BBKA Forum

British Beekeepers Association Official Forum 

  • What have you done today bee-related?

  • General Q&A, Bee chat and only Bee chat please
General Q&A, Bee chat and only Bee chat please
 #5300  by NigelP
 05 Dec 2019, 13:19
MickBBKA wrote:
05 Dec 2019, 01:59
I wonder why keepers feel the need to import rather than improve their own bees. Several colonies of my locals have produced well in excess of 100lbs this year with some over 150lbs in a season that had a crap June and August.
Cheers, Mick.
Is that all they brought in? :D
It's why I use good genetics rather than rely on chance...plus my locals are of a very different temperament to yours...
 #5313  by MickBBKA
 09 Dec 2019, 00:04
Ha..! winter winds in May, June and August. You live in a mild inner climate that has nothing like the weather my colonies have to endure. Plus for me is I don't need to buy in foreign bees and very rarely get stung. I am in the process of breeding Teesside tolerant bees which so far are happy to forage at 4C. BBKA flat earthers will think that impossible. But then they don't think north of Watford.

Hope you are well and maybe see you soon on a Christmas market soon mate.- :D
 #5326  by AdamD
 12 Dec 2019, 12:31
With regular disasters and cock-ups as we seem to get in beekeeping, it sometimes feels like that - not just in year one but most years. However, I suspect you are doing fine!
 #5328  by thewoodgatherer
 12 Dec 2019, 20:48
Took advantage of a cold, dry and still morning yesterday to treat my 6 hives and two nuc's with my OA vaporiser.
Having hefted and checked through the glass quilts last week when everything was as expected I noticed yesterday that one now looks to be raising brood- notably a good warmth coming from the cluster, this was the colony that went trough last winter large and by early spring was boiling over, also the hive that I have had problems getting syrup down in the Autumn two years running. So anyway looks like I may have just about got one vap in before kick-off.
 #5346  by nealh
 18 Dec 2019, 19:48
Checked six colonies today all tucked up bar one, though peering through the polycarb they weren't tightly clustered, foamed them in and vaped all today. Hefted all, one felt a bit light so will keep an eye on it and may well have to give fondant whilst it is milder.
 #5367  by AdamD
 28 Dec 2019, 14:22
Today I treated all my colonies bar one to a dribble each of Oxalic Acid. All colonies are alive and have enough food at the moment although a couple looked to be a bit light so I will need to keep an eye on them once we get into February.
I was pleased to see the following - slightly inelegant - mini-nuc still alive. It has a 2018 'parked' queen inside and I gaffa taped two queenless mini-nucs on top in Spetember.

Image
 #5369  by Japey Edge
 29 Dec 2019, 13:08
Very interesting Adam. Glad your colonies are all alive. My three are good so far.
Had a look at the inspection trays on both the poly nationals today to see how the trickle went. Not a great deal of varroa, although it has been a few days...
  • 1
  • 77
  • 78
  • 79
  • 80
  • 81
  • 301