winter losses 2013-2014

[Jon]

I know it is way to early to make a call but things are looking far better than last winter.
This time last year I had already lost most of my 20 nucs which went into winter and the clusters in most of my colonies were far too small.

I have checked on 38 colonies over 4 apiaries in the past few days and all are still alive.
They were all heavy bar two and most are likely to need excess stores removed come March or April.
I went over to the association apiary with fondant earlier this afternoon but it was not needed.
Most of them had bees flying with the temperature about 7c and the sun shining.
Some of the nucs are a bit on the small side and the drone layer or queenright situation is still unknown but dare I say it - looking good so far.

I still have 5 apideas with bees flying which also suggests that this winter has not been so bad for bees.
It has been wet in Belfast but nowhere near as bad as S England.

[beejazz]

Touchwood, I think you are right Jon, mine are all alive, and 13 hives belonging to my beekeeping neighbours were all OK. They lost 11 last year.

[gavin]

I'm just sitting down after going round the bees, dawdling at the allotment, and getting a chickpea stew on the stove, essentially a variant of the Spanish cocido. Yes, it is indeed too early to be sure of the survival of colonies but with an early spring looking likely and colonies looking quite strong there are reasons to be optimistic.

So, the association's bees: Fourteen stocks of varying strength went into winter. All are alive and looking OK. Three were getting light so I gave them some fondant today. My own: At the main apiary all eight were looking strong and healthy. Most had fondant placed on them at oxalic time in December and they have some (in one case) or most of it left. One new apiary last year with one colony - it has died. This colony was a nuc last June which built until early August then declined in vigour earlier than any normal autumn consolidation. I'll have a better look later. It is packed with stores. And I have another elsewhere which I haven't been to yet. So ...

- no losses so far from 14*
- and one loss from 9

* There were heavy losses last year in this set of colonies of mixed strength, particularly the weak ones. The five survivors last year at this site ended up as 18. Three were sold for association funds, one of the five staggered on all summer and died in autumn, and 14 remain on the site. Too many really, but I have plans for them if they all survive - bee breeding on another site, a loan to the local prison (they're getting into beekeeping), perhaps some spring sales.

Several of the nine of my own look poised to build to big colonies when the OSR flowers. I'll be getting second brood boxes prepared for several of them in the next month or two.

The snowdrops have been out at my main orchard site for weeks, and today, along with the winter aconites, they were wide open and the bees were working them. There are lots of willows near the association's site. Today they were all showing the silver of the catkins, so they're ready to go once we've had a few days of warm weather. Friends were telling me last night that OSR is in flower, but I reckon these must be spring OSR plants surviving due to the near frost-free winter. You often get some in winter OSR fields growing from seed surviving in the soil or contaminating seed stocks. The winter OSR fields near my main site are still short and bushy so quite far from flowering.

[snimmo243]

I discovered two osr fields near me today with the same thing, individual fully grown and flowering plants in amongst very young autumn sown plants

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[busybeephilip]

Jon, only one of my lot has kicked the bucket in the 007 apairy, due to nosema, the inside of the box was just a mess of brown staining but only light staining on the outside. The others still are going as strong as any varroa treated hives. Looks like its going to be a good spring for bees ...so far !

[greengumbo]

I discovered two osr fields near me today with the same thing, individual fully grown and flowering plants in amongst very young autumn sown plants

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Could it be charlock growing in the rape fields ? Think its called wild mustard as well ? I have the odd one in a field next to my house.

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[rogerb]

"The snowdrops have been out at my main orchard site for weeks, and today, along with the winter aconites, they were wide open and the bees were working them. There are lots of willows near the association's site. Today they were all showing the silver of the catkins, so they're ready to go once we've had a few days of warm weather. Friends were telling me last night that OSR is in flower, but I reckon these must be spring OSR plants surviving due to the near frost-free winter. You often get some in winter OSR fields growing from seed surviving in the soil or contaminating seed stocks. The winter OSR fields near my main site are still short and bushy so quite far from flowering"


I have a field of OSR by my apiary and it has had a few flowers on it all winter (since about December) just kind of half open, I guess like all brassicas it can just shoot early sometimes, but as this field was in grass/potatoes last year it’s not a “wild” carryover just natural variance of the basic plants.

I’m also happy to report all my girls in good health; even a very small cast caught late (ooops) and not really that strong at any time, and only kept as a gift for an unlucky friend who had lost all her bees, on the basis of nothing ventured………

[Neils]

Taken a very quick inspection in one of my apiaries today. Slightly cooler than I would like, but all my colonies thus far have made it through ok. (4 hives total, on 2 apiaries.). After last year when I was far too optimistic, this year I was more confident that all 4, barring the unforeseen, were in a good position to make it through despite it never really going that cold, though you could perhaps argue that at least the bees can get out. All still have capped stores in place and are bringing in lots of pollen and nectar.

The two I've looked at today are both on 3 frames of brood and look like they are just starting to gear up to go into lay "properly".

[Jon]

This document is useful for working out why a colony died.
It links what you find in a dead out to the probable cause.

[snimmo243]

I've not opened my two up properly yet but the signs are good, lots of pollen going in and in the past week or so the hive debris has shown an increase in activity and opening up of the cluster. I have been feeding for osr. I got both my colonies as nucs last summer so all looking well so far

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