What did you do in the Apiary today?

[linoleum bonypart]

Bees very busy bringing in loads of pollen,especially our problem hive.going to leave them for three days,inspect and make a decision.Taken advise from our mentor.Bees decided to poo on my clean t-shirt hanging on the line and if that wasn't enough, landed on hubby's head and left a deposit. Couldn't believe the amount that came out of one bee,pretty pattern,work of art!!!!!

Is that the start of a mohican haircut

 

[linoleum bonypart]

Itching to be into colonies max 10c frost mornings... Wish i was on costa del fareham

 

[Boston Bees]

10C here but calm and sunny so opened 3 two-storey nucs to see where they were.

One laying worker (I had suspected all wasn't well as the entrance was streaked with poo, though this may be unrelated). The drone brood looked nice and healthy at least, so that's something. Shaken out.

The other two nucs looked great. Lots of brood. Large healthy looking queens. One of these is going to a new beekeeper tomorrow. Not that much in the way of stores, but the warm weather is almost here.

Still 10 to check - job for the weekend and Monday.

No major signs of swarming intent yet here in West Yorkshire. One nuc had a queen cup, but nothing in it.

 

[madasafish]

9C after early frost. Sunny and calm.
Moved one 5frame poly nuc (wall to wall bees) into a full hive.
Did two full hive inspections. Both on 5 frames bees. - about normal (Lang Jumbo frames = twice DN4 frames)

Then the sun hid behind clouds so gave up and cut the grass instead.

 

[BigAshW]

Nine degrees here. Still feels too cold to go into colonies. Am I wrong to hold off at this temp?

 

[GuyNir]

11c and sunny here. Checked half of my colonies, most are on 3-5 frames of BIAS.

one of my hives, as I looked at the Q, looks like she was laying an egg as she walked on the comb. Never seen this before... maybe she’s in a laying frenzy now and having hard time controlling it? Anyone else seen this?
Interestingly, this same hive are trying to supersede her (one supersedure cell, about 1-2 days from being capped with lots of RJ). Maybe they know something I don’t
left them to it, will not bother them for the next 2-3 weeks.

 

[The Poot]

Are they hiding from you? I've had Blackbird chicks dotted around the garden for weeks.

I’ve spent the afternoon searching and have not seen any!
We‘ve got suet niblets and mealworms galore out, fat balls in feeders - lots of activity with blackbirds, robins, tits, dunnocks and sparrows a plenty, but no chicks as yet.
An extremely tame Robin met me at the back door the other day with a honeybee in its beak. The bees legs were still waving about....
We had words!

 

[CaptainCymru]

Took swarm traps down as landlord not happy ! Will let them swarm and settle on his deck chairs instead

 

[GuyNir]

Took swarm traps down as landlord not happy ! Will let them swarm and settle on his deck chairs instead

He will put those up for you next year

 

[Beegarden]

Nine degrees here. Still feels too cold to go into colonies. Am I wrong to hold off at this temp?

It was 10 degrees here in Norfolk and beautiful in the sun. However, whenever a cloud passed over, the temperature dropped dramatically. I'm too slow to risk an inspection, but I may put on a super tomorrow as a peep through the polycarb shows them all over the place. I'm 2km from OSR, so they'll find it in a couple of days, I reckon.

 

[CaptainCymru]

He will put those up for you next year

Only regret is I dont have a wild banshee of a queen , shes a lovely docile buckfast ! Think I will acquire such a queen and place it on the boundary facing his patio!

 

[Swn58]

Nine degrees here. Still feels too cold to go into colonies. Am I wrong to hold off at this temp?

NO! I went down to the farm Apiary today. Full of expectation, with a car full of new nucs, frames and food. Got to the wood......it was freezing! When the sun broke through the clouds, it was warm, but the breeze was cold.
One moment I was going to begin a full inspection of all the colonies......the next minute, maybe just check one.....and eventually decided against it all together!
It's not that bees weren't active; there were many flying. However, going deep into their brood boxes and creating a drop in temperature was too risky. I hope that next week will get the temperature in Warwickshire up to the heady heights of 14+degs centigrade.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Decided today was the day I grasped the nettle and opened some hives although it was warm in the direct sunlight it still had a bit of a chill in the air but there are a few hives I thought desperately needed attention so I scheduled in My cousin's farm (The Gelli) and Tŷ Uchaf just a few fields away.
First hive opened this season was absolutely brimming with bees, already has one super on and guess what? the queen had found her way through the excluder, only been there about a week or so by the looks of it but quickly found her, lovely prolific red queen, still going strong into her fourth year, so yet another super on now, another colony there needed a super but the rest were ticking along at the same rate as previous years for this time of the year, one hive at Tŷ Uchaf was also going like a train and already has her third super.
Managed to mark a few of last year's supersedure queens as well.
The dandelions are also going great guns at the moment
View attachment hive.mp4

 

[gmonag]

Here in E Anglia the temperature staggered up to 11C but the sun was shining on the hives, which are sheltered , so in I went for the second time this year (18 days after the first). I wasn't sure whether I would find swarm cells or starving bees.
I didn't find either and was pleased to find them all doing well. I even added a box to the strongest colony.
Phew!

 

[gmonag]

Mid-afternoon, as the sun started to sink, the temperature dropped sharply and several bees were caught out returning to the hives. I collected about 30 that looked dead, from the front of the hives or on the ground. I put them in a large jam-jar and warmed it on a radiator for 10 minutes. They all woke up and when I released them they all flew straight back to their hives.
Very satisfying.

 

[drex]

In my sheltered sun trap of an apiary it was warm enough to have a look. All doing ok. Two got their first super, the rest were not quite strong enough. One was weak, so have started moves to unite that. The queen produced gentle bees, so she may go in a nucs rather than the gate post.
All queens are now marked or remarked. First year that has happened so early.

 

[Kirbygrip]

I have 6 colonies moved to a new apiary- south facing and sheltered, I’ve inspected all which are similar to many - gearing up nicely, but one colony had swarm cells including two mature capped Queen cells. Luckily her Mage was still in the box and I had a spare nuc ready!

 

[BugsInABox]

Waited for the sun to start hitting the hive then had a look through my TBH.
Lots of bees to my eye. BIAS across nine combs. A few drones on combs - less capped drone brood than 2.5 weeks ago. Nice brood pattern at one end of the brood nest (the end they have expanded into) but a bit patchy at the older end. They’ve 2/3s drawn out the empty top bar I spread the brood with 2.5 weeks ago (disappointingly dull yellow new comb - not like the nice white stuff their grandmother made). I’ve spread the brood by 2 further top bars.
One cup with jelly in it - could have been in a supersedure position - I tore it down then regretted having done so.

 

[Antipodes]

Last extraction for the season. You guys in the UK have this ahead of you soon. Beaut looking capped honey, and thankfully down below the 17.1 per cent moisture, where it won't ferment.

 

[Antipodes]

Waited for the sun to start hitting the hive then had a look through my TBH.
Lots of bees to my eye. BIAS across nine combs. A few drones on combs - less capped drone brood than 2.5 weeks ago. Nice brood pattern at one end of the brood nest (the end they have expanded into) but a bit patchy at the older end. They’ve 2/3s drawn out the empty top bar I spread the brood with 2.5 weeks ago (disappointingly dull yellow new comb - not like the nice white stuff their grandmother made). I’ve spread the brood by 2 further top bars.
One cup with jelly in it - could have been in a supersedure position - I tore it down then regretted having done so.

Done that before....the regrettable thing that is