty, even foundation if this weather keeps up.

The bees in my 3 hives have got massive honey stores in the end frames of the brood boxes, but as yours very little in the supers. Have they sussed out that I’m aiming to take the supers off?? I’m tempted like you to remove these full brood frames even though they will be a pain to extract.

 

[DaveG23]

Nothing much, just enjoyed the sun before the incoming storm.

Watched the bees on the hedges, fuschia seems to be the favourite, some bramble seems to still be in flower. Also saw my bees take pollen and seemingly nectar from the naturalised montbretia, didn't realise they took nectar from those

 

[Erichalfbee]

Bees in the tree taking a breather tonight

 

[Angry_Mob]

Another hive appears to swarmed, I didn't give it a full inspection last week as I introduced a 2020 queen in June and she was laying very well. Orchard hives seem to be working the HB quite well though.

 

[Curly green finger's]

View attachment 21524Feeding the little ones early before it gets too hot.

That one way of making full use of a hive stand.. Watch that smoker doesn't tip over

 

[pargyle]

Went round to the apiary at about 9.00pm (I know - sad isn't it ?) and the girls were all having a party on the landing boards .. very hot, very humid and thunder storms predicted for the early hours.

Here you are .. untreated, unhealthy, diseased, varroa ridden, weak on the verge of dying out colonies ... I don't think so ...

The other colonies - even the new white queen nuc - are all the same.

 

[Antipodes]

and the girls were all having a party on the landing boards

Clearly preferring the landing boards to the face of the hives too.

 

[Murox]

Overnight heavy rain and lots of thunder and lightning.
My lawn is beautifully green... and I never (have to) water it.

I've been in Perthshire for a few days, so much rain fell last night it caused real problems. The thunder storm went on most of the night.

 

[Antipodes]

Wow...lots of flooding there by the look of it. Hot in many places too I see.

 

[Curly green finger's]

Just got back from the highest apiarys I wanted to check everything was OK after last night's storms, 615am girls are flying up towards watshill(475m)and bringing back very dark pollen.. Infact all colonys are heading in the same direction even at home.
If I had time I would drive up there to see what's so attractive its not gorse..

When I came back yesterday the garden hives were humming is there patches of Heather up there.
Me and the lad are going to take a peak later.
Have a good day.

 

[The Poot in Somerset]

Bees in the tree taking a breather tonight

View attachment 21549

Interesting! How often do you inspect them then?
How high up the tree is that?

 

[Northcliffe91]

I know how you feel I've got one in a 6 frame nuc going into a national hive on the weekend she was introduced on the 20th of June.
When I made the nuc they had two brood frames of stores so I didn't feed them.
When I put them in the national hive I'm going to add two more brood frames of honey and pollen
I'll put the brood stores either side of the 6 and maybe one drawn next to the cluster then dummy the rest.
There looking good nice to see the new brood emerging on my last inspection.

Can you explain what you mean by “dummy” the rest and how you would do this please? I have a 6 frame nuc that I may need to put into a hive before winter.
Thank you.

 

[Swarm]

Can you explain what you mean by “dummy” the rest and how you would do this please? I have a 6 frame nuc that I may need to put into a hive before winter.
Thank you.

Dummy boards, dummying down, etc. All a means of giving the colony the space it requires, while doing something about the void that may be left. Generally we fill it with insulation of some kind.
With your nuc I would put it into the hive and place it against one side. Give them a frame or two of foundation on the 'open side', the dummy board and fill the space with celotex/kingspan, making sure to tape cut edges. Give them a couple of pints of invert/syrup, remove insulation and add more frames as they expand.
You may consider leaving them in the nuc and adding a box on top with another six frames. They do well over Winter in this set up.

 

[madasafish]

Clearer boards on this am.
Checked requeened hives have released queens.
Fed new nuc and gave it a frame of emerging brood.
Not as hot and humid as yesterday but still loads of sweat and soaking jacket.
Still very few wasps around - wasp traps have a few ...

 

[pargyle]

and the girls were all having a party on the landing boards

Clearly preferring the landing boards to the face of the hives too.

Yes ... the Nuc does not have a landing board and they were all over the face of the hive ... they do seem to like landing boards.

Dummy boards, dummying down, etc. All a means of giving the colony the space it requires, while doing something about the void that may be left. Generally we fill it with insulation of some kind.
With your nuc I would put it into the hive and place it against one side. Give them a frame or two of foundation on the 'open side', the dummy board and fill the space with celotex/kingspan, making sure to tape cut edges. Give them a couple of pints of invert/syrup, remove insulation and add more frames as they expand.
You may consider leaving them in the nuc and adding a box on top with another six frames. They do well over Winter in this set up.

Exactly ...

 

[Swarm]

Bit of a fetish there Phil ....