More feed for Postwick bees

Another grey start to the day unlike yesterday that was sunny of and on all day with just the occasional shower.

Yesterday I sorted out the bees on the student plot at the allotments. I last went into those hives on the 3rd August There are three laying queens there now including the original swarm queen from last year (marked yellow). I put feeders on two and took away any small amounts of honey left.

I also made a trip to Old Costessy and fed all four hives and took any remaining honey from 'Sticky'.

Today I made another trip to my Postwick apiary and put feed onto four hives that didn't get fed before. The last time I went out there I didn't feed them. Now there is only one colony not in a brood box and that I havn't yet confirmed has a queen. I need to make some more floors and roofs for some of the hives out there and they all still need treatment.

It had rained heavily earlier on in the day but by the evening it had stopped and by the time I left Postwick the weather was calm with a stunning sunset.The ivy in the lane on the way to the apiary is not in such an advanced state of flower as that in the allotment. Picked some nice blackberries.

It was raining on and off today. I fed one of the two hives on the allotment that needs checking for a laying queen. Their month is up tomorrow.

I think it going to be a poor year for English Honey. My bees are working ivy now but I will take ivy honey off only one hive that still has three supers of half capped honey on. If I time it correctly they will finish capping the frames and top up what is there with ivy. I have to be quick to extract it and get it into jars as it sets amazingly quickly.

All of the other hives I'm quite happy to leave the ivy honey to the bees and I just need to give them enough sugar to mix with it.

After rain in the night the day has started bright and sunny and turned into a nice late summer/early Autumn day.

I spent much of the day re-organising my sheds on the allotment and stowing away empty nuc boxes. I have also begun to stack up the supers that, like the nuc boxes, won't be required again until next year.

I the evening I gave more feed to the three hives at Thorpe

I did no beekeeping yesterday Saturday August 30th as we spent the day at the Maverick music festival

Despite the weather forecast of doom and gloom the day has started warm and still - the forecasters could be right though and there could be thunder on it's way.

Most of the day was warm and sunny - until I got halfway through looking at my Postwick apiary when it started to rain and I therefore didn't check every hive.

All the hives that I gave syrup to before going away have used it all up.
Two hives don't show evidence of a laying queen - but they may do next week as we have just had a perfect mating day.
Eight hives have a 2008 laying queen.
Four hives are now on double brood boxes.
I put Apiguard onto the hive that I put onto a double brood box today.
There is one 'old' queen still going strong that was marked white when I bought her a few months ago. She is the only one left of the three that I bought at the start of the year.

The bees here are:
Norman's Postwick - the three colonies that were there to start with.
Normans Thorpe that were moved there as queen cells.
Descendants from a daughter from Rosemary's (2006) Gentle Greek Queen that I moved there and unighted with one of the three original Postwick hives at the start of the year.
And a Hellsdon squarm that was taken there and re-queened there.

The allotment apiary

The day has started with bright sunshine and continued to become a really warm if not always sunny day.
I checked and confirmed six hives for laying queens. Put another tray of Apiguard on one (swarm2).
Put feed on the white WBC after doubling it to two brood boxes.
Doubled the brood box on the hive next to the WBC and gave it more feed
Put feed the hive on Furgles plot
Put the cappings back on the hive at the end (re-queened swarm1)
Swarm3 is still in a temporary box - saw the queen - very dark

Old Costessy apiary visit

Another grey start to the day. Extracted honey that I removed from 'Tinas' hive yesterday. The day brightened as the sun came out after lunch and in fact it became quite a warm day.

I went to sort out the bees at Old Costessy at around tea time. Out of the five hives remaining in that apiary there one that was queenless. I united that one with the youngest queen with the smallest colony. As a result that hive is now on double brood box.

Out of the four hives remaining two are on double boxes. I put entrance blocks in them all and left the three that have 2008 queens with a feeder on. The ivy is beginning to bloom and if we get a warm spell the bees will make some ivy honey. I like them to mix ivy honey with sugar syrup and store it for the winter.

Just one colony in Old Costessy was left with 2007 queen and I have nicknamed her 'sticky' as her offspring are making more propolis than my other bees. Sticky is a very gentle queen bred from Bluebell allotment bees. Her hive didn't make a particulary large amount of honey this year so she is not favourite to breed from but I will keep her going for as long as I can because the bees are so easy to handle. Maybe they will do better next year. At least Sticky's colony can provide some gentle drones to add to Old Costessy's genetic mix. They will be needed for mating with next years 2009 virgin queens once the current 2008 queens have been moved on.

I hope they will all survive the winter OK.

Another grey yet warm start to the day. As the day progressed it warmed and occasionally the sun shone. In the afternoon I took down 'Tinas' hive to the double brood box at the bottom. I put on the second (top) brood box few weeks ago (see picture). When I put it on it was brand new with all un-drawn new foundation. It is now fully drawn-out and full of eggs and brood. The were five supers on before I started. I left three on and removed a super and a half of capped frames. Later in the evening I put on four supers of 'wet' frames that I had been keeping in the shed since extracting the honey before leaving to go on holiday.