What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Walrus]

Did my first grafts of the year. Twelve of them. Who knows, some of them might even grow into cells. I think I have got to grips with the Chinese grafting tool but I still have to knock down cell walls so I can get at the larva easily.

This is year two of the walrus queen rearing enterprise. Last year it went really well. It is so satisfying making your own queens

 

[masterBK]

Demarreed several colonies today. Found an unmarked supersedure queen in one so marked and clipped her, However the bees then tried to ball her so caught her again , caged her with fondant release so hopefully by the time they eat through it they will have calmed down and will accept her.
Found my 1st swarm cells of the season (didn't get any last year at all) in another colony so too late for Demarree so did Pagden AS.
My Breeder queen put into cupkit box today( my eye/ hand coordination not good enough these days for grafting). Hopefully will be putting cells with young larvae onto bars and into Cell raiser colony next saturday (possibly sunday as queens don't always start laying right away when put into Cupkit or Jenter box)

 

[The Poot in Somerset]

Recaptured your own bees?

Hi Sean
Very probably, will find out at the weekend. I've certainly been wrong footed by how the bees have responded to the abnormal weather and I'm not too adept at swarm control yet. I'm looking forward to retirement next year so I can devote more time to the bees. At present I'm very reactive not proactive!

 

[madasafish]

Prepared nicot cage with honey in cells and placed in breeder hive for bees to clean out cells.

 

[simonforeman]

Checked hives today.... 2 queens out of cages and accepted. Brood +1/2 carni hive has been a little slower than the others but now on brood wall to wall in brood box and 8 frames in the 1/2, they have now only just realised what a super is after 4 weeks. The 2 nucs with old queens are building up and will use these to boost the other hives with brood.

Bees have 1/2 capped 2 full supers of osr but still not passing the shake test so may have other nectar mixed in. Will wait until all capped then extract.

 

[masterBK]

Prepared nicot cage with honey in cells and placed in breeder hive for bees to clean out cells.

Apart from the first time I used it (ie brand new and presumably smelling of plastic) I haven't found it necessary to do this on following occasions even though I use new brown cells each time (not worth the hassle cleaning them)

Also have found that cupkit cells containing eggs within one day of hatching are also accepted by the cell raiser (60 to 70% acceptance). This is lower than acceptance of one day larvae but OK when I put in twice as many cells as queens needed ( I had to do this on occasions when I had to be away from home when the larvae would be ready due to one day delay before queen laid up the cells

 

[madasafish]

Apart from the first time I used it (ie brand new and presumably smelling of plastic) I haven't found it necessary to do this on following occasions even though I use new brown cells each time (not worth the hassle cleaning them)

Also have found that cupkit cells containing eggs within one day of hatching are also accepted by the cell raiser (60 to 70% acceptance). This is lower than acceptance of one day larvae but OK when I put in twice as many cells as queens needed ( I had to do this on occasions when I had to be away from home when the larvae would be ready due to one day delay before queen laid up the cells

I found last year the queens were reluctant to lay in the cups: I assumed this was due to lack of cleaning/wrong smell etc..

I have dribbled a very small amount of honey in each cell yesterday, checked this am and all honey gone and cells cleaned and placed Q in cage at 1.30pm. Going to check later this pm to see if eggs/early tomorrow. Will be interested to see what happens..(last years queens had to be caged 2-3 days to get them to lay...despite nectar flows on)

 

[masterBK]

Yesterday put breeder queen in cupkit box (again no special treatment used). Checked today and she has laid eggs in every one of the 110 cells available to her so released her to get on with her laying up the combs of both BCs (There were 17 combs of brood when I counted them yesterday and 3 full supers). She is on her third season and there have been no signs of swarm preps in this colony during this time and her bees are calm and well behaved . Wish all my colonies were like this (I also have one colony that is capable of terrorising even the bravest beekeeper but have not been able to find the unmarked queen to cull her but it will get done)

 

[Beefriendly]

Cleared and collected first supers of the season, ready for extraction tomorrow.
Washed and cleaned extractor.

 

[Curly green fingers]

Cleared and collected first supers of the season, ready for extraction tomorrow.
Washed and cleaned extractor.

Blossom honey ?
I'm putting clearer boards on friday extracting Friday putting supers back on straight away I'm going to use undrawn supers so they've got some extra space until I put them back on not ideal but it will work I'm sure.

 

[Swarm]

Yes, quite a few supers filled and capped but it can stay on the hives for now.

 

[Beefriendly]

Blossom honey ?

One apiary is blossom...the hives sat on the edge of a field of rape...probably not

 

[Angularity]

Collected my second swarm of the year. This one was in the eaves of a bathroom window (upstairs). I could smell the bees as soon as I opened the window; they'd already been there 24 hours or so. The scent was so strong I could only get them from returning to the cluster by applying toothpaste to the walls to mask the scent. After that they started to walk into the bucket. Then I had to cover the bucket and lower it to the ground with string.

 

[madasafish]

Rained on and off all day..

Queen has laid in Nicot so removed her from cage.

Put foundation strips in mini nucs, checked everything worked as it should, vaselined a few floor slides on new nucs, renumbered them all after winter painting.

 

[taurus]

I had to do an inspection today even though the weather was a bit chilly. One colony was looking to swarm last week so needed to make sure the measures taken had worked. Another went and superceded the queen so needed to check them as well (founds eggs but couldn't spot the new queen).

They are uncharacteristically grumpy at the moment. Usually they are very placid but today they were pinging off the veil. One even got inside, the cheeky blighter.

I am hoping it's either the weather or the fact that my townie bees are now in a rural location so they've found OSR for the first time?

They'd better calm down soon or there will be trouble.

 

[thibault]

I had to do an inspection today even though the weather was a bit chilly. One colony was looking to swarm last week so needed to make sure the measures taken had worked. Another went and superceded the queen so needed to check them as well (founds eggs but couldn't spot the new queen).

They are uncharacteristically grumpy at the moment. Usually they are very placid but today they were pinging off the veil. One even got inside, the cheeky blighter.

I am hoping it's either the weather or the fact that my townie bees are now in a rural location so they've found OSR for the first time?

They'd better calm down soon or there will be trouble.

Same for me, I moved a number of hives who used to be in my garden, a least one of them has turned evil, and 2 other ones are getting quite defensive to say the least. OSR very close to them, a bit more of a windy location, maybe that's why. But they are going to be requeened anyway for most of them, can' enjoy beekeeping with bees like that. The garden ones are still good, some of them a bit more defensive than usual, but nothing like the one in my out apiary, I understood the term vicious with them. Got rid of the queen, and combine to another colony, now I am waiting for this crazy bees to die, as soon as I walk in the apiary, they are on me.

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[manek]

Hi Sean

Very probably, will find out at the weekend. I've certainly been wrong footed by how the bees have responded to the abnormal weather and I'm not too adept at swarm control yet. I'm looking forward to retirement next year so I can devote more time to the bees. At present I'm very reactive not proactive!

Yes, I've just recaptured a swarm from one of my hives - which were only installed à week ago. Must have been cramped. Will re-hive tomorrow.

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[madasafish]

Set up QR hive with Cloake Board.(2 x 5 frame nucs).

10C with occasional rain. Bees not amused.

 

[Millet]

I have important things that need doing but the temp is down to 7C day time and 2C at night and we have wintery showers on the way..

 

[taurus]

I have important things that need doing but the temp is down to 7C day time and 2C at night and we have wintery showers on the way..

This is what is driving me nuts. And the forecast for the next week is only just reaching double figures.