What did you do in the Apiary today?

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Just extracted some more honey this morning- OSR just beginning to set.

Have to cull the queen from the seriously bad tempered hive today. Really, really not looking forward to being surrounded by a cloud of ferocious stinging bees but can't put it off any longer...wish me luck.
Cazza
 
Cazza said:
It's not the sting on the day that does for me, it's the day after....... Hope we are not the same....
Cazza
Click to expand...

Yes ... that's me as well ... swells up around the sting overnight and itches like hell ... dies down by the evening although the actual swelling takes awhile to go down fully.
 
Cazza said:
It's not the sting on the day that does for me, it's the day after....... Hope we are not the same....
Cazza
Click to expand...

If you saw my thread on my desensitisation you will understand why I was so happy.


Also still no swelling or itching today so the treatment is defo working really well.
:cheers2:
iand said:
You will now be looking forward to getting a few more then?
Click to expand...

No thanks 2 is enough for me.
 
Yesterday only managed to inspect 4 hives (recovering from Spring Flu) and 2 were ready to swarm!
One I couldn't find the marked queen (barely marked White) but then I spotted a Virgin Queen who must have just emerged!
cut the rest of the Queen cells out and gently put the hive back together.
Was thinking they must have swarmed despite the large number of bees present in both brood box and supers (3) then I spotted a cluster of bees on the floor of the hive trying to drag a dead queen towards the entrance!
No idea what happened but I will leave them alone to get on with it now!
They have almost filled 3 supers and 2 they have started to cap so that's a job for next week.
The other had some sealed QC's in but still had the original queen and by the looks of it she was still merrily laying away. Demareed them again!

The other two hives are performing more as I planned after their demaree, 1 with 3-4 frames of BIAS and the other with 8!!

6 more hives to inspect over today and tomorrow!
 
Thank goodness I read and digested the thread on the forum this morning called "Swarming tendencies after Artificial Swarm" !!

Following a Pagden AS on 21st April, I too wrongly thought that I should leave well alone for 4 weeks. So this afternoon, armed with new knowledge, by the skin of my teeth I have prevented several swarms. I found numerous queen cells .... all good looking ones too. I have now done more splits, and have given away two frames with lovely looking queen cells on them as well.

Three weeks ago I had one prolific hive on double brood. This evening I have three hives, and four nucs !!

Happy Days !!
 
I spent a lovely afternoon at the association apiary looking at somebody else's queen cells. All four colonies had sealed queen cells but the queens remained in three....Lucky!!
In the other virgins started emerging....I took one home in a matchbox and ran her into my queen less hive.
 
Nice to have a chat with JBM after his trip to Africa at the Association apiary

placed six heavy concrete slabs ready for hives
 
Helped someone with hive check after a swarm.. took away 5 unwanted queen cells... Yippee -3 buckfast emerged within the hour. Are they still nice bees 2nd generation??
 
Full inspections of both hives. Didn't get stung. Both 14x12's flu to the brim with brood. Not huge amounts of stores but both hives are very busy.
My strongest hive dropped over 60 mites in 24 hours on the board I had covered in vaseline. Guess it's MAQ's time again. The other hive showed no drop however as I pulled it out is seemed to scrape against the underneath of the hive. I'll treat them both anyway as per instructions. Seems the strongest is starting to build in the super. Queen/play cups in both but couldn't see any content.
 
Watched about 50 'scouts' checking out a bait hive I've put in a garden about two miles from my apiary. Not my bees as they are too dark and uniform in colour. Perhaps I'll hit it lucky in the next few days.
 
Three minutes after getting home from a cub camp with severe sleep deprivation I was greeted by a swarm rising from one of my hives. Due to said camp it is 8 days since I inspected and clearly 1 day too long.
Husband and I managed to capture them (ironically in a box from Thornes) Got good advice from swarm expert at my association and have rehived them this evening. Will see if they stay. Due to space issue they are close to the original hive
Live and learn. I was worried as two weeks ago there was 10 frames of brood but was advised to put a second super on. Last week was concerned about room but thought super would still help. Wish now I had followed my instinct and done a Demaree or some other swarm control.
 
Removed queen from one colony to a nucleus... to finish her swarming ambitions.

The other colony was FULL of queen cups on Wednesday. Today there was not a single one. Bees are mysterious creatures.

Ordered more stuff from the honey equipment pushers. Expect this to be the last major expense until harvest time.
 
jd101k2000 said:
Removed queen from one colony to a nucleus... to finish her swarming ambitions.

The other colony was FULL of queen cups on Wednesday. Today there was not a single one. Bees are mysterious creatures.

Ordered more stuff from the honey equipment pushers. Expect this to be the last major expense until harvest time.
Click to expand...

Most likely some colder ( or longer rain) period occur and they give up of swarming. This spring one colony started qcells with eggs and young larvae. After that we got nasty colder period and they destroyed them. Now we had some relative normal weather and same colony again started with qcells. Again we have now cold, rain, wind, for days bees don't go out. I believe they will destroy them again..
But again, who knows what cunning plans they made, the time for making they have plenty as they must all stay in the hives..
 
I did my very first, ever, hive inspection today. It's been 8 days since I installed the package of bees I got. The queen was there and there was also some very very small eggs so the colony looks like it will be successful. :D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfrG_09toFs
 
Got stung yesterday. Had a systemic reaction to the sting - hands and feet swollen, whole body rash, racing heart beat. Took some piriton and my inhalers and phoned 111, a few hours in A & E later got given some prednisolone. Off to see my GP ASAP about bee sting reactions (they have got dramatically worse - this was my first full sting of the year). Now thinking about re-homing the garden bees as they are not to be trusted!
 
abi-e said:
Got stung yesterday. Had a systemic reaction to the sting - hands and feet swollen, whole body rash, racing heart beat. Took some piriton and my inhalers and phoned 111, a few hours in A & E later got given some prednisolone. Off to see my GP ASAP about bee sting reactions (they have got dramatically worse - this was my first full sting of the year). Now thinking about re-homing the garden bees as they are not to be trusted!
Click to expand...

A sensible idea about moving your garden bees.

Have a read of my desensitisation thread before you go to your GP as there is a way forward, don't just give up, but DO be careful. When you move your hive make sure someone goes with you just in case.

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=21905
 
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