What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Mellifera397]

Applied apiguard, hope it does not affect them too much

 

[whoosling]

put on 2nd apiguard and feed they have no stores or very little

 

[abi-e]

Swapped a wooden BB for a Poly one, Checked the varroa drop after a week of Apiguard on one hive - it is definitely working, bees very calm and lovely to handle!! Removed apiguard having completed the treatment from the other hive and left them in peace for a few days, bees less lovely and a bit pingy.

 

[Erichalfbee]

a week of Apiguard on one hive - it is definitely working, bees very calm and lovely to handle!!

Lucky you.
My bees are out on the landing board and up the front of the hive!!!!!

 

[derekm]

cut, folded, glued aluminium sheet for the hives.

 

[VEG]

took 15 supers off another 6 to do next week

 

[dpearce4]

busy day today, took honey to the honey show for judging, then went to apiary and combined 2 hives, thymolled the others. I then went through the stacks of supers and broods to get them ready to treat for moths tomorrow.

the bees were the best they have been all year.

Also on the way back from dropping off the honey i saw some kingspan by a skip, stopped and asked the workkan if i could have it for the bees, ended up with 10sheets unused of various thinkness, well happy.

 

[Alphakillpestie]

Back with the girls to check progress and apply second apilife var, the`re busy the bloody feeder on one was empty and it was the large flat plastic feeder for thornes with at least 6 pints of syrup in, so the`re in the mood to party.

Build them up for winter and hope for a better year next year

 

[Mike a]

Went down to the hives in the New Forest and removed 6 deep langstroth frames from just the top chamber of a 3 deep chamber hive which are wall to wall with heather honey. I could of taken several more frames from the top and lower two chambers but the outer cells of most of these frames aren't yet fully capped.

Second hive a little to lively to inspect plus they have build brace comb between the deep and medium chambers as the frames in the medium chamber aren't the right depth. I'll probably leave them to over Winter with their hard work and use whats left on these frames next year to feed any hungry colonies.

Got home and lifted the poly nuc with the 6 frames in it using language scales which isn't accurate and was cuffed to see it read about 45Lbs.

Tomorrow I'm going to see if its possible to extract heather honey on plastic foundation without using the normal heather honey loosener. I'm hoping it will extract but I'm guessing either nothing will come out or the comb will separate from the plastic foundation when spun at speeds higher than I would normally use.

 

[Walrus]

Up at sunrise to block my hive entrances, then helped farmer remove ivy from around door/windows of guest house. Then let bees out.

Later on at sunset I attempted to destroy a wasp nest which was in a shed cavity wall. Can't be sure I got the whole thing so I may have to have another go later. The wasps had become a pest around my hives.

It was a lovely day and my bees were working flat out all day, mostly on HB & ivy. I am almost certain a new (supercedure) queen is laying now but wont open up for another week.

 

[Shabro]

took off my first and only super this year for extraction. t he honey tastes very floral, and the jury is out at this moment in time.
Aside from that carried on with treatments.

 

[REDWOOD]

Last of the summer honey, put clearing boards on ready to remove the last of the honey, good crop this year but disappointing with the lack of heather, ivy on the way so won't feed yet until I can estimate what they have stored in the brood box

 

[Goodwood]

Made a load of ekes for my pains polyhives using slabs of Recticel wall insulation cut as square polo mints.
Gaffer taped the inside to posh them up a bit.
Then whacked in a lump of fondant and first dose of apiguard.
Just in time
Pouring with rain as Indian summer ends

 

[Beeyonce]

Did a little happy jig as the virgin that emerged on the 16th of August on my 'challenging' colony is laying. Long may she reign (or at please, please, make it through the winter!).

 

[derekm]

Made an aluminium cushman floor kit for a mk3 floor box as well a floor tray to hold it.

 

[MJBee]

Removed 2 full capped supers from one of my colonies yesterday Today I checked for brood and Q+ and the first 4 frames (of 11) were completely EMPTY There was a little bias and the queen was seen but a serious lack of stores.

I like to start the winter with my hives weighing more than 40kg - this one was only 21kg - It now has 5ltrs of 2:1 and will be monitored closely. The ivy is about to flower here so that may rescue it. It is the only colony that has not stored any honey in the brood box.

 

[Outlander]

Inspected Springfield's bit of drone brood in the wrong place need to keep an eye on but apart from that everything appears to be fine.

made up the second twin hive stand, just need to add legs.

 

[nosmoking]

I had intended to look at mine today. Weather was a washout! Why can't the met office get it right? Saturday, Monday was looking good! It must be what every ones been telling me, it is rocket science!
Oh well! Tomorrows another day, looking good, so they say................

 

[dickndoris]

Just in from uniting a -Q colony with a +Q colony with the newspaper method. The +Q colony is half the size of the -Q colony so I hope all goes well. Made up 40 litres of 2:1 with a squirt of thymol ready for the autumn feed while at work. Remove the supers on the hive that have them tomorrow and start on the home brew varroa treatment before the weather gets too cool.

 

[margob99]

Took this video footage at the hive entrance; quite intrigued by the behaviours of some of the girls. They plant themselves, head down, at the hive entrance and proceed up and down, up and down obsessively on the same spot, licking as if they are sweeping or cleaning. They seem completely hypnotised, as if they're doing it all in a trance.

Behaviour clearly shown at 2:42m, 4:50m and a whole bunch of them doing it in a row at 5:23.

What on earth d'you suppose they're doing?!

http://youtu.be/uyh-TX6dJ1o