What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Erichalfbee]

I stack my supers on them in the shed over winter. A decent layer of newspaper catches all the honey.

 

[drex]

Wouldn't dare put supers for extraction and return to apiary, in the car, without these underneath. Prevents the wrath of SWMBO

 

[Goran]

Our banana plant has lot to flower, bees attend its flowers all the time..

 

[JamezF]

Our banana plant has lot to flower, bees attend its flowers all the time..

Does it produce edible fruit?

James

 

[JamezF]

Spent a fair bit of time lifting (second early) potatoes this weekend, in part because I want the space for other things but also because with the weather turning damp and still being warm, blight could take hold very rapidly. Fortunately with no dig it's fairly easy to get them out of the ground -- I just grab all the haulms and pull the plant out of the ground and then use a hand fork just to scrape around in the soil for any potatoes that didn't come out with the plant. From memory we got about 20kg of Red Duke of York and 15kg of Lady Christl when I lifted the first earlies. Perhaps thanks to actually getting some rain this month the second earlies have done somewhat better and I reckon we have around 40kg of Nicola and perhaps as much as 60kg of Charlotte.

I've also picked the last pods from the mangetout, sugar snaps and podding peas to use for seed for next year. I need to get the plants cleared now and then I have plenty of room for all the winter brassicas to go in.

The current compost bin is filling up rapidly

James

 

[Goran]

Does it produce edible fruit?

James

Last summer it produced also these fruits, but extreme heat and drought I believe scorched it cause the fruits were smaller last year and turn into black fast. For now these fruits stand but again we have temps near 40C and I don't have water for even more important plants, will see how resilient it will be this time: " que sera sera"..
Couple days ago big storm went near us and we got just short light rain ( not even ground was wet afterward), but where it passed - disaster. I heard cars, crops and even some facades of the houses were hammered and pierced with hail.. In this case better we went dry..

 

[Curly green finger's]

28 single brood colony’s moved to the heather in the rain yesterday it wasn’t a pleasant experience I got wet then almost blown of the hill then wet again oh and then another blow dry!
More to move .

Fed mini nucs I’ve lost one to starvation/wasps also fed single nucs the majority of the doubles are ok .
Afternoon made 4 mini nucs in the rain another lovely experience.

I still have spring honey to extract summer flows have been poor and im
Going away for a few days to have a break.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

managed to get some decent weather late afternoon to go and play with the bees. Put a clearer board under the 'cut comb' super in readiness for preparing Royal Welsh and Gower Show exhibits (although, to be honest, struggling to find any enthusiasm for it this year, so will just be going through the motions) checked a supersedure in a very weak colony to find the new queen has mated and started laying - the plan had been to requeen them but the day the new queens arrived I found they had pre-empted me!
Shook out two failed nucs, one had already got laying workers whilst the other I suspect still had a dud queen in there somewhere.

 

[Newbeeneil]

I have a 8 frame double poly nuc that is packed with bees so thought I would use it to raise some queens. So yesterday I went in search of the queen. I went through each frame 4 times and on my 64th frame spotted her. I quickly picked her up by her wings, turned to pick up the queen cage from the stand and when I looked at my fingers - she was gone!
I closed up and used the adjacent hive!

SO..... I decided I wasn't going to be beaten by this queen so this morning I went through the whole hive 3 times and still didn't find her. (shes still in there as there are eggs and they are not buiding cells so she didn't disappear after my last attempt.)
Then I tried again this afternoon in a Dick Dastardly "Stop the pidgeon!" type of battle but after another 48 frames I gave up!
Drat and double drat!

 

[Wilco]

Just got back.

Dropped off some buckets. Checked the colony at my parents house which hasn't done much in the last week but were nice and docile again today. Grabbed five part eaten shallows and a deep I'd cleared earlier in the week. Will be lucky to get five buckets of honey from them. Clearers on another three hives as I passed them this evening.

Also dropped by and had a bit of a test of @Martin Godet's uncapping creation. Further thoughts to follow, is very quick and easy to use on full/even frames and vastly reduces mess. Sounds like it's going to be put through its paces in the next week or so so looking forward to further updates on performance.

 

[BeeKeyPlayer]

why was she in the cage in the first place?

Sorry, didn't realise you were asking me. I was taking frames of brood and bees from a number of hives to make up a double nuc queen cell raiser. Just wanting to be sure I didn't accidentally include the queen.

 

[Moobee]

SO..... I decided I wasn't going to be beaten by this queen so this morning I went through the whole hive 3 times and still didn't find her. (shes still in there as there are eggs and they are not buiding cells so she didn't disappear after my last attempt.)
Then I tried again this afternoon in a Dick Dastardly "Stop the pidgeon!" type of battle but after another 48 frames I gave up!
Drat and double drat!

I’ve got one in a 6 frame nuc that is the same…. tried twice to find her…… perhaps they are distant cousins
Third time lucky today maybe

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I have an MBC queen at the home apiary - I've seen her once since she was introduced to the colony

 

[Swarm]

I’ve got one in a 6 frame nuc that is the same…. tried twice to find her…… perhaps they are distant cousins
Third time lucky today maybe

Have you stripped the frames out (after checking them) and checked the walls and floor?

 

[Moobee]

Have you stripped the frames out (after checking them) and checked the walls and floor?

That’s todays job…. was worried about damaging or losing her if I tried too much manipulation in one go.

 

[The Poot]

That’s todays job…. was worried about damaging or losing her if I tried too much manipulation in one go.

Why do you need to find her?

 

[Moobee]

Why do you need to find her?

To mark & clip really. I still couldn’t find her today!

 

[drex]

If that's the only reason, stop looking. You will see her eventually. Just always have your marking kit ready. It will be easier as bee numbers start to drop

 

[user 819]

I agree , keep your clippers and marker with you in your pocket .
You will likely spot her more on the off chance then being tunell visioned into finding her specifically.

 

[Erichalfbee]

The third day these bees have been here.
Yesterday they were flying as it was a sunny day. Popped a drawn wet super on top to give them some room but they’re back this morning.

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