- Joined
- Mar 30, 2011
- Messages
- 37,169
- Reaction score
- 17,442
- Location
- Glanaman,Carmarthenshire,Wales
- Hive Type
- National
- Number of Hives
- Too many - but not nearly enough
same beast, just a namechangeEchos of MAQS when it first became available
same beast, just a namechangeEchos of MAQS when it first became available
Thanks. Done three at 5 day intervals (last one today on 4 hives). 48hr mite drop was huge after OAV1, approx 200 after OAV2 and I will check the 3rd in a couple of days. What threshold do you use for the forced mite drop which would make you continue with further OAV?Have you other hives? What are the drops there like?
I have one out of seven continuing to drop large numbers
I’m vaping every five days till I get only a few. I once had to do one seven times….. years ago, before I gave up and put in Apivar which led to none dropping at all. I guess the seventh one did it.
20 and it has to be 24 hours not 48What threshold do you use for the forced mite drop which would make you continue with further OAV?
I thought the broodless period is in December.
Thank you for the reply, one of my projects places me about 10 miles from Baco Preston. I will send my good lady, she is quite persuasive. Otherwise it is phone calls to local bakers. I have until now made my own as my needs in regards quantity accomodate it. Last year I went to the Halifax agricultural show where the beeks of the area had a decent sized tent and display. I discussed Fondant and was surprised that they had no organised supply for their members. They were buying, in many cases, very small quanities individually at high prices. My Yorkshire blood and heritage rebelled at the very thought.£250 minimum spend is to deter small buyers. £16.40 is the box price for 40 boxes, collected, but buying fewer boxes by spending only £250 is likely to attract a higher box price. Pallet delivery would no doubt push box price to something painful (I didn't ask).
Years ago the company would sell individual beekeepers a few boxes, then stopped and supplied only Simon the Beekeeper, which retails it at £25 a box plus delivery.
https://simonthebeekeeper.co.uk/products/125kg-fondant-block
Chat up the Bako rep and tell them their first quote is too high. My price came down significantly and as I’ve said they deliver free for £150 order.Thank you for the reply, one of my projects places me about 10 miles from Baco Preston. I will send my good lady, she is quite persuasive. Otherwise it is phone calls to local bakers. I have until now made my own as my needs in regards quantity accomodate it. Last year I went to the Halifax agricultural show where the beeks of the area had a decent sized tent and display. I discussed Fondant and was surprised that they had no organised supply for their members. They were buying, in many cases, very small quanities individually at high prices. My Yorkshire blood and heritage rebelled at the very thought.
I still have the box my MAQS strips arrived in. I keep it solely as a reminder of the damage they did on the 2 colonies in which I used it. Total wipeout. Fortunately it was only a third of the apiary.Echos of MAQS when it first became available
Take the lid off and have a sniff now and then.I keep it solely as a reminder of the damage
I've just had a look on Beesource but can't find what you're referring to. Would you mind please Dani, briefly going over the warning that you didn't heed.Take the lid off and have a sniff now and then.
Seriously Gary, you have confidence these things work. The messages on Beesource regarding the stuff should have been a warning. Sadly I paid them no heed.
Archie it was years ago.I've just had a look on Beesource but can't find what you're referring to.
It's always an "I was only just ..." moment that catches you out !Went to one of my apiaries that’s got 7 hives in to top up some fondant. As I didn’t want to drive across a sodden field in the wet I carried 7 small blocks of fondant the 150yrds to the hives.
When I arrived it was calm and I was dressed in a waterproof jacket with a veil on my head.
The bees were calm as I was putting the fondant on the first 5 hives but as I got to the 6th the 7th started getting a bit fiesty next door and it started to rain. I took the roof off no. 7 as a squall hit me ripping the veil off my head! There I was with fiesty bees all around and my veil 20yrds away up the field!
Well I managed to get the fondant on the crownboard, the roof on and flee up the field with only about 30 stings in my head and neck.I can tell you stings in a bald head really smart! I was pulling stings out for most of the 5 min journey to the next apiary but by the time I’d called into a mate for a cuppa 30mins later I’d almost forgotten where I’d been stung.
Don’t we just love this hobby?
Yeah it does read like that, I wish I could of taken some with me.Misread that, thought your bees had been on holiday 😂, seriously, I have a pretty good idea where you'd like to be heading but I think a few gentle questions could produce some interesting discussion that many might benefit from. It's all good stuff.
Here in the Pennines, 20 miles north of Manchester, we had a generally bright warm and sunny day, my girls took full advantage. One colony bringing in lots of pollen and the rest a combination but all flying. Even though they have stores I am feeding 1-1 but at moderate levels. I make regular visits to keep an eye on their health. This has after all been a very strange year.Dead drones in front of the 1 hive I have in the garden, today. For me that's the serious sign of winter's onset.
Few flying bees. It was cold windy and wet.
Have a lot of fondant to take to the out apiray, to ensure sufficient winter stores.
Also going to cut a few boards to slide under the wire mesh floors I made, for winter. I like to leave a ventilation gap, but keep out the wind.
My 2nd winter. Going into it with 15 Colonies, last year was 7 and no losses. It will eventually happen. I always hope to avoid it.
The few bees I've seen flying were also bringing in pollen.Here in the Pennines, 20 miles north of Manchester, we had a generally bright warm and sunny day, my girls took full advantage. One colony bringing in lots of pollen and the rest a combination but all flying. Even though they have stores I am feeding 1-1 but at moderate levels. I make regular visits to keep an eye on their health. This has after all been a very strange year.
I'd suggest that the splitting will have helped control mite levels, maybe making nucs from your other colonies and introducing your chosen queens to them would be a better all round measure.So rewind to 2021 season, from 22 nucs 4 were selected out of 22 that through out the season showed low mite counts and really good hygienic behaviour.
Since then I’ve split the four colony’s using them to donate brood frames to make nucs headed by new season queens from either one of the four 2021 colony’s
Enter your email address to join: