What did you do in the Apiary today?

[Do224]

Removed 12 supers from 4 hives still a very good balsam flow on. I used clearer boards with and eke underneath to speed it up, 3 are rhombus and 1 is porter. The 3 rhombus boards worked a treat,the one with porter escapes was a right mess with lots of angry sticky bees unable to get out. That's me done with porter escapes,flippin useless things.

Are you leaving any supers on? The balsam here is piling in and I just added a drawn super to one hive yesterday (rightly or wrongly)

 

[elainemary]

Are you leaving any supers on? The balsam here is piling in and I just added a drawn super to one hive yesterday (rightly or wrongly)

Wrong I’d suggest. Far too late. Will not get capped. Do you know what the weather will bring next 4 weeks?
I’d take off now and leave for the bees.

By the way, I’m often unsure what to do for the best.

Time = experience.
Wisdom = experience and listening and trying new things and making mistakes and reflecting and learning

 

[gregior]

Are you leaving any supers on? The balsam here is piling in and I just added a drawn super to one hive yesterday (rightly or wrongly)

I'm leaving one super on each until after the weekend then removing them all and treating. My varroa is low this year so happy to leave treatment late.

 

[simonwig]

Are you leaving any supers on? The balsam here is piling in and I just added a drawn super to one hive yesterday (rightly or wrongly)

I took all my supers off at the beginning of the week. On one hive they'd started overnight to draw comb on the underside of the clearer board, so I gave them a drawn super and in two days they'd filled a couple of frames, so they clearly needed the space. Most didn't however. Not expecting it to be extracted, but will nadir it in a few weeks.
Horses for courses.
Simon

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

On one hive they'd started overnight to draw comb on the underside of the clearer board

that happens whether there's a flow on or or a total dearth - not a good indicator of what's coming in to the hive

 

[simonwig]

that happens whether there's a flow on or or a total dearth - not a good indicator of what's coming in to the hive

Maybe, maybe not, but it's not happened for me before, and the filling of two frames in a couple of days is a pretty good indicator.
Simon

 

[Curly green finger's]

Moving colony’s and vaping colony’s , getting the honey room ready for the heather processing , making nucs !

 

[Parsonage Bees]

First time I've done this. Received a couple of carniolan queens from BS Honey Bees in the post. Hoping these Hungarian girls will calm down my apiary. Introduce under push-in cages. Each hive responding very differently. One very excited, looks like robbing.
Old queens in a 2 frame nuc just in case it all goes pear-shaped.

 

[drex]

Just put on my second dose of Apiguard. Expiry date Nov 23, so should be OK. Minimal drop on boards ( I don't count). Weather has been ideal for thymol treatment.
Could it be my bees have a degree of resistance? I will do an OA vape later and see what drop is like then.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Could it be my bees have a degree of resistance

How much brood is there?

 

[drex]

Don't know. Didn't look. Hives are crammed with bees.

 

[lindsay s]

This photo was taken about a week ago and extracting is now well underway. I am using my Thomas 6 frame manual extractor and a 100kg bottling tank. My extractor is more than 25 years old now and I spent £45 last year on replacing the lids and a little welding on the cage. It’s good to go for many more years yet. Expensive kit at the time but it’s been worth it.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Could it be my bees have a degree of resistance?

it's not the bees the apiguard kills - it's varroa

 

[pargyle]

This photo was taken about a week ago and extracting is now well underway. I am using my Thomas 6 frame manual extractor and a 100kg bottling tank. My extractor is more than 25 years old now and I spent £45 last year on replacing the lids and a little welding on the cage. It’s good to go for many more years yet. Expensive kit at the time but it’s been worth it.

Spend a few more pounds and invest in a few of these trays ... far more efficient at containing honey drips than cardboard or newspaper ! My local nursery had them on promotion with a pack of three for £15 earlier in the year so shop around - plenty of time before you will need them - they also make great temporary roofs !

https://www.longacres.co.uk/gardeni...tewart-garden-gravel-tray-54cm-black-2309005/

 

[JamezF]

Visited a hive at an out apiary today with someone who isn't yet a beekeeper but is very interested in becoming one. The first thing he said was "Oh! An Asian Hornet!". I explained that it wasn't and the difference between the European ones and Asian ones. It was clearly trying to get into the hive, but won't stand much of a chance through my UFE and I saw it roll out off the landing area a couple of times with several guards attached before it eventually flew off in disgust.

The colony itself was very loud. Sounded like there was a fair bit of fanning going on and plenty of activity at the entrance despite the weather hardly being the best.

James

 

[Murox]

Checked the farm apiary and fed some syrup to one of them. Saw literally a couple of wasps hanging around, one even tried to go into the entrance, to soon rushed out again.
The ivy in a very sheltered spot nearby has just begun to flower, but no bees, wasps or hardly anything else buzzing around it at all.

 

[drex]

Here in Devon, one bit of sheltered ivy was really buzzing in full sun yesterday. Other areas still waiting to come into flower

 

[Erichalfbee]

A little Ivy pollen going into the hives. Fed a couple of light ones.

 

[The Poot]

Vaped all and fed them as a poor weather forecast for next week. Rain most days including some thunder.

 

[Curly green finger's]

Vaped 14 double nucs that I moved down of the heather all really heavy except one which I fed 2 kg of fondant.
Moving colony’s next week with the caged trailer 44 to come down of the hills and be vaped after I’ve removed supers , I’m kicking myself because my heather colony with four supers on is the colony right at the back down the side of the hill and I only have a sack truck to move it with , in future years I’m going to use the teleporter and trailer to move them to the stances.

5 queens coming next week to play with .