What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Do224]

Your current plan isn't your gut instinct, it's advice from other people who may well be right but if they're not then it's your bees which will suffer.

I know what you mean but to be fair I don’t really have a feel for it. I just watched a BMH video where it’s advised to remove supers and vape mid august in order to ensure colonies are strong for the following spring.

 

[Swarm]

I know what you mean but to be fair I don’t really have a feel for it. I just watched a BMH video where it’s advised to remove supers and vape mid august in order to ensure colonies are strong for the following spring.

Yootoobers.
Best ignored.

 

[ericbeaumont]

just watched a BMH video where it’s advised to remove supers and vape mid august

Digest that idea, add to it your previous experience, be alert to the 'it's all over' feeling, put the kettle on and ponder your own date to treat.

 

[Penninetrader]

The supplies in the brood boxes are not great so I am still doing some top up syrup feeds, they are working and doing their best but it has been a dreadful year. Some I know have lost colonies through starvation in April May which I find unacceptable

 

[Erichalfbee]

I have the FLIR one, which is selling for about £150 at the mo.

I paid over £200 for mine and that must be three years ago

View attachment 73BF9A79-0556-4FCD-B455-56D06D59B752.mp4

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

When do you vape yours?

towards the end of September - I was early last year and started mid September.

 

[Murox]

Well a few days of 17-20 cloudand light breezes seems to have kick-started a flow and the bees. Nectar in most supers, a swarm I collected to weeks ago finally taking off in a nuc, even managed to see the Q who was just starting to lay. All a bit late in the season for my liking up here, but the bees seem to be bouncing back with vim and vigor.

 

[Wilco]

Applied to join the BFA. Time will tell.

Supervised the uni project inspections, heading in the right direction. They have gone from starting with two colonies to four, without confirmation of two mated queens in the last week or so. A few minor hiccups but great involvement from people.

Off to check on some new queen's in my hives on the way home shortly. Not enjoying lifting having injured myself climbing at my daughter's birthday party at the weekend. My climbing friend informs me it's called a 'pulley'. It'll be Christmas before I can think about full function again. I have fashioned a splint from thermoplastic based on what appears to be the best treatment but it doesn't work well with marigolds on! Extraction should be fun this year...

 

[Curly green finger's]

Afternoon checked on the cell finishers well two splits of the top of a demaree that had 3 day old cells I split them into two nucs and the cells have been finished between the two nucs 14 cells between them one has nine the other 5.
So I’m now day 9 cells are capped well and all look a good size.
Not long and I’ll put them in the incubator and leave two.
Extracted 90lb of honey from a demaree colony.

 

[Michael Palmer]

Caught queens today. Only a half catch, as we're getting the mating nucs ready for winter. Three more half catches
and we're done for the season. Then it will be time for a happy dance. Beginning requeening tomorrow.

 

[Moobee]

Clipped and marked two new queens today.
Also had two hives where the queen has gone AWOL. No sign of her majesty in either hive, no eggs or young brood but copious sealed QCs despite only having been inspected 6 days ago (when both only had play cups that were all knocked down). Both were this years queens, raised following splits at the same time.
I need to check but wonder if both were poorly mated when we had a spell of wet and cool weather several weeks ago & the bees decided to supersede? Can’t think of any otherobvious explanation?

 

[Penninetrader]

Well a few days of 17-20 cloudand light breezes seems to have kick-started a flow and the bees. Nectar in most supers, a swarm I collected to weeks ago finally taking off in a nuc, even managed to see the Q who was just starting to lay. All a bit late in the season for my liking up here, but the bees seem to be bouncing back with vim and vigor.

Not dissimilar here, the swarm that came to me a couple of weeks ago I had a look at today for the first time, I have them housed in a NUC with an additional box on top giving them a total of 14 frames. The bottom box, the NUC, not being used but the upper is chocker with bees honey and a Queen. The Queen seems slender and no evidence of fresh brood but she skipped across the frame when I lifted it so possible virgin or early days mated. When setting this up I put a couple of frames of brood and nurses from one of my other colonies in with the swarm to help settle them....they seem very content and chilled, I mostly don't use smoke or vape

 

[Penninetrader]

The supplies in the brood boxes are not great so I am still doing some top up syrup feeds, they are working and doing their best but it has been a dreadful year. Some I know have lost colonies through starvation in April May which I find unacceptable

All change today, we seem to be on a roll, supplies coming in on most hives, even the recent swarm box is doing great, my busiest hive has a lot of drone scavengers which seem to be consuming so I generally boot them out, whether it helps or not I have no idea. I have decided to take on a new title for myself "The bungling Beekeeper" my girls seem to find ways of overcoming my inadequacies much like my good lady wife.

 

[madasafish]

Removed and extracted 11 supers : approx 190lbs of honey. No colony had filled the two outer frames of any nuc presumably due to the cold weather..

 

[North London Bee Man]

I haven't been in my home apiary for 10 days as I have been on a family holiday and do not currently have any bees there. I did have an empty hive set up which, by the looks of my low quality and intermittently online camera, now appears to be home to a swarm that moved in the day I left. Looking forward to Saturday when I can find out what they've done with the place.

 

[Wilco]

Clipped and marked two new queens today.
Also had two hives where the queen has gone AWOL. No sign of her majesty in either hive, no eggs or young brood but copious sealed QCs despite only having been inspected 6 days ago (when both only had play cups that were all knocked down). Both were this years queens, raised following splits at the same time.
I need to check but wonder if both were poorly mated when we had a spell of wet and cool weather several weeks ago & the bees decided to supersede? Can’t think of any otherobvious explanation?
View attachment 40766

Copious might suggest swarming rather than supercession?

 

[Moobee]

Copious might suggest swarming rather than supercession?

Copious - at least a dozen. Both were new queens (from early July) and were clipped so can’t get far. Odd that they produced capped QCs so fast and it didn’t look like I had lost bees, still full of honey in the supers and space in both hives was good.

 

[Nannysbees]

Copious - at least a dozen. Both were new queens (from early July) and were clipped so can’t get far. Odd that they produced capped QCs so fast and it didn’t look like I had lost bees, still full of honey in the supers and space in both hives was good.

Same here two new queens for different hives disappeared!!!

 

[Swarm]

Any chance the bees objected to one or more of the following?
New genetics.
A damaged queen via clipping and/or marking.
I marked a queen earlier this year once I found a decent pattern of worker brood. She waltzed off and made straight for a hole in the comb and then proceeded to back out of it, this annoyingly succeeded in spreading some paint onto her antennae.
The next time I looked into that colony there was no sign of her and no brood. Last week I checked again and caught a glimpse of a tiny unmarked queen.

 

[Newbeeneil]

Put some clearer boards on 3 colonies in my main apiary and they went apeshit! They were all over me as soon as I cracked the crownboard.
Hopefully it was just the weather…………