Rained off inspections yesterday - but did see that colonies had more stores three weeks ago than now, and that's not much. Looks like my Qs have really cut down on laying so going to be a miserable crop for me.
Comment for Fatshark - leave half your supers down south, you will not need them up here!
Bridget if push really comes to shove you can always find the queen by filtering all the bees thro' a q excluder over an empty box, using another box over the top as a funnel. You shake each frame of bees into the top box when they will run down to the bottom box. When you've done say three frames these can be placed down into the bottom box which encourages the bees to run down.you check the top of the queen excluder and eventually you wil find the q trapped on top to squish as neccessary. This method is quite disruptive to the bees so should be used as a last resort. Ive used this method with success at this time of year when colonies get so huge and queens are unmarked and impossible to find. Hope this helps. Sorry to hear you've become alergic - could this have started on colonsay ?.
How are they for stores Kitta ?Originally Posted by Mellifera Crofter
They were fine, DR, and strong colonies. Two of the more vigorous chucker-outers were my AMM queens. Perhaps it's instinct! They know about our weather.
I did not see the same thing at my more sheltered out-apiary, although it's more difficult to spot it there as only a few have landing spaces in front of their hives. But I did see a few bees biting some poor drones' legs.
However, they are all tucking into their capped honey.
I should have said 'pupae'! Tisk tisk.
Its always worrying when you see them chuck out some of the brood
Who would be a drone given the choice
Robbing to look forward to next
I had to use a cover cloth over my paynes nucs when marking the new queens because of other bees trying to get in
7 new queens marked yesterday and two were replacing key members of the wild bunch (vicious hives )
I gave them a long time since the last inspection to let the new queens replace most of the old aggressive bees (there were 3 hives)
The third member of the gang should have had their new queen marked as well but instead there were 4 frames of solid brood and two queen cells smack in the middle of the comb
Couldn't spot her and it looks like she is being superceded so I just left the cells alone
Nice temperament now so I hope the replacement carries on the good work
First rain (worth the title) of the summer. If only we'd had it a month ago...
Spent yesterday's rather nicer afternoon driving bees from some 'experimental' (didn't have enough frames to hand when they were made up) mating hives of approx mp size. Interesting experience -and a surprisingly simple job too.
The bee-less brood comb was then cut out, fixed into new frames and returned to the bees.
Last edited by prakel; 24-07-2015 at 03:55 PM.
Went through a few hives today between about 4.30 and 5.30
One had a queen to be marked and typically I couldn't find her
The bees were ok and so I didnt use smoke
After a while gave up and closed the hive at which point a number of deranged bees started an all out attack on my mobile phone case
They were stinging the lining of it in droves.
If the thing had been alive it wouldn't have been dead now
Reached for the smoker -- gone out as usual -- into pocket for matches -- left them in bee shed
The spirit of Chucky has taken hold of these idiot bees so now I leave the phone where it is and trudge back for matches
Smoker going full blast I drive them off and hide the phone (android) --- they may be Apple fans.
On to the next one
This is a Nuc with another unmarked queen
I get the pooter, the marking cage, and the pen ready
The lid of the pen is stiff so I take it off first
Queen spotted --- caught in pooter-- about to put in marking cage
No!!! knocked the pen lid into the feed slot of the Paynes nuc
Its too deep for hive tool so it's off to a nearby tree for a long twig
Now I'm standing there like chimpanzee with a stick looking for bugs
Cant get the thing out!
Back for a second long twig --- finally the lid of the pen accepts defeat and comes back up.
Ok now I mark the queen-- after which she wont come out of the cage and when she does she goes right on the frame edge waiting to be squashed
I give her a gentle poke --- instead of moving she falls to the bottom of the nuc
Right that's it ---tools away--- enough beekeeping for one afternoon -- grrr....
We have a confessions thread for stuff like this
Is the phone case black by any chance? I regularly have a small black camera with me and the bees quite often take a disliking to it. Even when stood innocuously on a hive roof (the camera, not me) they still give it hell.
Yes BlackWe have a confessions thread for stuff like this
Is the phone case black by any chance? I regularly have a small black camera with me and the bees quite often take a disliking to it. Even when stood innocuously on a hive roof (the camera, not me) they still give it hell.
This is just normal beekeeping at the moment I will save the confessions for when something really goes wrong
I was also doing some early evening beekeeping tonight, and trying to mark and clip queens. Three escaped my grasp. One disappeared down behind the hive into the depths of two pallets, another made a bid for freedom *after* I'd clipped a wing and I saw a quick spiral but didn't know if it had made it into the hive or not. One leapt and fell on the top bars and I just left it.
I'd been waiting for the queens to 'settle in' but have been lured into a false sense of security by a slight improvement in temper in the last couple of days. Nah, month old queens are too early, at least with this feisty ex-Moidart stock.
Also feeding nucs some of which are critically low on stores in the midst of plenty (including a half-decent lime flow).
By the time I was done the hive entrances had all settled down. I reckon they all made it back home.
PS My current notebook pen is grey with black bits at the tip. They really don't like the tip of that pen. Probably it is reminiscent of the eye of some creature intent on robbing the hive.
Last edited by gavin; 24-07-2015 at 09:51 PM.
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