What did you do in the Apiary today?

[drdrday]

Collected a little cast swarm from a neighbour today. It definitely wasn't my bees (I've been laying paying just a couple of feet away from them all weekend, so I couldn't possible have missed them!).
The first swarm I've collected from outside my own garden. Nicely clustered on a little branch that wasn't too tricky to chop with a helping hand.

 

[MrGoat]

Made my two NUCs hopelessly queenless yesterday in anticipation for two new Buckfast Queens due to arrive this week.

Checked the AMM swarm that arrived last week. Spread over 7 frames with lots of pollen coming in and frames all drawn out. Couldn't see a queen and no eggs/brood yet so will have to go through in detail if I don't see anything next week. I intend requeening with a Buckfast anyhow unless the AMM queen is a machine.

Lots of scouts around again this weekend so hopefully by the time I return next weekend again we'll have some action.

 

[masterBK]

Weekly check. About half of of my colonies have produced a few largsih queen cells in their Demaree tops. Kept some, destroyed others and also transferred cells from the best colonies to replace those in the tops from the not so worthy. One colony not doing so well with poor brood pattern so went looking for the queen and found her with just four legs (all three on left side but only the rear leg on the other side) walking rather wierdly . She also had nibbled wings. Looks like the colony had set about her eg balling her? No evidence of emerged supersedure cell so not the result of a fight with a virgin. I killed her and ran in "pulled" virgin queen from cell at point of emergecnce taken from demaree top of another hive . Often but not always they get accepted . Will look out for emergency cells next week if doesn't work out OK. Lots of nice honey coming in from the Phacelia with lots of bluish/purple pollen filling the brood combs. Removed several grotty black distorted combs for melting down and replaced them with frames of foundation. I get about a Kg of wax from 12 to 15 old brood combs using steam extractor.

 

[Boston Bees]

Collected a little cast swarm from a neighbour today. It definitely wasn't my bees

The five stages of grief are:

denial [you are here]
anger
bargaining
depression
acceptance

 

[Moobee]

Absolutely poured with rain today plus thunderstorms (hurrah! I can finally dig the weeds out of the clay!) so spent my time making up supers and frames and some light syrup to feed the swarm I collected on Friday morning.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Made my two NUCs hopelessly queenless yesterday in anticipation for two new Buckfast Queens due to arrive this week.

Checked the AMM swarm that arrived last week. Spread over 7 frames with lots of pollen coming in and frames all drawn out. Couldn't see a queen and no eggs/brood yet so will have to go through in detail if I don't see anything next week. I intend requeening with a Buckfast anyhow unless the AMM queen is a machine.

Lots of scouts around again this weekend so hopefully by the time I return next weekend again we'll have some action.

Where have you sourced your Buckfast?
My favourite bee
I’ve had some great ones and some bummers though.

 

[JimBee463]

Yesterday: I bought 2 complete National hives (from someone in our BKA) which were much better than described, along with some other bits and bobs. In the 'stuff' was an old Thornes smoker with perished bellows, so I replaced the material on the bellows and now the smoker is fully functional.

Next steps will be to sort out frames and foundation and then start looking for a colony next year. the journey begins!

 

[madasafish]

Yesterday (Sunday ) was first really sunny morning for weeks: in fact ideal swarm weather.

I had just left the greenhouse when a large swarm arrived, circled round the garden and entered one of my bait hives: two 5 frame Lang jumbo nuc boxes with a frame of black comb and another with a little honey. It was big - took 15 minutes to enter the boxes.
Had a quick look today: bees on 5 frames so a BIG swarm approx 30k bees.No sign of a marked Q but I'll leave them for a week to settle.before looking properly.

Am collecting Royal Jelly from QCs and storing in fridge prior to grafting
One of the Qs in my ( brand new £10 4 hen egg ex ebay) incubator emerged this am .Marked her and placed in mini mating nuc (Rainbow). Two days in dark for her and bees (shaken from super).

My most vigorous hive in on 4 supers with one capped and another nearly full. A second hive is just behind.. good thing I do exercises: the full supers are heavy 20kg plus?) Inspection will require ladders soon.

Made up more brood and super frames at 7am.

 

[Wilco]

Couple of clearer boards on and at home finally this!!!

View attachment smart_cam_event_2022_05_16_14_33_57.mp4

View attachment smart_cam_event_2022_05_16_15_16_11.mp4

 

[Moobee]

Went over to feed the swarm & remove bottom QX (I had also added a super of drawn frames to save me taking too much kit back & forth) - they're already filling it with nectar! I guess waiting for the VQ to get mated so busy drawing comb and foraging. Little tinkers!

 

[MrGoat]

Where have you sourced your Buckfast?
My favourite bee
I’ve had some great ones and some bummers though.

As I'm in Ireland I don't have much choice due to the AMM preference of most ( which is fine ).

Only 4 "breeders" of Buckfast I know of here and these will be my first two from their particular stock.

Went a bit OTT on buying brood and super frames today and picked up some Poly National Hive Roofs too which were at a decent price. Something to keep me busy next weekend.

 

[TomH]

First swarm call of the year for me. Quite early, around 1030. The weather was bad here yesterday so wonder if they were delayed.

Funnily enough, just over the road from where I collected two swarms last year.

10 points if you can spot the queen below!
View attachment IMG_3350.MOV

 

[gregior]

Inspected 10 of mine today the bees are doing incredibly well with most filling their 3rd supers i'm really low on supers now but none of the honey is ready for extracting yet,hopefully next week.Lots more swarming going on too,every one of my colonies has made swarm preparations this year so hopefully things will quieten down a bit now. Was short on time when i did my last inspection so just separated the brood box and 1/2 brood to check for cells but they had made 8 swarm cells in the middle of the frames that i missed so I have lost one of my clipped queens but just managed to avoid losing casts as 4 ripe cells hatched during today's inspection, made a nuc with one and left the others to fight it out. Epic season so far!

 

[steve1958]

Enjoyed a sunny day inspecting the bees.
The supers were very heavy.
Looks like a good spring harvest this year.
No OSR this year

 

[Swarm]

First swarm call of the year for me. Quite early, around 1030. The weather was bad here yesterday so wonder if they were delayed.

Funnily enough, just over the road from where I collected two swarms last year.

10 points if you can spot the queen below!
View attachment 31946

Like a beacon

 

[Erichalfbee]

10 points if you can spot the queen below!

I was about to award myself nil points then suddenly she was there striding across looking very very orange.

 

[Goran]

Digging through boxes.. Some are blocking queen with honey in bb. Mean.. but I still keep up with them.. There are some awesome queens, full with bees, brood and stores and no swarming..

 

[Moobee]

So…… my lovely neighbours (who’s fence backs onto my hives) sent me a video as they thought my bees were swarming at 9.30am. He said they swirled around for a few minutes and then left!
Which has left me perplexed.
Hive 1 was a split from the 9th which I introduced a new queen to today and knocked down some sealed EQCs before I did so. No open QCs. Before that, no QCs.
Hive 2 was the other half of the split - double BB - (they balled & killed the queen after I had touched up her paintwork despite leaving her in the cage on top of the frames while it dried - about 5 minutes).
They had charged QCs on 12th (nothing sealed) so left a few of the best to make up nucs this week.
Hive 3 had been split on 2nd as we’re making swarm preps. Knocked down all sealed & unsealed QCs except best one and put Q in a nuc. QC hatched on 12th. Have been left to get on with it.
Nuc - Q still there, quite full but no QCs.

So how could any of them have swarmed? Nuc is the only Q+ box.

Any ideas anyone? Was it even my swarm? Or a mating flight??

 

[Erichalfbee]

Digging through boxes.. Some are blocking queen with honey in bb. Mean.. but I still keep up with them.. There are some awesome queens, full with bees, brood and stores and no swarming.. View attachment 31948View attachment 31949

What a frame of brood!

 

[Erichalfbee]

So…… my lovely neighbours (who’s fence backs onto my hives) sent me a video as they thought my bees were swarming at 9.30am. He said they swirled around for a few minutes and then left!
Which has left me perplexed.
Hive 1 was a split from the 9th which I introduced a new queen to today and knocked down some sealed EQCs before I did so. No open QCs. Before that, no QCs.
Hive 2 was the other half of the split - double BB - (they balled & killed the queen after I had touched up her paintwork despite leaving her in the cage on top of the frames while it dried - about 5 minutes).
They had charged QCs on 12th (nothing sealed) so left a few of the best to make up nucs this week.
Hive 3 had been split on 2nd as we’re making swarm preps. Knocked down all sealed & unsealed QCs except best one and put Q in a nuc. QC hatched on 12th. Have been left to get on with it.
Nuc - Q still there, quite full but no QCs.

So how could any of them have swarmed? Nuc is the only Q+ box.

Any ideas anyone? Was it even my swarm? Or a mating flight??

Hive 3 queen emerged on 12th?
Out on a mating flight today then