What did you do in the Apiary today?

[user 6228]

With a few thousand bees to clear exits that only work 4 at time in the centre of the board, they are are hard to find, they get blocked with bees Result the bees get very distressed.
I going to find a way that clears the bees without going near the dynamics of a stadium disaster.

 

[Lois]

I went to see my two hives this morning in my new beesuit (mine imploded in the wash), hive 1 are a poorly lot, they have not really taken off but hive two are bursting at the seams, I have put on the bee escape and hope to take the frames off early next week. Hive one I have taken the super off, no honey at all, I will feed them ASAP and apiguard them then keep an eye on them for a while before winter.

 

[VEG]

Lois I hope your not leaving the clearer board on for that long.

 

[george]

Derek , sounds a bit odd . I clear up to 3 supers at a tme with a pair of porters and they are generally bee free within 24/36 hrs and with no loss of life .
Certainly preferable to my last resort when time is pressing and I reach for the leaf blower !
G

 

[DulwichGnome]

I've set up a new site with three double '5 frame' boxes. It's in a local church garden which has been turned into allotments. The hives are facing SE so I'll see how they get on.

Mike.

 

[oliver90owner]

I'll see how they get on.

I am intending putting a full colony into a pair of jumbo Langstroth 6 frame polynucs converted to National, as an over wintering experiment.

One 'abandoned' colony went through winter in a 'Dartington carry box' with a Dartington half-super' over, last winter.

Regards, RAB

 

[Onge]

I've set up a new site with three double '5 frame' boxes. It's in a local church garden which has been turned into allotments. The hives are facing SE so I'll see how they get on.

Mike.

Very smart. I like it.

Well done Mike.

 

[abi-e]

Put in a door block as the wasps were starting to be a pest and put in a clearer board to get the supers off (one being cleaned and one being pulled out). Checked how the bees were getting on with the apiguard - almost all shifted in just 2 days! Next year I will do things the right way round!!

 

[Nic Rhodes]

I am over wintering at least one nuc in poly (Paynes) with a second brood layer, possibly two subject to tomorrows peep

 

[RosieMc]

watched the rain

looked at the weather forecast - rain

watched the rain again

it rained yesterday, and the day before that

Its going to rain tomorrow, and Saturday, Sunday, and Monday

fed up

 

[Erichalfbee]

Me toooooooo
I'm just north of you and share your pain

 

[beeatshellards]

dodged the showers and checked my hives, apiguard on three and fed some too, in my huge hive wbc I was hoping to remove honey supers but not quite finished capping, so will check again next week ,hopefully will all be capped. ready for extraction , I was amazed at the different colour pollens in the frames, must buy book on pollen . happy days

 

[MuswellMetro]

I took some syrup up for my Nucs but they had lots left, the bees coming in with heavy loads of nectar and thumping onto the landing board

first time i have had balsam coming in, it is spreading slowly down the Dollis Brook towards my eastern Apairy

i might get use to this

 

[Headnavigator]

Hurrah, ghost bees here too at 0630 this morning, one and a half miles from the nearest balsam. Can't believe they get up so early to forage that far away!

 

[WelshPaul]

Well got my first lot of bees this evening, went to a house that had a bird box the size of two BB then took it to my house, under the instruction of another beekeeper, broke open the box them put some brood Combe in the brood box then put a crown board on followed by an empty super. We then put the rest of the Combe with honey and brood in the super and as many of the bees as possible. Just been out and have about six clusters of bees on the fence, hopefully by the morning they would all have gone in and the queen will be in there.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=51.666951,-3.017429

 

[kazmcc]

The bees have found the balsam! Little stripy buggers today they were. They've consumed a lot of the stores in the deep brood so we don't have the honey block anymore. Thankfully, there was so much that they haven't touched the supers so they are still full and capped. I was going to insert a frame in to expand the brood but I didn't bother as she's got bags of room now and from what I can see there is no dip in bee numbers. Still a fine colony.
I should have swapped some brood round actually thinking about it, try and draw it that way. Next time.

 

[WelshPaul]

Well got up this morning to a cluster of bees on the fence, opened the hive as instructed to check hole on crown board and again now the fence has a beard of bees, please tell me they will settle.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=51.666951,-3.017429

 

[drstitson]

welshpaul - put a QE under the brood box for a few days

 

[WelshPaul]

I have thanks, put a new brood frame on the fence and they seem to going on it, but there are bees every where, flying about and walking on the floor. I think it's a very strong colony, weighed about 20kg when I lifted the bird box out of the tree. I hope I'm just over worrying.

 

[Chris Luck]

It sounds to me as though you may be in a little trouble Paul, perhaps it would be helpful if someone in the UK could contact you directly by telephone or even better in person.

Chris