What did you do in your Apiary/Bee yard today?

[JurassicApiary]

5 second rule apply here?


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[Bill Murray]

I collected Appox. 26 queen cells from my splits over double bottom boards in one yard 10 days ago. and split the ones that wernt ready to split then. they sure were today.

Also Marley practiced marking queens (using drones and next years color) she was pretty proud of herself. So was grandpa.

[Bill Murray]

made up 22 mating Nucs, we will see if this works out as well as grafting. I think I like this better already because its not all going at one time and can just keep moving forward by manipulating some just hatched eggs with some nurse bees upward and rotating the dsbb. If I decide I have enough Qcs I just let splits hatch out then box them if they mate. not making starters or finishers.IDK well see what the queens lay like when they emerge. My first 2 cells from  from a supercedure colony made up 27 Jan are both laying well. I was worried about a lack of drones but figured if they were making the cells there must be enough  drones.

[jtcmedic]

Did 12 splits yesterday and feed every one today. They were grumpy with a front moving in.

[NigelP]

Got a call out to feral colony in a tree that had come down in the storms. They were logging it and cut clean through the nest. As it was raining heavily and frost forecast for the night I went and recovered as many soggy cold shivering bees as I could, Ddin't spot the queen but wasn't looking too hard, more get them inside somewhere warm and give them a chance to survive.
A night in front of the fire seems to have done the trick.....

[The15thMember]

Got a call out to feral colony in a tree that had come down in the storms. They were logging it and cut clean through the nest. As it was raining heavily and frost forecast for the night I went and recovered as many soggy cold shivering bees as I could, Ddin't spot the queen but wasn't looking too hard, more get them inside somewhere warm and give them a chance to survive.
A night in front of the fire seems to have done the trick.....

Awww, poor things.  I see pictures on my sister's goat forum all the time of people bringing cold and wet baby animals in to warm up in front of the fire, but this is the first time I've ever seen it done with bees! 

[NigelP]

After a cold night days was nice and warm,. Placed them in their new position and let them do their new orientation flights.
We shall see.

[The15thMember]

Today I switched out the mouse guards on my hives for normal wooden reducers, because my dumb bees decided that squeezing through the nail/tack hole in the reducer is just as easy as going in the full-sized holes, and they are knocking off their pollen pants on the way in as a result!  It's not time for pollen trapping yet, ladies! 

[Brian MCquilkin]

Added more emergency feed to the colonies today. AS the weather is warming up a bit I also started to add pollen supplements to help with build-up. I inspected a colony a few weeks back and I decided that it was dead. I went into that colony today to recover and clean out the frames, well the bees came back to life.  The old saying is true " bees aren't dead till they are warm and dead".

[Brian MCquilkin]

Got a call out to feral colony in a tree that had come down in the storms. They were logging it and cut clean through the nest. As it was raining heavily and frost forecast for the night I went and recovered as many soggy cold shivering bees as I could, Ddin't spot the queen but wasn't looking too hard, more get them inside somewhere warm and give them a chance to survive.
A night in front of the fire seems to have done the trick.....

Awww, poor things.  I see pictures on my sister's goat forum all the time of people bringing cold and wet baby animals in to warm up in front of the fire, but this is the first time I've ever seen it done with bees! 

Great job well done, hope the do well for you.

[Bob Wilson]

I helped a friend inspect yesterday. And found queen cells in his hives.
I came straight home to mine. Drones were walking on the combs, and pollen and some nectar is coming in too, but no QCs yet. However, I went ahead and pulled some nucs from each of my hives to sell. We still have a month until our honey flow begins, but the bees are busting.

[.30WCF]

Cleaned up a little. Got all the wood put up and moved some HVAC mini splits I had sitting around I been needing to take to the office. Now I can get to my extra boxes easier and it makes for better pictures. Also, the wood was piled on my garden area, so that is accessible too now.






The bees are hitting something like chickweed that sprouts out in the same areas that my clover does, maples, Bradford Pear, and my poor little peach tree that will probably get frostbitten is trying to blossom. Thankfully my pear and apple trees aren?t trying to be overachievers this year.



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[The15thMember]

I did my first inspections today.  All 3 hives look good.  I took off everyone's winter equipment and reversed the boxes.  I was curious to see what the usurpers that took over one of my hives a few months ago were like, and they were the calmest of the bunch and had the best brood pattern, although I did see 2 bees with K wings, so I'll have to keep a mind on that.  I didn't see their queen, Queen Ravenna, or Queen Persephone.  I did find Queen Malore, which is not surprising as she's always easy to spot, so I did a sugar roll in her hive, and their mites were at 1.7%, so not bad.  I did have to give her hive a frame of food.   

[.30WCF]

I did my first inspections today.  All 3 hives look good.  I took off everyone's winter equipment and reversed the boxes.  I was curious to see what the usurpers that took over one of my hives a few months ago were like, and they were the calmest of the bunch and had the best brood pattern, although I did see 2 bees with K wings, so I'll have to keep a mind on that.  I didn't see their queen, Queen Ravenna, or Queen Persephone.  I did find Queen Malore, which is not surprising as she's always easy to spot, so I did a sugar roll in her hive, and their mites were at 1.7%, so not bad.  I did have to give her hive a frame of food.   

It was kinda late when you did the OA, so it might not be a good comparison, but in years past, what would the 1.7% have been.


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[The15thMember]

It was kinda late when you did the OA, so it might not be a good comparison, but in years past, what would the 1.7% have been.

I know, I just really wanted to give it a try as a trial run with all the equipment.  I'm planning on hitting them again when I split, possibly in conjunction with a trapping treatment, because they'll be broodless then.  I had 5 hives entering last spring, and my numbers were these:
Sugar Rolls
   Nitocris: 2.8%
   Berenice: 0%
   Hera: 4.3%
   Guinevere: 2.2%
   Martha: 0%

Which averages out to 1.76%, so make of that what you will.  I'll try to get rolls on the other hives next week. 

[loisl58]

Just finished cleaning up the wax from last weeks extracting.



It?s clean enough to now make some foundation over the cooler months.

Wow Amazing amount of wax. I only have 2 x 31 frame long langstroth. 1 just into 3rd year & am getting a bit off them although 18 frames nectar/ honey mix. If they get capped before end pf Autumn I will have heaps.

Other hive was a swarm Dec 10th 2021. Only on 15 frames. Funny how clean these frames are compared to older hive.

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[loisl58]

I collected Appox. 26 queen cells from my splits over double bottom boards in one yard 10 days ago. and split the ones that wernt ready to split then. they sure were today.

Also Marley practiced marking queens (using drones and next years color) she was pretty proud of herself. So was grandpa.

Great stuff. I often wish I had someone to teach me hands on and help me straighten out mistakes. I have trouble finding my unmarked queens. And searching then handling drones onto a Queen marker is too much when doing an inspection.

Any useful tips would be gratefully received.

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[Oldbeavo]

To mark our queens we use a Posca pen, lasts OK,
Find the queen and as i am right handed get her walking from left to right and rather than try to catch her i just gently pin her to the wax with my thumb and index finger and dob her on the thorax. Gentle, gentle very little pressure required. Practice on drones. Then you will be amazed where your marked drones will end up.
Pre prime the pen so the end has the ink/paint wet on the end

[.30WCF]

I just hit mine while they are walking around. I kinda hover with my strong hand pinky on the frame edge (think support hand shooting pool) until she stops and give her a little dab. With a primed up pen and most of the excess blotted off on something it works good. Hit and run.


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[loisl58]

I just hit mine while they are walking around. I kinda hover with my strong hand pinky on the frame edge (think support hand shooting pool) until she stops and give her a little dab. With a primed up pen and most of the excess blotted off on something it works good. Hit and run.


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To mark our queens we use a Posca pen, lasts OK,
Find the queen and as i am right handed get her walking from left to right and rather than try to catch her i just gently pin her to the wax with my thumb and index finger and dob her on the thorax. Gentle, gentle very little pressure required. Practice on drones. Then you will be amazed where your marked drones will end up.
Pre prime the pen so the end has the ink/paint wet on the end

Thanks. Will try both. I haven't seen either of my queens, maybe both run & keep moving. Been through both hives 4 times not seeing her. 1 hive high population, other swarm caught Dec 2021 only 15 frames.

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