Recent content by Torq

It appears that the hard frost we've had during the week put paid to it. Just to nit pick, we are not Eire unless you are speaking as gaeilge, it would be like me saying that I'm going to Cymru on my holidays. When speaking English our country is called Ireland.

As an FYI we are also being hammered by wasps over here in Ireland, worst I've seen for years. T

Thanks guys, going on holidays this weekend so they'l get evicted on thursday. Pity though as they produced a super of honey before this happened. T

So. I have a split that didn't work out. In that split there is a drone layer, unmated queen or worker that started laying on the 24th of last month, I don't know which. The drone brood is on 3 or 4 frames and in groups not just dotted around the frame, there is zero worker brood and no...

Cards get skimmed and then the data is sold in bulk on the dark web. The buyer then uses small or zero value transactions to verify the card is valid then ramp up very fast for the big value fraud. I've never had a hit from an online transaction but I've been skimmed twice, once in a bar in...

I caught a massive swarm in a poly nuc last year, I had to put an extra 6 frames on top straight away. Caught a cast in the same spot a few weeks later and another cast in a National hive. You never know your luck!

Beekeeping is ups and downs, highs and lows. Be prepared for crushing confusing failures and the thoughts of giving it all up but ploughing through and having one great season that makes up for all the bad. Learn and enjoy.

A couple of things jump out. Too many boxes on the colony for the bees to keep warm. But the main thing I see is lack of stores so my money is on starvation.

Looks a bit too much like a hash pipe!

So were mine, then one day at about 47 I read something and it was slightly out of focus. That was the start of it, now at 51 it's reading glasses, even for eating dinner!

Snowdrops are out here.

It's not often that we agree on something, but in this instance I'm 100% with you.

Funny how geography plays a part. It was my best year for catching swarms ever, caught 3.

I've had 3 of the 4 above! The X7 being the one I didn't own. . The rd500 (in marlboro colours!) was bought in boxes and sold in boxes. The LC was a bit of a mess and I swapped it for the kettle, but it was too big for a shortarse like me so I sold it on and bought a US spec RD400d and a Uk...

Where we are the long tailed tits are only passing visitors. A big family group will turn up once or twice during the winter, spend 5mins at the feeders and then be gone, they don't stick around. Ever heard of that happened in China with the sparrows? Makes for interesting reading...