What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Erichalfbee]

Can't remember successive years so different. 2023 - unbelievable spring, anticipating record honey crop and then a summer of nothing. 2024 - spring/early summer a disaster and despair followed by an exceptional turn around with an incredible and long lasting nectar flow.

(fixed it)
Yes absolutely the same here.
Masses of bramble rained off. No clover in the fields but the Balsam has been spectacular. Not had honey off that in 12 years

 

[Garry R]

Getting a bit ahead of yourself

A great find!! The edit function has just made me 900 years younger. Don't feel it though - could someone tell my aching back!!!

 

[Moobee]

Wow....pretty envious. I have a few customers who buy regularly but being out in the sticks has its disadvantages. The local BKA still sells it's honey at £5 a lb !!!!!!!

That’s just ridiculous

 

[Newbeeneil]

That's very encouraging to read.
I'm my 2nd year of beekeeping, and learning how to sell my honey.
Would you mind giving a bit of background on how you established your honey sales channels?
Thanks.

I’m lucky regarding the sales from outside my house as I have several footpaths that converge in my road and we get a significant number of walkers passing. I also have many customers who come from the locality and father afield to pick up several jars at a time.
The health food shop approached me when their previous supplier retired. The other shops are in villages where my apiaries are so I approached them and suggested I “White label” their honey so it was specific to their locality and shop.
What I am careful about is not spreading my honey too thinly as there is nothing worse than supplying a customer for only 9 months of the year as they will go elsewhere for the rest of the year and you may lose them.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Seems a lifetime away. I think we've only had two days this year when the temperature has got close to 25°C. Most of the time it has been hovering around the high teens or very low twenties.

James

That didn't stop the barrage of extreme weather warnings from the usual suspects.
Maybe my lenses have become rose tinted but I'm sure we had long HOT autumns and harvest times when we stooked sheaves of corn by hand while sweat formed a rivulet down backs and between buttocks.
Oh the joys of barley awns

 

[Curly green finger's]

I’m lucky regarding the sales from outside my house as I have several footpaths that converge in my road and we get a significant number of walkers passing. I also have many customers who come from the locality and father afield to pick up several jars at a time.
The health food shop approached me when their previous supplier retired. The other shops are in villages where my apiaries are so I approached them and suggested I “White label” their honey so it was specific to their locality and shop.
What I am careful about is not spreading my honey too thinly as there is nothing worse than supplying a customer for only 9 months of the year as they will go elsewhere for the rest of the year and you may lose them.

So true I really like your approach Neil.

 

[The Poot]

Yesterday, clearer boards under supers on two hives. (In the old fashioned way)
Reduced the entrances on all hives. Shook the bees out of and removed one super that had no honey whatsoever!
Today, removed the two supers. No bees at all in one, seven in the other. Really pleased.
The supers have capped and uncapped honey and one still has undrawn foundation on the outermost frames. A bit of a mixed bag really and I’m expecting some of the honey will be fed back in September.
I still have nine supers to remove, in varying states of readiness.
Lots of ghost bees showing up at one hive, not so many at the others.

 

[Penninetrader]

Can't remember successive years so different. 2023 - unbelievable spring, anticipating record honey crop and then a summer of nothing. 2024 - spring/early summer a disaster and despair followed by an exceptional turn around with an incredible and long lasting nectar flow. Different results from around the country reflected on the forum but I think a generally good year ultimately.

Different in extremis

 

[Penninetrader]

Yesterday, clearer boards under supers on two hives. (In the old fashioned way)
Reduced the entrances on all hives. Shook the bees out of and removed one super that had no honey whatsoever!
Today, removed the two supers. No bees at all in one, seven in the other. Really pleased.
The supers have capped and uncapped honey and one still has undrawn foundation on the outermost frames. A bit of a mixed bag really and I’m expecting some of the honey will be fed back in September.
I still have nine supers to remove, in varying states of readiness.
Lots of ghost bees showing up at one hive, not so many at the others.

The honey crops seem incredibly variable via location, I was surprised that in your location you are not reporting a bumper yield. Just shows how all of this is so unpredictable.

 

[Beth]

I was looking at a complete wipeout in May, now taking frames off all hives, capped to the corners. It's an incredible turnaround. The bees are flying in the rain. It seems that if there's heat in the air, they get on with it.

Still faffing with one nuc. The carni queen was just not doing anything, now waiting to see what the new Buckfast does.

 

[Moobee]

Took 10 supers off the 3 home hives, the bees were not too impressed. Left them all with a super each in case the weather turns but they’re all producing nice arcs of stores around the brood nest and one had put a load of pollen in the super as well.
One new queen is laying like a train (10 frames) and the bees are filling the second brood box with stores. Will keep an eye on them to make sure she still has space to lay.
Have a couple of QCs on the go in nucs but still plenty of drones around so hopeful they’ll get mated.
Also need to start prepping kit for a cut out I’m doing on Tuesday with a beekeeping colleague (he’s bringing the bee vac!). It’s in a shed near one of the out apiaries and the house owner say’s they’ve been there at least 7 years (I’ve seen them there for the last 3 years and checked them in the winter with the thermal camera). Hoping they might show some varroa resistance….

 

[Erichalfbee]

Three last supers off and uncapped frames out under each colony. Few stores in the broods so this will give them a start.

 

[The Poot]

Took 10 supers off the 3 home hives, the bees were not too impressed. Left them all with a super each in case the weather turns but they’re all producing nice arcs of stores around the brood nest and one had put a load of pollen in the super as well.
One new queen is laying like a train (10 frames) and the bees are filling the second brood box with stores. Will keep an eye on them to make sure she still has space to lay.
Have a couple of QCs on the go in nucs but still plenty of drones around so hopeful they’ll get mated.
Also need to start prepping kit for a cut out I’m doing on Tuesday with a beekeeping colleague (he’s bringing the bee vac!). It’s in a shed near one of the out apiaries and the house owner say’s they’ve been there at least 7 years (I’ve seen them there for the last 3 years and checked them in the winter with the thermal camera). Hoping they might show some varroa resistance….

I’ve often wondered how trains lay…
Good luck with the cut out. Why remove them if they’ve been there seven years? Should be interesting.

 

[The Poot]

Today, extracted what I could from three supers and segregated frames to be spun, later, for the bees.
If the weather next week turns out as forecast, then all remaining supers will be taken off and feeding will commence.

 

[Nannysbees]

Apiguard has been in 3 days put the varroa boards in yesterday for 24 hours. Results are in
Poppy 204 single brood
Tinker 617 double brood
Daisy 24 single brood
Rosie 241, double brood
Winnie 95 double brood
Tinker had quite a long brood break as we struggled to requeen,
I had a feeling the numbers were going to be high. When I extracted drone larvae there were quite a few varroa on one fork full. Removed the boards now, will check again after a few days when we apply the second of the treatments in two weeks

 

[The Poot]

Apiguard has been in 3 days put the varroa boards in yesterday for 24 hours. Results are in
Poppy 204 single brood
Tinker 617 double brood
Daisy 24 single brood
Rosie 241, double brood
Winnie 95 double brood
Tinker had quite a long brood break as we struggled to requeen,
I had a feeling the numbers were going to be high. When I extracted drone larvae there were quite a few varroa on one fork full. Removed the boards now, will check again after a few days when we apply the second of the treatments in two weeks

617 after a long brood break is rather alarming!

 

[Nannysbees]

617 after a long brood break is rather alarming!

I know isn't it!! Course of oxalic Nov/ Dec last year. Will do the same this year, hopefully the apiguard will knock the load back

 

[Garry R]

I know isn't it!! Course of oxalic Nov/ Dec last year. Will do the same this year, hopefully the apiguard will knock the load back

They do say that repeated Apiguard can lead to resistance in Varroa - how long have you been using it?

 

[Antipodes]

I’ve often wondered how trains lay…

First step is to build a little track for them....

 

[Garry R]

First step is to build a little track for them....

This wouldn't work at all in the UK. First the train drivers would all go on strike for months preventing weekly inspections. If they do run they will terminate early and you will have to get the whole lot onto a bus service. If the drivers get the pay deal they want then ASLEF will make sure they will be walking out so you won't get honey jars as the raw materials won't be transported to the glass works. The cost of everything shoots up accordingly and the beekeepers have to put up the prices to cover increase costs so nobody can afford to buy honey. Honey loving train drivers decide they like honey enough to go on strike so they can afford to buy it and so the merry go round continues. Bloody madness and we have only had the new government a couple of months and they start to show their true colours, Still, only 4 years and 10 months to go.