What did you do in the Apiary today?

[BigAshW]

The only problem would be that my apiary is only 4 squares wide. So if I move it diagonally back then the hive that would be opposite would be right next to it.
I may move it along one square with the entrance facing the netting as it is now so that I can reach 3 sides. As I wouldn't be standing in front of the entrance much anyway.

 

[Bosleeu]

I shook a strong colony on old Commercial frames onto 18 plastic medium Langstroth frames installed in my new polyhive.

Managed to catch the Queen and keep her in a little cage, then released her on the top frames when all was safe. She climbed down below to join the other bees.

Just went to have a look under the roof and they seem to be feeding happily and greedily, hopefully settling down in their new home.

Can't wait to have a peek next week to see what they have been up to.

This was my first shook swarm, and although it needed to be done and many say how vigorous they can be, it felt awfull to waste all that lovely brood!

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

 

[Bosleeu]

Placed out my bait hive today after using a permanent marker to put a date and postcode on all the frames. A few drops of lemongrass on the frames. And as I left there was a bee having a look around the entrance.



Sent from my GT-I8190N using Tapatalk

Hope you get some tenants soon!

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

 

[Nige.Coll]

moved hives this morning .
they were getting a little too excitable near the horses and the wife.
wife was a little concerned as she rides near the hives and she is allergic to stings.
they're gone miles away now so she is happy.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Rapes coming out so popped a super on each hive and entered a varroa monitoring tray

 

[Chris Luck]

A few weeks ago I thought I had a colony of bees that had failed over winter, the only one which in itself is more than a tad remarkable and I expected far more. Anyway having kicked it about a few times without seeing any sign of activity even though it had a cluster of bees inside I took it to a spot near the house to be sorted later, however in the last week it has decided to burst back into life with an ever increasing stream of bees laden with pollen and nectar which leaves me with zero losses this winter.

Clearly if I want to kill my bees I'll have to start treating them.

Chris

 

[RobKing]

Anyone else's bees really grumpy today? Standing near the hive and getting pinged by about 30 bees!

Yes, mine have been grumpy since Saturday, the date of my first inspection. One got me yesterday near my right eye so very swollen today. Not sure they, or the few, are in such a mood to defend. Hope it all calms down.

 

[Norton]

Grafted 150 queen cells.

 

[Rob55]

Marked a queen in my nuc

 

[Chris Luck]

Just finished putting the supers on which I guess isn't too bad but I hate removing them when they are full.

I need a slave, (and some new tea gowns)

Chris

 

[TOBY-3652]

Grafted 150 queen cells.

soon be getting my order in

 

[Heather]

Think enough mature drones in 3 weeks for those queens? Or is it AI matings?

 

[Pete D]

Think enough mature drones in 3 weeks for those queens? Or is it AI matings?

I imagine there are plenty in Cyprus right now

 

[MuswellMetro]

did a disease inspection on five hives, all clear ,searched two other hives for Queens and marked them red as last years superscedure queens but could not clip either queen as i had lost my scissors,

first year for a long time i have found no Deformed wing virus, i expect thats is probably due to an intense IPM on Varroa over the last two years, but expect DWV is still in there

supers now on all my hives and on the one that i will be doing a bailey, i converted to top entrance to aid the bailey comb change later in the month

Varroa boards in to see what the mite drop is

 

[BigAshW]

first year for a long time i have found no Deformed wing virus, i expect thats is probably due to an intense IPM on Varroa over the last two years, but expect DWV is still in there

From what I understood from some of the lectures at last years national honey show. DWV is on of the viruses that will always be in a hive. But the actions of varroa (I believe it was this virus that was mentioned) in injecting the virus during feeding gave the virus an advantage over the bee that led to outbreaks of the problem.
A normal healthy colony with little varroa stress should be able to deal with the virus at normal levels.

 

[Cellectronic]

Super

Put 1 super on each of my 3 nationals, Number 3 was boiling with bees and on last Fridays inspection there was sealed drone brood in small quantities on most frames. This Friday I will be looking for QC,s.
Might make a nuc to thin them out abit but I am open to suggestion.
I think its a bit early but I dont want them swarming off.
Could remove the QE and go for brood and a half ?

 

[herefordshirehoney]

Checked on my hives. One hive was bursting at the seems so added second super, also quite a few fresh frames of nectar.

The other hive had a far few frames of stores so removed one and replaced with drawn frame, its a hard call knowing how many frames of stores to leave so I left 2 full frames per hive even with supers on. I could contaminate the crop but not sure as its my second year on the best thing todo as I don't want to take too much from them as second hive was not storing no where as much as first hive. I'm assuming I've done the wrong thing her and should have just left them with 1 full langstroth frame....

I replaced a brood frame on both hives last week with super frame and already have drawn out drone comb beneath cells were all polished ready to go.

 

[Jimmys Mum]

Today I moved onto the second stage of a Bailey Comb change on two of my hives. Queen excluders on, queens placed above, new entrances created. Thrown a little by the discovery of royal jelly in a couple of play cups in the original brood box of one. .....arghhh! Nothing is straightforward is it!

Added a first super to another two of my hives and a second super to my WBC which houses my lovely Buckfast Queen. That lot are going like the clappers!

Left the last hive (of 6) alone. It's still building up after a big varroa hit last year, although board inspections haven't shown any varroa drop since before Christmas on any of my hives. Phew!

 

[Nige.Coll]

put a bait hive up .

 

[Tom Bick]

Went and inspected three hives and for the first time this year my TBH OMG as I now call it. Top bar hives are lovely, but when they are this big and so early a handful and what does not help is too many combs off center of the top bars and almost lost my nerve, so the plan is to go back and over two sessions remove all the dodgy combs and thinking I may experiment with TBH frames.