What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Ely]

And why not? Perfectly legitimate procedure as part of some people's swarm management regime.

I agree. Better clipped than the colony being exterminated after a swarm settling in someones chimney or causing a nuisance to neighbours.

 

[BeeJayBee]

Thanks both. Overall for now OK, what directly affects me is the road to my bees damaged some but can cope with that. Still raining. This afternoon was short period of no rain and wind stopped for a moment and some bees went out and walking on the grass as lost. There were some flooding approx. 500m from my home but there are pretty obstacles to reach me, so not direct threat, few smaller bridges also went off on our local river. There are far worse situations not near me. Unfortunatelly heard also some apiaries were gone by the water.
Also in nearby Bosnia heard on some mountains 80cm of snow right now.. Somewhat on Sunday it shoud calm down and next week temps to go up to 27celsius.. Madness.

Heck Goran, that's bad. I hope the weather settles down for you, and that you have a decent summer.

I'm busy moaning about closed roads while they repair storm damage and rebuild bridges, but at least we're getting sunshine now, which is lovely.

The honey I extracted yesterday was really strong smelling too. Slightly cheesy. Is that dandilion. Thick like treacle too

I've never really thought about dandelion honey, but some of mine last year set with very large crystals and I'm wondering if that's what is was from. OSR + dandelion might be the beekeepers nightmare - rock solid, with large crystals and smelling of cheese!

P. S.
There's a short paragraph about dandelion honey just over a third of the way down this page http://keepingbee.org/honey-crystals/ Anybody know if it's accurate?

 

[Falesh]

Just did an inspection to find that the Queen has been very busy! It's been 19 days since the Queen was released from her cage and there is already a load of sealed brood.

Unfortunately the camera had a little trouble with the light this time, next video will be much better though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aghG71Mdmc

 

[Tabby15]

Hive one - swarmed two weeks ago. Was not going to inspect but bees behaving oddly and I was concerned as we only left one QC. Had a look, queen had emerged from QC but no sign of her. Three more QC in centre of other frames. Paused and thought. Supercedure? Knocked down two. Left largest one (we can always take eggs from other hives if it fails) One that we knocked out had a full grown, (pale queen) inside.

Hive two - last week there were play cups so we added a super . no progress on super so swapped for some drawn super frames. More play cups, eggs and brood on ten frames. One frame full of honey So we closed it up. Had cup of tea and read up on demaree and then did it. So we have new BB box on bottom with queen and frame she was on, rest foundation (didn't have drawn), QE, two supers, old BB crown board and roof. (Interesting when opened up to demaree bees were already up in the super on the drawn comb)

Hive three ( swarm from hive one) - loads of eggs and brood. Put super on

As a relative newbie this was the most I have ever had to do on one day

 

[scuttlefish]

As a relative newbie this was the most I have ever had to do on one day

And it just gets busier...

As for me, inspected hives #3 - #6 today (#1 & #2 were inspected on Thursday). QPL and good stores in all, no QCs, two chalkbrood mummies in #3 but otherwise no signs of disease. Changed the plastic QX on #4 for a zinc one and changed the brood chamber on #6 for a bottom bee space one (that's all six hives standardised at bottom bee space and OMFs now). #4 is only on six frames of BIAS but I had to replace four frames of comb with foundation a few weeks ago and they're slow to draw it out.

Now, off to make up half a dozen more supers and frames - it never ends!

 

[alldigging]

Not my hive swarmed and landed in my hedge. About a rugby size ball of bees.
Then another swarm came out of the same hive and buggered off. Then the first lot did.

If you're in Failsworth and you've had bees floating by then I know where they came from.


This is the one next to the one doing fake swarms/mating flights.

 

[Tonyatcwfarm]

Out the back showing my cousin how I caught my own swarm Thursday when I heard a noise behind us and a very large swarm was landing on the bait hive30 feet behind us on the balcony of the house
Took over an hour to file in
Started week with 2 colonies now with 7 and my father tells me lot of scouts at my bait hive in his yard so I better get making more kit

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

Felt the opposite of my despair of a few weeks ago--the truth of course is somewhere in between--as the demaree of the monster hive worked a treat and now the biggest problem is the pallet bowing under the five boxes.

And the new Q in colony 2 is a goer; that colony coming on very strong.

My only worry is the EQC nuc I took off colony 1. The Little Green Queen's not important but she would be my first Q so I care for her...

 

[stephenpug]

Just had a walk up my garden and the biggest swarm I have ever seen was hanging from my plum tree ( and not one of mine) I have struggled to fit them into a standard national brood box also the nuc I put out as a bait box is full of bees
Who is losing all these bees I havnt got enough kit so I will have to unite when they have all settled down

 

[Tim.S]

What I did today was to drop a full National deep from about 3 feet. They were not happy bunnies. Somehow I did not get stung, pure luck!

 

[TOBY-3652]

Just had a walk up my garden and the biggest swarm I have ever seen was hanging from my plum tree ( and not one of mine) I have struggled to fit them into a standard national brood box also the nuc I put out as a bait box is full of bees
Who is losing all these bees I havnt got enough kit so I will have to unite when they have all settled down

join the club .. im running out of kit fast swarms everywhere around here

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Luckily I haven't had a swarm of bees hanging off my plums although I came close with a couple of bees exploring inside my left trouser leg. I'll explain......
Just came back from a day at the Royal Welsh smallholder's fair, quickly changed into garden clothes for a half hour potter tidying up the greenhouse in readiness for planting my tomato plants tomorrow both to relax and unwind - and to sneak the rather nice 3 year old plum tree (SWMBO knew I was thinking of buying one) and greengage tree (she didn't know about that!!) up to the apiary until I prepare holes for them in the garden. I noticed a rather louder than usual buzzing in the apiary and found a mahooosive swarm of bees resting in the hedge, nearly 2000hrs by this time so quickly popped a smock on and prepared to collect them. whilst preparing a clear space for my sheet I disturbed the cluster and a fair lump of them ended on the floor. I then shook the swarm into a skep and up turned it on the sheet. it is then that a few bees found their way up my trouser leg!! Most of the bees quickly entered the skep (so fairly confident queen is in there) but a fair lump still in the hedge so I just put the skep over the hedge in the hope they'd go up.some did but there were still a fair few in the hedge when Ihived the rest (They weighed a bit - half filling my skep, so I hope it's a prime swarm and that they'll stay in the hive!!) seem a bit lighter than my bees so i hope they're not mine but if they are - well, I want to make increase anyway!!

 

[einsteinagogo]

Another busy day....took the remainder of bees from swarm up to Apiary No.2 three swarms flew over head and then one landed. My spare kit is almost gone and got a call at work another swarm gone into building. I'm knackered.!

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

 

[BeeJayBee]

Who is losing all these bees ... I havnt got enough kit so I will have to unite when they have all settled down

I have no idea, but I've gathered two swarms this week. One settled into a nuc mid-week, the other arrived earlier today and tucked itself into a bait hive.

Today's wasn't a huge swarm, but both are the same nice looking bees so probably from the same source.

Does anybody recognise them?

 

[Tabby15]

Text from neighbour to say my bees were swarming again and had been flying over her garden. Given actions taken yesterday seemed unlikely unless QC in hive one was not Supercedure and there was another queen in there so it was a cast?
Got home two hours later. Decent size swarm in her tree over a pond and about 15ft up. Hmm - Checked all our hives again.
Hive one. Supercedure cell still sealed. After looking through all frames decided we would remove it to a nuc and risk Q- rather than a swarm. When we went back to the frame, QC was open and empty. So we will wait and see.
Hive two. The demaree. No play cups in upper BB (but only one day). Queen seen in lower
Hive three - Still happy. Didn't see queen but eggs, brood and not even a play cup

So our conclusion is the swarm is unlikely to be ours. Neighbour is happy to leave it. We have left a nuc box near to it. Not an easy one to take and we don't feel confident enough to try.

 

[Ben90]

Bumped up a nuc to a full hive that arrived yesterday. Found tons of dead and dying drones around both apiaries I have hives on (garden and an association one), you can tell a few people (myself included) have new queens.

Put a cast in a nuc box, but I'm not convinced they're big enough to be viable unless the queen starts laying soon. :/

 

[einsteinagogo]

Went up to Apiary No.2 and swept up, and cut the weeds around the hives, which now totals, four nationals, and a nuc.

All caught swarms (3), all look present, 2 nationals, and 1 nuc.

Later this afternoon, I went to a BBQ in the area (not near any hives!), and was in the garden, honey bee got caught in my hair, just after I took off my sun hat, and paniced, and stung me on the temple! Hey, First sting of the year 2014!

It made people laugh, that the only person stung in the garden was the Beekeeper without his onesie on!

Went back to my house, to grab an Piriton, but noticed that I didn't have any, and they do not go well with Stella Artois, noticed sting was still in temple, and used my Aspivenin for the first time, to remove venom, pain has gone (although that could be the Stella!), but left eye, looks like I've been in a fight again!)...

Oh well.....

 

[Heather]

Yippee -another success.. Bees swarmed under Welsh tiled low roof, Friday. When I removed one tile where holding nail had perished the bees were well over to one side out of my reach. I put 2 frames of drawn foundation into the gap where I could access, and left them to it. Replaced tile.
Today, the bees were all over my frames, drawn comb either side and I was able to lift all out as a decent colony. Sorted.
Mind you had to request that the rather delightful householder stop from mowing the lawn nearby. Not helpful.

 

[dpearce4]

Extracted my OSR yesterday, a couple of the hives were so big that they needed 2 supers just to hold the bees in.

There is also a massive flow on of either hawthorn or field beans, not sure which though. I am going to have to go up and put extra supers on this week.

 

[TOBY-3652]

Extracted my OSR yesterday, a couple of the hives were so big that they needed 2 supers just to hold the bees in.

There is also a massive flow on of either hawthorn or field beans, not sure which though. I am going to have to go up and put extra supers on this week.

same here// 3 supers on most of my hives absolutely teaming in..