Badgers

[abm]

Has many folk had big issues with badgers and hives ?

I've just secured a cracking place at a local farm to me, the farmer would like help with his Rapeseed, nearest habitable home is just under a mile in any direction.

However there is an historic, well used badger set 400m from the farm.

Other than have the hives on some form of platform, any advice please.

Thanks.

 

[For want of a better word]

Has many folk had big issues with badgers and hives ?

I've just secured a cracking place at a local farm to me, the farmer would like help with his Rapeseed, nearest habitable home is just under a mile in any direction.

However there is an historic, well used badger set 400m from the farm.

Other than have the hives on some form of platform, any advice please.

Thanks.

YES.... nasty sharp teethie things about the size of a small pig... dug a set under one of my apiaries and pulled one colony over and chewed out the WRC brood box... dangerous girtlikken holes everywhere.... had to reposition stands and strap hives down very securely.
As for Rapeseed is is one of the traditional varieties that produces nectar or one of these triploid GM typed that is wind pollinated?

Myttin da

 

[philipm]

I have a badger set nearby to my hives ,no problem so far except for the holes I keep tripping over.

 

[Amari]

I've just moved two hives to the OSR. Lots of scrapings in the soil so I've strapped them to a pallet.

 

[Amari]

YES.... nasty sharp teethie things about the size of a small pig... dug a set under one of my apiaries and pulled one colony over and chewed out the WRC brood box... dangerous girtlikken holes everywhere.... had to reposition stands and strap hives down very securely.
As for Rapeseed is is one of the traditional varieties that produces nectar or one of these triploid GM typed that is wind pollinated?

Myttin da

Off topic for this thread but can you tell us more e.g. how widely is the GM triploid sown? I had the vague belief that we don't allow GM crops in the UK.

 

[birdsandbees]

Off topic for this thread but can you tell us more e.g. how widely is the GM triploid sown? I had the vague belief that we don't allow GM crops in the UK.

having spotted several fields of the stuff near my out apiaries this year I asked a few questions about it and was met with the same response, (is it self pollinating type) I dug one up and potted it up at home to see what happened, it seems to be self pollinated as it has set seed even in isolation inside my conservatory?

the plant seems shorter than the usual OSR but I have noticed that not all fields look the same, some are much taller and look thicker, maybe not the same type?

as for the Badgers, I've got Badger trails running through one of my sites, one of which runs directly underneath one of the stands, my stands are a bit over two feet tall and braced, so far no issues from Badgers (said touching wood)

 

[abm]

Thanks all....

I like the pallet strap idea.

 

[alldigging]

Has many folk had big issues with badgers and hives ?

I've just secured a cracking place at a local farm to me, the farmer would like help with his Rapeseed, nearest habitable home is just under a mile in any direction.

However there is an historic, well used badger set 400m from the farm.

Other than have the hives on some form of platform, any advice please.

Thanks.

I have just seen on the FB group a badger chewed nuc

https://www.facebook.com/groups/BBKA.info/permalink/1451265744924909/

 

[madasafish]

We have a mammoth badger set 0.5miles away. At least 15 burrows in use. Been there for decades.
Badgers appear to follow custom and practise and follow the same trails each night when looking for food.So avoid placing hives in their paths - seen by tracks in frost/snow and lines in grass.

So avoid tracks.

Our local badgers do not appear to worry our hives. But they dug up wasps' nests on the ground within 2 meters of hives- last year and the year before..
All my hives are on stands at least 20cms off the ground..

 

[birdsandbees]

I have just seen on the FB group a badger chewed nuc

https://www.facebook.com/groups/BBKA.info/permalink/1451265744924909/

but..

it was all kicking off on their last night wasn't it! posts and comments being deleted by Admin all over the place!

mostly down to Gerrard (I've kept Bees for five minutes, got 170 hives but you only ever see the few I have in the garden, appeared in the local paper stating he will have a million Bees in his garden this year, willing to take on Drone laying queens for his breeding programme, post absolutely anything) Rangeley.

 

[alldigging]

but..

it was all kicking off on their last night wasn't it! posts and comments being deleted by Admin all over the place!

mostly down to Gerrard (I've kept Bees for five minutes, got 170 hives but you only ever see the few I have in the garden, appeared in the local paper stating he will have a million Bees in his garden this year, willing to take on Drone laying queens for his breeding programme, post absolutely anything) Rangeley.

Oh I missed that. I was out at Ormskirk's meeting with a talk by Margaret Murdin followed by trying many honey cakes to help pick a recipe for their show.

 

[Millet]

Thanks all....

I like the pallet strap idea.

As you may know badgers are extremely powerful animals and a hive strapped to a pallet will not stop them if they decide they want what is inside, a fenced of area with 2in square mesh buried 2ft into the ground coming out at a angle will deter them, ( a bit like a rabbit fence) or better still if the farmer has a flat bed trailer he is not using.

 

[tonyofarr]

We have a badgers sett in a field next door to one of our apiaries, so far we have not had a problem, but we are monitoring the area around our hives carefully and we made sure the hives are well strapped up during the winter. I hope we never have a problem with these badgers because it is a good apiary site and we're hoping to get a good yield of honey from here this year.

 

[daroco]

Would taking a pee in the apiary help?

 

[For want of a better word]

Would taking a pee in the apiary help?

That's anti fox... but feel free to express yourself in the apiary!


I read once that the most painful place to be stung was... well use you imagination!

Yeghes da

 

[Millet]

Would taking a pee in the apiary help?

Old wives tale a bit like the one of putting ferret poop under your shed if you have rats or mice, that does not work either.

 

[daroco]

That's anti fox... but feel free to express yourself in the apiary!


I read once that the most painful place to be stung was... well use you imagination!

Yeghes da

I thought it might work in a similar way - human scent being enough to deter the badgers investigating too closely.

Not been unfortunate enough to experience a sting there!

 

[Beefriendly]

(is it self pollinating type)

All varieties of OSR are self pollinating (about 70% self, 20% insect, 10% wind). The idea behind the newer more self fertile strains is to decrease the reliance on wind and insect pollination to get a larger amount of seed set. I get a decent amount of honey off either.
You can usually tell the new varieties from the old by their height, the more self pollinating strains are shorter.

 

[abm]

flat bed trailer

Even better....

 

[birdsandbees]

All varieties of OSR are self pollinating (about 70% self, 20% insect, 10% wind). The idea behind the newer more self fertile strains is to decrease the reliance on wind and insect pollination to get a larger amount of seed set. I get a decent amount of honey off either.
You can usually tell the new varieties from the old by their height, the more self pollinating strains are shorter.

that would add up with what I've seen in terms of the height, thanks, I may still get a yield from it yet then if the temps allow a flow.