What did you do in the Apiary today?

[SireeDubs]

United two colonies in friend's apiary. Found both queens laying beautifully, looking great. Caged one queen to replace own rubbish queen.

Three of us then spent next 2.5 hours looking through a single brood box for said rubbish queen. All signs that she's there. Bu*ger couldn't be found. Tomorrow is another day....

 

[Erichalfbee]

Move brood box away and leave its super in its place to catch the returning foragers,split the frames into pairs...I'm sure you know this already BUT then in the now frameless and depleted brood box look for her on the floor and sides.
Husband found one small queen on a floor and the only way he knew was because there was a little knot of bees around her.
Good luck

 

[Loubylou]

One of my hives swarmed yesterday. Found the critters under a blackcurrant bush. Huge swarm, captured and popped into a new hive......hopefully happy bees rehomed

 

[Duchy]

trying to figure out how to get a massive swarm out of the top of the plum tree...

 

[SireeDubs]

Move brood box away and leave its super in its place to catch the returning foragers,split the frames into pairs...I'm sure you know this already BUT then in the now frameless and depleted brood box look for her on the floor and sides.
Husband found one small queen on a floor and the only way he knew was because there was a little knot of bees around her.
Good luck

Thanks. I did try splitting, but just no sign! Brand new standing up eggs seen, no queen! Even checked super. Nada.

RAB kindly advised shaking frame by frame onto cloth in front of hive. Will try tomorrow, once I get hold of spare bb. After that.... Who knows?

Wish me luck!

 

[Elaine]

Sat with a cup of coffee watching the bees - and saw what could only have been a queen returning to a hive which had the queen-cell part of an AS. Fingers crossed there will be brood next time I check them.

 

[richardbees]

Sitting in the apaiary and noticed bees coming and going through a gap between a QE and super so wrapped some 'gaffer tape' around the hive - it'll do until the next proper inspection.

 

[beeboybee]

got a bit crazy with the strimmer on the nettles and long grass, found one pen, bees very grumpy....

 

[itma]

Sitting in the apaiary and noticed bees coming and going through a gap between a QE and super so wrapped some 'gaffer tape' around the hive - it'll do until the next proper inspection.

For a strong colony, on a flow … a second (upper) entrance can be a good thing ...

 

[BrianO]

Opened up my 3 week old newly hive Nuc, last years mated queen, looking great, lots of new eggs and larvae at all stages.

And of course Her Majesty, looking very fetching and svelte with her red/rouge makeup and fluttering compound eyes. :

 

[Jimmys Mum]

Today I dabbled in the dark art of grafting. Fingers tightly crossed as this is my first proper go.
18 larvae grafted, hoping for 6!

 

[Goran]

From "jenter" to bars today.. Bees are all little to say mad these days, seems in periods without rain they get some lime nectar and pollen. Every year when is lime flow they are really annoying here.. Seems this is peak of my beekeeping, next is decline.

 

[richardbees]

For a strong colony, on a flow … a second (upper) entrance can be a good thing ..

Itma, yes -good advice but I'm more concerned with robbing as it's the weakest hive.

Surrounded by flowering Lime trees so I just hope the temperature keeps up, 23c optimum?

richard

 

[Jimmys Mum]

Highs and lows

Low..... Went to put a third super on a hive that was A/S in May (new queen) and found charged queen cells again! Grrrr! So yes, new queens can definitely swarm in their first season, well within 7 or 8 weeks actually. Pagden carried out yet again. This swarmy strain will have to go!

High..... 13 out of 18 of my first ever grafting attempt have been accepted by the bees who are building some lovely looking queen cells in the Jzbz cups. YES!
Thank you Tom B for inspiring me with your recent posts and pictures!

 

[dickbowyer]

Marked a newly mated and laying queen in a plunger cage and tapped her out on to a top bar only to see her fly off. Closed up and 10 minutes later she was back on front of hive, retinue reformed and escorted her back in.

 

[jd101k2000]

Quick off the mark

Checked the (small) swarm that I picked up on Thursday.

Already drawn 2 frames and the queen is laying. Quite a bit of nectar in there, too.

 

[meidel]

added a super on one colony, rearranged frames in supers, old queen in nuc, which had been slimmed down by bees ready to swarm again last weekend, now laying apace, marked a new laying queen, one colony in a nuc not doing so well - likely varroa problem, treated with thymol syrup, may have to consider treating with something stronger, united two colonies using newspaper method.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

likely varroa problem, treated with thymol syrup

Feeding them thymolised syrup will do nothing to address the varroa problem - it's for treating nosema. Do something else right away

 

[Tom Bick]

Low..... Went to put a third super on a hive that was A/S in May (new queen) and found charged queen cells again! Grrrr! So yes, new queens can definitely swarm in their first season, well within 7 or 8 weeks actually. Pagden carried out yet again. This swarmy strain will have to go!

High..... 13 out of 18 of my first ever grafting attempt have been accepted by the bees who are building some lovely looking queen cells in the Jzbz cups. YES!
Thank you Tom B for inspiring me with your recent posts and pictures!

That’s great and thanks hope yours continue to develop..................the bad bit my eleven from fourteen dwindled and right now I am thinking definitely one virgin perhaps two as the cell builder hive that received a cell is inconclusive right now.

Sorry dont wish to spoil your party and hope yours continue to develop but I have found its not as easy as first thought. However, learnt a great deal and looking forward to more attempts next year.

Good luck, fingers crossed.

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

Waved goodbye to my swarmiest Q 33 days after her mother left her as a swarm cell. Saves me freezing her, and handing her a shorter life than her worker sisters. Must've been a tiny swarm, as she left from the Q+ half of the split of an already-weak nuc. (The Q- half is going to get a Peter Little Q later in the week ). Her sister is on ten frames and has filled a super in the same time and no signs of swarming, so good riddance.

Brought Buckybeast up to 5 National deeps; nectar flooding in. The Q- Buckybeast nuc has drawn an EQC on an egg that I had not seen; had thought they would use a larva. Happy days; shook in some bees and gave a kg of thymolated 1:1 as a reward.