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Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:10 May 2022, 17:18
by JoJo36
Lucky you Nigel!
I've got a few supers with honey in but only partially sealed, (fingers crossed) but I'm leaving as I use a manual hand extractor the end of July and the bees may want to scoff it in between??!!
The thought of cleaning up twice is alarming!! :)

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:10 May 2022, 17:29
by MickBBKA
Several colonies now onto their 4th supers and 2 onto their 5th but all need capping. Looked at 2 apiaries on osr in different locations and they haven't foraged on it at all. No sign on the comb, bees coming back clean and lots of different pollen coming in. Today is the first time for 5 weeks its been above 14c but wind is 40mph. Please god, make the wind stop, just for a bit. :roll:

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:10 May 2022, 22:08
by Patrick
Our weather is up and down almost daily. After 2 years of very low swarming percentage they are making up for it this season and quite early too. I am nearly 50% of hives now on splits, which is a bit of a pain. Too much else on to be doing queen rearing this year so it will be what it is. Apple in full blossom, which smells great.

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:11 May 2022, 06:06
by JoJo36
Found out my new 'yellow marked queen' this year was a drone layer so shook out hive further down the garden and murdered the queen which was a shame!! The bees from this hive them returned to either the hive next to it or one down which hopefully is fine??!! I didn't want to waste the bees leaving them doomed with yellow queen!! :(

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:11 May 2022, 09:44
by MickBBKA
You don't say how large the colony was but there are several options you can use to try and save a colony if its worth saving in the future. I won't just accuse the BBKA for once but very little time is given to this subject in just about every bee keeping book I have ever read.

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:11 May 2022, 20:44
by Alfred
What are the options Mick?

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:11 May 2022, 20:53
by JoJo36
The colony wasn't that big and I had 3 frames of drone brood!! I could have taken out drone brood frames and maybe added a frame of eggs brood and food from another colony and put in a nuc and let them make their own new queen but I just thought sod it!! " I committed the offence your honour to save many not just the few"!!! The flyers have definitely found a new home in either colony (well I'm hoping so) as I'm not looking again until Friday or weekend??!! :)

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:12 May 2022, 10:45
by NigelP
I think you did the right thing given the circumstances.
If you want to increase it's easier to make a nuc/split from your existing hive than rescue a small drone laying colony with only older worker bees present.

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:26 May 2022, 05:49
by JoJo36
Thanks!
More drama with another hive since last post!
My 'apple tree' hive I split as the colony was increasing so I decided to just leave the new brood box with the frame of eggs, sealed brood and food to make a new queen. The original queen and box was placed elsewhere. I checked the box and the bees had drawn two lovely queen cells and a couple more for luck so I decided to discard the ones for luck and leave 2 nice ones and leave the bees to it!
However a couple of days ago (12 days later) it would appear they swarmed into my next door neighbours garden and so the collection by chopping down some branches and bringing them home began!! Prior to bringing them back I re-checked the hive and found about 5 sealed queen cells so they must have carried on since I last 'left them to it'!!! :(
Anyway to cut a long story short, I emptied the swarm back in the existing hive after destroying ALL other queen cells and left them to it!! I did wonder if they weren't;t my bees I could have created WW3 but on reflection decided they must have been mine??!! Another lesson learned!!!!! :)

Re: What have you done today bee-related?

PostPosted:26 May 2022, 18:59
by Alfred
Got a call from Royal Mail a few days ago
Bees in a letterbox,been there a week.
Not a great start to another job I should have declined.
Picked up keys from the Sorting Office(no id required!)
Eventually found the site buried in a farmhouse hedge.
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Not much going on.
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Nope
Hang on I can hear them.
Upside down phone
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There they are above the slot
Victorian wall box only 6"wide-no room to put a box in,just a sheet.-had to reach up and break off combs and wrangle bees from above.
Surprisingly compliant.
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Mid morning was not an ideal time and I was on the clock so I left about a dozen flying bees.
There was only a bit of pollen in the comb so I'm guessing a vq and given the rough extraction I'm not holding out much hope for them
They're in a quiet corner with a bit of fondant for a few weeks then they get shaken out if it's a no go.