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Quote from: grannyjanny on July 10, 2012, 16:00:21
Sorry to hijack this thread but is all this rain going to have a knock on effect on honey production this year.

YEP..in a big time.. :( July is one of the 'honey flow' months..and so far bees have had little chance to do any gathering. Even if we get some sun in between showers that is not enough to dry the flower from excess water..when the rain enters inside the flowers, it dilutes the minute amounts of sugar that is in nectar to 'not worth' gathering liquid and untill that water had drid out and new 'full strenght' nectar appeared to replace it there is nothing bees can do..and not only that..they need pollen too and soggy pollen for bees is like carrying bag of concrete around.. ::)
So life of bee is not easy one.

BTW..you are not hijacking anything...its all bee related chat.. ;)

You welcome G/J.

I am sure all the right things were done.    I will mention the feeder.    The bee people are going to bring another lot of bees.  The think he may not have put some piece of pastic in properly to keep the queen. in.

Yes, if it's too cold and wet they can't forage, plus nectar is washed out of open flowers like brambles.

Was it a swarm which disappeared? Sometimes they just abscond. Even if the flying bees from a nuc or established colony went back where they came from, you'd still have the nurse bees, brood and queen, and it would build up again.

Thanks for reply.   Not sure what happened.   Must check this week end.

  Does anyone make their own skeps? and if you do where do you get your material/straw from?  After the soggy cardboard boxes from this year ::) i have decided to teach myself this art form  :)
                     Twoflower

I went to the Lancaster beekeepers social yesterday, beekeepers are very good cake makers yum! Anyway it was an apiary with lots of the polystyrene hives that have even this year 3 or 4 supers on them and are thriving. It was a revelation really. But discovered that despite their success that it its practically impossible to get beekeepers insurance for them.

Ive not got a hive at home yet but now im definitely thinking it will be a poly one.
Has anyone used them?


x sunloving

If they're in the BBKA, insurance comes with membership. I've never tried them; I've had rats chewing their way into empty hives several times, and while that's manageable in a wooden hive, I can't see what you could do with a damaged polystyrene one.

So, I've ordered a hive which should be here any day. I've ordered a nuc which will get here when the weather allows... Now what do I do?

If you bought your hive flat-packed, assemble it. Otherwise, there's nothing much you can do.

Yes..get the hive and frames sorted ASAP...and I hope the spot where the hive is about to go is sorted too. Have you got sugar for a feed ready(don't make the syrup yet, but be prepared for it).. they will benefit from some feed straight away in their new home as they won't have time to get gathering any nectar (that's if there is even flowers about) for having to start home building and expansion for future generations.
Its not easy being bee...

I know all you traditionalists are going to snigger but I've ordered a hive from Omlet. I Watched hours and hours of Utube vids and they seem perfect for me. Also we've had an Omlet chicken run for the past 7 years and it's as good now as the day we got it, albeit we've only got three quail in it now. The chickens have the run of the whole garden now.

I have plenty of places I can put the hive but it's going down the end of the garden behind my shed. I've always wanted bees but living in the city with a 30x30 foot garden meant I couldn't. Now I live in the country with a 50x250 foot garden with fields all round the Mrs decided it was time to get some. In fact it was her who ordered everything, first I heard of it was when she forwarded me the confirmation email from Omlet.

I think I got everything sorted, just giving you all an early warning in leu of the barrage of questions I'll no doubt have. 

Oh there is absolutely nothing to snigger about. Like with everything else, things move on and new designs and material are used.
Not so long ago polystyrene hives were the 'new thing'..and some took to them and others not.
When I started bee keeping options for hive materials available was either wood or wood...so I ended up buying whole of wood  Once you invest to lots of beekeeping stuff, it is lot of money if you decide to change your 'system' for something else as not all 'systems' mix and match.
I hope that beekeeping is for you and gives hours of 'fun' stuff to do....honey is nice but its d**n hard work before it is in jar.

We were on our way to eldest daughters today & there was a huge bee hanging around on a toll bridge. Should they be out & about while it's sooooooo cold. Our NDN dug out a huge mahonia to (wait for it) make way for a caravan that sits in front of the lounge window. The mahonia used to be covered in bees & the smell was heavenly.

That will have been a queen bumblebee; they do fly when it's still pretty chilly. If the sun came out for a bit that would be enough to bring the odd one out.

It was lovely & sunny Robert & yes it was a big one .

Should the Ebola virus ever break out in the remote Lincolnshire rain forest, I'll be ready for it.

Quote from: Plot69 on April 03, 2013, 17:29:35

An indoor beehive ... that's my idea of a good location.

I recently did a beekeeping course, but I am now struggling to find a good location for a hive. Initially I had assumed my back garden would be ideal, but it only receives late sun. Also, I don't think I would be happy with just one hive.

With this in mind I have set up a website, to match would be beekeepers looking for hive space, with others who have space, but don't want to keep bees themselves.

The website can be found on my profile page.

Tony,

Careful. NASA might nab you and send you in orbit.

Your local BKA might have some ideas where you could put the hive.

Video of a swarm which moved into one of my empty hives on Thursday. Another arrived this morning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wH6uTIGimNQ