What did you do in the Apiary today?

[E&MBees]

Checked my swarm of black bees. Didn't see the queen, but she is laying beautifully, 7 frames of BIAS. The other frames are almost drawn and ready for her. Super filling nicely, they will need another one soon. No sign of CBPV .

I don't have enough super wax currently, for a full super due to the CPBV saga. If I alternate foundation with an empty frame will that work? Or do I need to chop one up into strips to give the bees guidance?

Feeling very happy, a straight forward inspection, no disease, no laying workers, just bees being bees!

 

[pargyle]

Checked my swarm of black bees. Didn't see the queen, but she is laying beautifully, 7 frames of BIAS. The other frames are almost drawn and ready for her. Super filling nicely, they will need another one soon. No sign of CBPV .

I don't have enough super wax currently, for a full super due to the CPBV saga. If I alternate foundation with an empty frame will that work? Or do I need to chop one up into strips to give the bees guidance?

Feeling very happy, a straight forward inspection, no disease, no laying workers, just bees being bees!

Melt a bit of wax or foundation down and paint a strip of wax under the top bar of the foundationless frames to give them an idea where to start or you might find that they get a bit creative. I use a triangular strip of timber nailed under the top bar and then painted with wax .. rarely find that they go off at a tangent with this method. You may well find that they draw the foundationless frames in preference to the ones with foundation.

If you already have a super that is drawn out and filled then you can take half the drawn and filled frames from that, put them in the second super and alternate the frames in both boxes with foundationless as well.

 

[madasafish]

Checked my swarm of black bees. Didn't see the queen, but she is laying beautifully, 7 frames of BIAS. The other frames are almost drawn and ready for her. Super filling nicely, they will need another one soon. No sign of CBPV .

I don't have enough super wax currently, for a full super due to the CPBV saga. If I alternate foundation with an empty frame will that work? Or do I need to chop one up into strips to give the bees guidance?

Feeling very happy, a straight forward inspection, no disease, no laying workers, just bees being bees!

They will fill teh centre of the super first: tunnel effect of warm air from brood. So place foundation there, then when it is drawn move it out and alternate with starter strips as Pargyle says.. The bees will be encouraged to enter super by foundation and then when drawn and alternating it will set guides so bees can draw starter strips straight...

 

[StephenT]

Just a quick check for space today. The hive with the postal ‘Buckfast’ has drawn a super of foundation and half filled it in a week. Stuck another super on. The swarm we collected 6 weeks back is taking its time on filling the broodbox but seems ok. Quick peek in the 3rd hive and they are still drawing their second super so left them to it. One of our chickens seems to have acquired a taste for bees which isn’t good. Just snatches them out of the air. I guess they’re quite sweet this time of year.

 

[Wingy]

Busy 2 days checked 4 hives in the garden yesterday the 2 with new Q’s doing great, very pleased.
The 2 with 2019 Q’s both had 2 charged Q cells uncapped. All my kit was at the allotment apiary so put them back together.
Went to the allotment this morning to collect some kit and check on nuc's.
Nuc 1 new Q seen and laying
Nuc 2 new Q seen and laying
Nuc 3 VQ emerged not yet mated
Nuc 4 2019 Q that was placed in Nuc as colony superseded her is now confirmed DLQ
Noticed a lot of activity around a swarm trap I had placed in a corner. A quick look and a swarm Has moved in. Noted eggs & unmarked Q - not one of mine. Added more frames and will OA vape next week.
Back home both hives with charged Q cells, 1 performed Snelgrove & other did AS.
All complete just as the heavens opened. Got soaked clearing up.

 

[Firefly]

Swapped colony A into Nuc B at location A; swapped colony B into Nuc A at location B. Not sure my recording system is up to this

 

[Curly green finger's]

Not a lot today trimmed back some nettles in front of the garden hives and started to jar some honey darker honey from the catherton apiary

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[jenkinsbrynmair]

Thought I'd have a pre lunch start at the range apiary today as the weather forecast said there was a few hours window before it became wet again in the afternoon - they lied!
I was moving nucs around so I just went for it dodging the downpours and as the sun popped out I dis as many inspections as I could. Marked a queen which emerged on the 20th of May, hived just over a week ago and is now on 7 frames and will probably need a super before long. In general, they were all well behaved.
Got home, chilled out, then realised I had a nuc which I had moved up from Garn Cottage yesterday evening, sitting in the apiary waiting to be put in a hive, by this time the rain had gone and the sun was out!! although it had been a few hours the smoker wasn't so a few quick puffs and it was fired up again. I had only checked it for the first time yesterday to see if the queen had mated but this nuc really needed space - queen emerged 28th May, now on six frames wall to wall brood and will probably need a super next week, her mother is a brood monster as well.

 

[GuyNir]

Rain and strong winds all day today (45mph). Not good for tall hives

 

[drex]

Taken off the supers I had put back on for the bees to clean out. Swapped over the pollen trap floor. Had a general tidy up of apiary and boxes. Wonder how long it will stay like it!
Tip inspections on all colonies.

 

[Parsonage Bees]

I ran away.

Big colony distinctly pissed off about being demaree'd and was chased out of the apiary. Multiple stings. Smell of lemon.

 

[DaveG23]

I ran away.

Big colony distinctly pissed off about being demaree'd and was chased out of the apiary. Multiple stings. Smell of lemon.

What is the lemon smell? When I get the smell of bananas I know that they are pissed off.

 

[manek]

Pulled 3 supers off the big hive. They're chock full, all capped, so I'll extract tomorrow and put them back ASAP.

 

[GuyNir]

What is the lemon smell? When I get the smell of bananas I know that they are pissed off.

Definitely bananas when they’re pissed off.

 

[gmonag]

Nasanov scent smells of lemons

 

[Levitt53]

Made a plan about what I am going to do with a colony that swarmed and I left with one sealed QC on 15th May. The new queen is up to 8 frames of brood and it is overflowing with bees (4 supers). I can't find the queen amongst that lot and they are a bit feisty so I am going to move them on Wednesday and leave them half an hour with a new BB on the old site. They are getting split whether I find the Queen or not.

 

[Angry_Mob]

What is the lemon smell? When I get the smell of bananas I know that they are pissed off.

I always thought it smelt of pear drops.



Dispatched the queen of a badly behaving nuc, plan was to give a ripe queen cell which didn't go to plan. Instead had an unmated queen in a rapidly declining Apidea so put a dab of sugar syrup on her and and gave the nuc a quick blast of air freshener and ran her in; worth a shot. Realised after I didn't mark her, doh.

Did a newspaper unite with another queenless colony and nuc; it's fairly difficult in strong winds.

 

[victor meldrew]

What is the lemon smell? When I get the smell of bananas I know that they are pissed off.

Alarm pheromone is Banana !


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[thedozzer]

Gave two Nuc/Colonies of bees to friend who is expanding to 8.
Inspected both remaining hives, both new queens finally fat and laying, with lots of capped brood in one. other catching up.
Removed 2 supers, extracted another 25kg taking total to 77kg for the two so far.

 

[Parsonage Bees]

I ran away.

Big colony distinctly pissed off about being demaree'd and was chased out of the apiary. Multiple stings. Smell of lemon.

Got back into the house and dispatched the last of the attackers. Took at least 4 stings (there was swatting and it was all down hill from there) but what I could smell was lemon.

Found this on the Google.

*** the problem with Google

Having read the article, I think it's a lesson plan,

" Bees also use odors to help locate their hive, or their new home after swarming. To humans this pheromone smells lemony. Finally, when a bee stings, it gives. .. . . "

It is saying that the Nasanov pheremone smells of lemon. Shows the problem with casual Googling.

My defense is having been stung on the face and the top of my ear your sense of smell is a bit confused. But by that time you should have got the message.