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  • Very large colony at this time of the year

  • General Q&A, Bee chat and only Bee chat please
General Q&A, Bee chat and only Bee chat please
 #2113  by Cable_Fairy
 25 Feb 2019, 22:01
I have been reading the thread started by the woodgatherer. I am in the same boat with the bees boiling over the top bars in the Brood Box, they are also building brace comb along the top bars right up to the glass quilt. I have been pondering as to whether to put a second BB on top or a Super. I am going to put a Super on which will give them something to do drawing out the foundation - I hope.
 #2114  by Chrisbarlow
 25 Feb 2019, 22:09
Cable_Fairy wrote:
25 Feb 2019, 22:01
I am going to put a Super on which will give them something to do drawing out the foundation - I hope.
I would strongly suggest drawn comb if you have it. Drawn comb, they can store "stores" in there or raise brood, both of these are good things. Drawing out foundation in February is a highly interesting thought and possibly something that really isnt in the best interests of the bees this early in the year as they would consume resources that might be best deployed elsewhere.
 #2116  by Cable_Fairy
 25 Feb 2019, 22:44
Chrisbarlow wrote:
25 Feb 2019, 22:09
Cable_Fairy wrote:
25 Feb 2019, 22:01
I am going to put a Super on which will give them something to do drawing out the foundation - I hope.
I would strongly suggest drawn comb if you have it. Drawn comb, they can store "stores" in there or raise brood, both of these are good things. Drawing out foundation in February is a highly interesting thought and possibly something that really isnt in the best interests of the bees this early in the year as they would consume resources that might be best deployed elsewhere.
Many thanks, unfortunately I do not have any drawn comb. I have a feeling that the queen has not stopped laying over winter and the bees do look very overcrowded boiling over the top bars, so putting a super in will give them a little more room in the brood box. I am still feeding fondant and will carry on doing so.
 #2121  by Patrick
 26 Feb 2019, 14:13
Hi CF

To be honest I do not think unless this weather stays unseasonably warm, they will significantly draw the foundation yet.

Are they actually very light (i.e. really no stores)? You would expect them to be lighter than they were when you fed them in Autumn but feeding fondant is normally a response to the box when being hefted virtually flipping up, not just "less heavy than it was". By feeding fondant if they already have stores you may well be possibly encouraging the queen to boost numbers particularly if she is a strain that turns everything to bees.

Also please forgive me if i am telling you something you already know, but it is quite normal for clusters of bees to move up the combs in the course of winter and it is so warm that they will probably not be tightly clustered at all. Taking off the crownboard you are very likely to be greeted by lots of happy faces suddenly pouring out to see why they are suddenly in daylight after weeks in the dark, rather than sunk in the depths tightly immobile. So just because the tops of the seams between the frames are full of bees does not necessarily mean at this time of year they "need" more space yet - to do what? They are not going to swarm in February nor is the queen likely to be out of space to lay unless they are storing fondant on top of stores so I would hold a couple of weeks and see how March goes before giving them a super of dead space and we could then get a few weeks of Baltic weather.

Just been re-reading Hamilton's excellent The Art of Beekeeping (first published 1940's). He talks about not supering until April or May. I know a lot of climate change has happened since then but food for thought nevertheless.
 #2124  by NigelP
 26 Feb 2019, 14:57
You need to have a quick peek on a warm day like today. I find my colonies are always bubbling over the top bars in cold weather...after all it's where the hive is warmest. Yet this is abandoned during warm weather with the bees getting out flying.
I'd also check through any open mesh (lie on back and use torch) as to whether the number of bees is forcing it's way down to the mesh...which I think will be unlikely.
 #2143  by Chrisbarlow
 27 Feb 2019, 06:08
MickBBKA wrote:
27 Feb 2019, 00:55
Winter is coming.
I would really like to laugh at this comment Mick but It very well might be true.
 #2151  by thewoodgatherer
 27 Feb 2019, 16:44
Thought I would mention this large and very active colony was also treated four times with my passive OA vaporiser over xmas to reduce quite a high varroa load and as can been seen it certainly doesn't seam to have had any noticeable negative effect thus far even though I know some say treatment can slow them up in the spring.
 #2152  by Alan_A
 27 Feb 2019, 17:08
Beautiful day again and I couldn't resist having a look at the bees. One colony ok, plenty of bees, BIAS on 3 frames and eggs on a fourth, plenty of stores, plenty of room, no problem. The other colony though has just gone mad, every frame covered with bees, BIAS on 6 frames and the other 4 rammed with stores. I had a look at the super underneath, no brood or stores but lots of bees. I get what everyone is saying about being cautious and not doing anything just yet but I did it anyway and moved the super up to go to a brood & half, I'm on the south coast decided to take a gamble on the weather and hope it doesn't end in tears.
As with the woodgatherer I also treated with OA and vaped them 4 times over a 3 week period just before Christmas and took out 1500 Varroa. Still getting one or two but drop count very low and bees looking great.