What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Luminos]

Isn't Mahogany what the Scots celebrate at New Year?

 

[sgeek]

managed to do absolutly nothing in the Apiary today. In fact have not managed to get to my last surviving hive in about 8 days.
Surprise, surprise it appears the queen cells I thought I might have missed in my last inspection were!
Email today from a ex-beek who has an allotment with mine and it appears my bees are swarming.Cannot get down there due to work/family commitments

Shi**y week and this is the icing on the cake. Damn I am hacked off :-(

Really not looking forward to Sunday when I can actually have some time to myself to check on the ladies. I thought things were going too well.

Should anyone near Fareham gain a swarm with a rather friendly queen (green spot). Say hello to her and enjoy her company as much as I have

 

[Beauhawk]

Added first super to my one and only hive today - very momentous occasion indeed!

4 weeks today since my package bees were hived and we now have brood across 7 frames!

Go girls....

 

[Chris Luck]

Collected a swarm from between ceiling and floorboards in a barn - lovely job, just required lifting a few floorboards and putting the bees in a rushette.

Chris

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

On Wednesday, some of you were kind enough to be concerned about the possible consequences of an A/S I did, all in a rush, a couple of weeks ago.

Whilst I was in holiday last Sunday, my friends took a look at the A/S, couldn't find the queen, but did find 3 queen cells, one sealed (they took them down). Also, I'd not followed through properly, dealing with the original colony.

A couple of more experienced people here said I should examine the A/S asap - and think of checking the original colony for casts.


I looked in both today - and am pleased to say all seems really hunky dory!

I found the Queen in the A/S and not a single queen cell. They are rebuilding really well.

I speedily checked the original colony - realising this is not the norm.
The bees were very gentle, going about their business purposefully. No sign of queen cells - nor of eggs and larvae. The brood left was clearly in the late stages of development. I read this as being a hive with a virgin queen (or one very recently deflowered).

So, unless I'm missing something, all seems fine. Looks like the bees forgave my incompetence. However......

...... it meant I needn't have spent Wednesday evening making up a new BB and frames for a possible Demaree; I needn't have worried about ordering stuff fron Crete and hoping it would be delivered in time; I needn't have spent mega bucks on that equipment, and..........

.......... I needn't have spent even more mega bucks on jewelry in Crete, for SWMBO!

Hey ho!

Thanks again for your concern and advice.

Dusty.

 

[galileo]

Spent some time searching for the swarm that I helped my farmer friend catch yesterday. I'd left him with them all shut up nice and snug in a swarm box in the late afternoon, with a seasoned 6 frame nuc ready for them, with a piece of QX tacked over the entrance and instruction that he should transfer them to it around 8pm.

Called this morning and his mentor had told him to leave it til the morning and then to transfer them straight into his brand new national. Hmmm.... thoughts of absconding sprang to mind, but hey ho - different strokes, different folks.

Well, he called late afternoon to report that between talking to me and getting his suit on, they'd done a bunk. Apparently he'd also been told not to shut them in overnight!!

Bees last seen making a cloud over the village in the afternoon, presumably making a beeline for the chosen pasture new.

Still, live and learn eh?

On a brighter note, also spent some time clearing out dead overhanging branches from the oaks in the new apiary, so that none should fall on top of hives when they're moved back over the next 2 weekends. I've placed a nuc colony in there 3 days ago, to check out the favoured flight path. Pleased to see that rather than fly back over the hives to exit the wood to the North, they're all coming out South and exiting vertically through the trees.

I love my girls!

 

[sunhivebee]

Today I watched a beautiful prime swarm issue from one of my hives, had great pleasure seeing them settle in a free-standing wisteria, instructed my two apprentices/volunteers to take it down with a skep and then we all observed them walking into the hive.

The hive was positioned right underneath where the bees clustered, and it will remain there. I have found in recent years that colonies hived at the site of where the swarm clustered did particularly well. So far anecdotal evidence, but we consider it worth pursuing. - The queen was practically the last bee to enter the hive.

Much the same activity yesterday, and on the day before yesterday, although those swarms settled at a height of seven metres in a eucalyptus tree, which was somewhat harder work.

On Sunday last my strongest colony swarmed for the third time; the bees were offered a hive, but spread themselves over the whole front surface and spent the night there. After moving the hive to a different position they marched in at great speed the following morning.

Of the six swarms so far each provided a different experience, all equally marvellous in their way. It is very rewarding to know that quite a few of the colonies have "opulence in every direction" as Brother Adam described the condition of colonies ready to swarm.
It makes it all worthwhile.

 

[pargyle]

managed to do absolutly nothing in the Apiary today. In fact have not managed to get to my last surviving hive in about 8 days.
Surprise, surprise it appears the queen cells I thought I might have missed in my last inspection were!
Email today from a ex-beek who has an allotment with mine and it appears my bees are swarming.Cannot get down there due to work/family commitments

Shi**y week and this is the icing on the cake. Damn I am hacked off :-(

Really not looking forward to Sunday when I can actually have some time to myself to check on the ladies. I thought things were going too well.

Should anyone near Fareham gain a swarm with a rather friendly queen (green spot). Say hello to her and enjoy her company as much as I have

Mike A has just picked up a monster swarm ... but in Gosport - I'll look out for yours in my bait hive tomorrow !!!

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

On Wednesday, some of you were kind enough to be concerned about the possible consequences of an A/S I did, all in a rush, a couple of weeks ago.

Whilst I was in holiday last Sunday, my friends took a look at the A/S, couldn't find the queen, but did find 3 queen cells, one sealed (they took them down). Also, I'd not followed through properly, dealing with the original colony.

A couple of more experienced people here said I should examine the A/S asap - and think of checking the original colony for casts.


I looked in both today - and am pleased to say all seems really hunky dory!

I found the Queen in the A/S and not a single queen cell. They are rebuilding really well.

I speedily checked the original colony - realising this is not the norm.
The bees were very gentle, going about their business purposefully. No sign of queen cells - nor of eggs and larvae. The brood left was clearly in the late stages of development. I read this as being a hive with a virgin queen (or one very recently deflowered).

So, unless I'm missing something, all seems fine. Looks like the bees forgave my incompetence. However......

...... it meant I needn't have spent Wednesday evening making up a new BB and frames for a possible Demaree; I needn't have worried about ordering stuff fron Crete and hoping it would be delivered in time; I needn't have spent mega bucks on that equipment, and..........

.......... I needn't have spent even more mega bucks on jewelry in Crete, for SWMBO!

Hey ho!

Thanks again for your concern and advice.

Dusty.

A) I'm glad everything is OK with your colonies
B)Look on the bright side - SWMBO will be pleasantly appeased with the boubles and the detente may last for some time
C)Selfishly (but most importantly)I'm glad I didn't totally get the wrong end of the stick when you PM'd me for my opinion (I did have a brief moment of self doubt the last few days -not usual for me as I'm known to be infallible)
D) Look on the bright side, you have a pile of new kit that SWMBO is aware of so no need for subterfuge and it seems a great shame to leave it empty because that really would be a waste

As for me - busy today helping SWMBO with her Macmillan 'Blooming great tea party' fund raiser which she held in the fishing club (it does sometimes help to be in with the chairman ) and raised loads of cash for a good cause. Bit of a damper for me as I had a bad phonecall halfway through from the MCA doctor about my fitness certificate) so after all was over just spent some time in the apiary watching the bees go about their business and mulling over my future and thinking theirs might be somehow bound in with it as long as they play ball!!

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Today I watched a beautiful prime swarm issue from one of my hives, had great pleasure seeing them settle in a free-standing wisteria, instructed my two apprentices/volunteers to take it down with a skep

That's a bit naughty eh? - gathering the poor dabs up in a basket and chucking them in a receptacle of your choosing thus supressing their natural instinct to send out scouts, debate their options as nature intended and select their own new home for better or for worse without human interference.
Smacks of hypocricy to me.

 

[lebouche]

That's a bit naughty eh? - gathering the poor dabs up in a basket and chucking them in a receptacle of your choosing thus supressing their natural instinct to send out scouts, debate their options as nature intended and select their own new home for better or for worse without human interference.
Smacks of hypocricy to me.

lol...
I do think she might be onto something with the letting bees swarm thing though.
If we suppress it and normally they would be throwing out swarms and casts then of course we are limiting bee populations. And if as some argue there are now no feral/truly wild bees then we could be causing big problems. And less pollination means less seeds which means less plants which means less flowers etc.
Sorry! Late night whiskey talking!

 

[fatshark]

Encouraging feral colonies from swarms seems irresponsible ... we know that these will be Varroa-infested, that they will almost certainly succumb to Varroa-transmitted disease over the winter and that they will act as a reservoir of disease - and Varroa - for local beekeepers who are trying to manage their colonies. A sort of Typhoid Mary for the bee world ...

Far better to hive them, treat them with Apiguard or OA when brood-free and encourage them to build up into a strong, healthy colony ... which will provide more pollination activity. Even better, requeen them as well ...

None of the above applies to Varroa-free areas.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Of the six swarms so far each provided a different experience, all equally marvellous in their way.

I agree it's a wonderful thing to see.
I watched one of mine swarm when I first started beekeeping.The bees poured out of the hive like black treacle and the air was filled with them. I just stood spellbound in a haze of bees and when they settled, an archetypal teardrop at the end of a branch, I put my bare hand into the middle of them. A day I will never forget. I ran excitedly to phone my husband at work and all he wanted to know was whether I had managed to catch them !!!

 

[Chris Luck]

Encouraging feral colonies from swarms seems irresponsible ... we know that these will be Varroa-infested, that they will almost certainly succumb to Varroa-transmitted disease over the winter and that they will act as a reservoir of disease - and Varroa - for local beekeepers who are trying to manage their colonies. A sort of Typhoid Mary for the bee world ...

Far better to hive them, treat them with Apiguard or OA when brood-free and encourage them to build up into a strong, healthy colony ... which will provide more pollination activity. Even better, requeen them as well ...

None of the above applies to Varroa-free areas.

That my friend is total crap if I may be blunt and has no basis in reality, simply a self perpetuating myth from people that repeat what they have heard from people that repeat what they have heard........and so it goes on.

Chris

 

[fatshark]

That my friend is total crap if I may be blunt and has no basis in reality, simply a self perpetuating myth from people that repeat what they have heard from people that repeat what they have heard........and so it goes on.

Chris

Thanks Chris
Highly informative ... other than the anecdotal "There have always been bees in that tree/church/wall" rubbish*, what convincing evidence is there that shows:
1. That overwintering feral colonies that are untreated do not have Varroa? (we know that any colony with Varroa acts as a source for colonies all around through drifting and drone exchange).
2. That feral colonies present year on year are genetically related and not simple recolonisation of a suitable site?

In the same way that foul broods radiate out from individual sources, Varroa and the viral payload they carry do the same. I feel beekeepers have a responsibility to minimise this, and I suggested a way that can contribute to this reduction.

* the inference being these are the same bees year on year ...

 

[sgeek]

Feeling slightly less c##ppy today!

Mike A has just picked up a monster swarm ... but in Gosport - I'll look out for yours in my bait hive tomorrow !!!

LOL. If you have them and the queen answers to the name of fluffy and climbs on your hand say hello from me!

 

[Chris Luck]

Thanks Chris
Highly informative ... other than the anecdotal "There have always been bees in that tree/church/wall" rubbish*, what convincing evidence is there that shows:
1. That overwintering feral colonies that are untreated do not have Varroa? (we know that any colony with Varroa acts as a source for colonies all around through drifting and drone exchange).
2. That feral colonies present year on year are genetically related and not simple recolonisation of a suitable site?

In the same way that foul broods radiate out from individual sources, Varroa and the viral payload they carry do the same. I feel beekeepers have a responsibility to minimise this, and I suggested a way that can contribute to this reduction.

* the inference being these are the same bees year on year ...

Of course they have varroa, it is understood that all honey bee colonies in Europe have varroa, (with the exception of one or two small varroa free zones), but varroa isn't the big demon that it's made out to be although it would seem that some colonies are more "vulnerable" to any additional weakening loads that are placed on them.

Feral and unmanaged colonies do survive as per the INRA study and of course I don't treat my bees. I have additionally studied on a continuous basis a large number of feral colonies in a 15 km radius of my home. In all cases failure rate is more or less in line with the INRA study averaging around 6 to 7 years which is what one would expect with or without varroa. In all cases continuous occupancy is verified.

EFB is only considered important in the UK and any strong colony should survive it and and recover.

AFB is generally human spread one way or another, very rare to be spread by bees.

There are people that repeat what they have heard or read and people that verify things for themselves.

Chris

 

[Excession]

Chris you really are a nice chap, I thought you were against abusive behaviour... Imagine my surprise to find you calling somebody else's post 'crap'!

Still, glad we don't have to worry about varroa, EFB and AFB now...

I will tell the NBU inspectors they are wasting their time!!

 

[alldigging]

Was on my way over to stand at the fence and have a look at the bees when I heard someone shout that they were at it again.

Huge cloud of swirly bees, settled in the hedge by the time I'd collected my stuff together and by then they were up in the air again.

Some seem to have congregated under a hive but all have dispersed apart from a few underneath. There is no obvious clump of bees under the hive (We lay on the floor and looked) so not sure where a queen is if there was one with them.

 

[Chris Luck]

Chris you really are a nice chap, I thought you were against abusive behaviour... Imagine my surprise to find you calling somebody else's post 'crap'!

Still, glad we don't have to worry about varroa, EFB and AFB now...

I will tell the NBU inspectors they are wasting their time!!

Crap is Crap, wrong is wrong, simple as that and the assertions made were wrong and people continue to make them because "they heard it somewhere". On here probably. or in the newspaper, perhaps their local association.

AFB is probably the only serious threat to honey bees, (other than people), and if all bee keepers improved their hygiene and methods, including how bees are sold and supplied I suspect that could be significantly reduced.

EFB as I say, only UK considers it an issue.

I should say that NBU inspectors aren't "special" and a lot of people have vested interests or just repeat the mantra.

I'll put this here again, you may not know about it - untreated colonies.



Chris