Winter Configuration

[MJBee]

I have found that single National is too small for the local mongrels and double National is a little too big

My main hive is therefore a Commercial single brood and I will be converting my Nationals to 14 x 12 slowly over the next few seasons.

 

[hedgerow pete]

after having an awful winter and by the end of the summer, having two hives in the bee shed and four at a friends farm on quarrentine as i dont know where and what they have got.

i will be leaving the four farm ones alone to build up as much as possible for the winter, each one has now a queen and brood and a semi full super on the top with each one planning on having a gallonish of syrup as well to fill the supers up,

the bee shed two are to be left with a single full super on thier tops, the biggest worry i have in the shed is damp and condinsation and a high humidity with them being inside a sealed insulated shed , so we are studying ventaltion ideas and calculations at the moment.

also so like a lot of beeks i have already started to put in place the start of the plans for the spring, so the two hives in the shed are going to be completly ripped apart next year as the amount of extra wide combs and brace is manic but this side of the winter they are all full and by cutting them down would only cause a massive robbing problem with wasps and a lack of stores.

as for the other four hives, all will be reinstated into the bee shed but as shook swarms leaving all the dirty wax they are on now behind and also they will then be on 12 by 14 frames,

as at the moment most are on an assortment of frame styles and types and designs, and i like just to use two frames, supers and brood and both from the same supplier, talking of which i had better book the ferry and the german holiday for next month

 

[drstitson]

i'm not after a "winner" but just to see what people are doing.

 

[starflex]

National, single brood, but it will be 14 x 12 from next year (I hope!)

 

[Finman]

.
Half of hives single,another half two
some with super on the brood

i have joined many hives to reduce numbers.
All nucs i have polished away.

this is flexible system how to winter them. Next year will be sommething else.who knows.


Super on: i have gived capped food because i warmed too long combs and icannot extract it any more. Too stiff.

 

[biggles]

Very interesting to see what others are doing
Just about to go and do mine for the winter. I have the stronger hives with 2 supers on that should now be full. I will remove 1 and put that on a weaker hive without a super so they will all have BB and super on top full.

Mouse traps etc, also going to do today. Looks like we have good weather for a couple of days to make them ready for the winter.

ta
Pete

 

[Finman]

.
Biggles, if you have in summer one brood and 2 supers, one brood is surely enough for winter, and still the box is not full of bees.

Extraxt the the supers and feed a brood full of syrup.

 

[biggles]

.
Biggles, if you have in summer one brood and 2 supers, one brood is surely enough for winter, and still the box is not full of bees.

Extraxt the the supers and feed a brood full of syrup.

Hi
Thanks for the advice, sorry I wasn't clear.
I have had the honey and fed them syrup. I didn't want to feed the smaller colonies as I thought it would stop the queen laying so many eggs.
Now the smaller colonies are as big as the big ones and supers that were on the bigger colonies are now spread between all of them.

Hopefully they will all make it through winter

Pete

 

[Chris Luck]

Dadant - no supers.

Warre - reduced down to two "boxes".

TBH - errrr.

Chris