Attachment 907
This is the photo of the tray after OA trickle. Nothing that I could see but pretty pattern of what I presume is debris
Attachment 907
This is the photo of the tray after OA trickle. Nothing that I could see but pretty pattern of what I presume is debris
Last edited by Bridget; 15-01-2012 at 10:44 PM.
Hi Bridget
That looks like a nice, healthy colony. The bees are on six seams as you can see from the pattern on the board. The whitish stuff is pieces of solidified honey - sugar crystals - which they sometimes discard rather than use. The brown stuff is likely to be cappings or cocoons and suggests to me that they are preparing for brood raising. There are one or two dark brown dots in there that might be Varroa but it isn't easy to tell. What is clear is that you don't have a heavy fall of Varroa.
I was just curious about what you might have around you for the bees. You can see pasture, rough ground, pine trees, and quite large areas of what looks to be heather - probably quite a good area for bees but one that might give you most honey in August when the heather flowers, and maybe in sometimes in July when there would be clover and possibly bell heather (the dark purple one). Bees will fly quite far for forage on a good day so if there is anything for them in those fields to the S and SW of Kingussie they should go there too.
If I was you I might remove the Google Maps link as most people don't want to risk showing everyone where their bees are. Up to you though, just a suggestion. The pages here are open to all for viewing, you don't need to sign up and log on to see the links.
I think that I need to update the map here - there are bees in the centre after all! But here is a question - are your bees Varroa-free or not? Have you had them long and did you get them locally or not? Pictures of Varroa here too.
http://www.sbai.org.uk/varroamapping/
Gavin
Last edited by gavin; 15-01-2012 at 02:06 AM.
Hi Bridget,
To help you see the varroa when there is a lot of material on the the floor. If you scrape all the material into a honey jar. Take it home and add a good measure of alcohol eg Meths or if you can get some Ethanol even better. Give it a good shake and let it settle. All the material will sink and the varroa will float. Pour off the alcohol through a filter eg a coffee filter or paper towel. Let it air dry for a few hours and look for the dark red spots with a magnifying glass. You can re-use the alcohol to give a second or third wash if you are trying to get an accurate varroa count
Thanks Jimbo that's really helpful. I will try that in a few days to check exactly whether I have varroa.
Gavin I had no idea I had made that location link on my post. Removed it, thanks.
Thanks also for the info re the photo. I knew there were about 6 seams but hadn't made the link.
Yes we have loads of heather up until the beginning of October. Of course there will be some broom and we have about anacre of rough land which has lots of clover, thistles, those little yellow flowers like mini snap dragons (veitch?), ragwort which I am pulling up at first opportunity though I gather bees like it. I am also busy planting things like lavender, buddleia and some earlier flowering heathers thought they pretty much ignored them last year. I know of one old chap who had bees in this area for many years so there must be something for them earlier on. but the farmers here mainly have sheep and cows and very little in the way of crops like OSR or fruit trees. We will see how it goes but I shall have to maybe top them up with syrup.
The bees came from Daviot near Inverness (Highland Bees). We only got them at the end of July so very much beginners. I will use Jimbos method to check the varroa and let you know what I find.
Hi Bridget
Could be meadow vetchling - or maybe toadflax? The bees do like ragwort but it taints your honey so you are best without it. Buddleia is great for bumble bees and butterflies but honeybees usually can't reach the nectaries at the base of the tube.
If you got your bees from HBS then you will have Varroa I think. Jimbo was probably suggesting the meths method if you ever have a thick pile of detritus to look through. When you have a thin layer as in your photo I wouldn't bother. It is worth having a close look though just to check whether you have some Varroa.
Enjoy the season ahead - from that floor insert I think that it will go well as long as they have food in spring, natural or supplied.
Gavin
If you want bees to access buddleia you need one of the orange-ball flowered ones (B. globosa)...if you pollinate the bog standard B. davidii with it either deliberately or accidentally the crosses are honey bee friendly. The (often expensive) Buddleia x weyeriana is also popular with honey bees but available "off the peg". toadflax is mostly found in stone walls, often in the most unlikely places.
Hi Gavin,Originally Posted by gavin
What kind of a 'taint' is that? Taste, smell, colour?
Kitta
"Strong flavour and aroma"...I expect that's being diplomatic and no-one with livestock wants the stuff around as it kills.
Just a wee note re ragwort: when you pull it, use gloves or wash your hands immediately. It's nasty stuff! Oh, and never leave it lying around in case a horse finds it wilted ... bin or burn straight away!
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