slow hive anything to worry about?

[8ace]

I have 2 hives both on broo and a half from 1 AS last year both raised their own new queens last year through their own choice?? and got through the winter well. 1 hive has been a lot slower (the parent hive) than the swarmed hive(also has a new queen last year they made)

Looked in today the slower hive has BIAS across maybe 3 frames and bees are a bit guardy.

The other hive has gone a bit nuts and I expected to see some Qc's due to the traffic. However all is good BIAS over 6 or 7 frames a fair amount of capped honey but lots in most frames part filled so put a QE and a super on to be on the safe side and give them some room. they had bonded the top and bottom frames big time and lost some brood taking them apart. there was a 3" cluster fussing around which I think is where the qeen was but smoked them to move them and see her but they wouldn't budge. Other than not having a massive brood nest nothing seems wrong to me, good brood pattern etc


Should I be worried about the slow hive I'm guessing they'll supersede her ....any thought?

 

[REDWOOD]

If it's the only hive in the apiary struggling be aware that it might be nosema, give them a thymol feed and see how they get on

 

[8ace]

If it's the only hive in the apiary struggling be aware that it might be nosema, give them a thymol feed and see how they get on

They were fed with hive alive sugar solution going into winter which I believe is thymol based. What thymol treatment do you recommend?

 

[REDWOOD]

Hivemaker's, it's on a sticky


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Hivemaker's, it's on a sticky


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Would members of this forum use any other?

 

[madasafish]

Er inspected a colony at Association Apiary on Saturday: only 2 frames of brood. Queen was damaged - one leg broken...

Requeening scheduled.

 

[Erichalfbee]

If you are concerned that they may be Nosemic then you have to test...there's no point in guessing.
"Quick Squash".......see Scientific Beekeeping

 

[8ace]

If you are concerned that they may be Nosemic then you have to test...there's no point in guessing.
"Quick Squash".......see Scientific Beekeeping

They are still quite active at 7pm there is no signs of kwing or poop on the flight board or front of hive or even below the omf is clean except for wax cappings. I treated with thymol based syrup in autumn so nosema hadn't crossed my mind but then again I'm only going into my second year it's just the other hive is a lot busier

 

[8ace]

Also to add at lot of bees prob a few hundred drowned in the feeder in the autumn in this hive before I changed it too a less slippery one would this make a difference

 

[Finman]

I have 2 hives both on broo and a half

Looked in today the slower hive has BIAS across maybe 3 frames

and bees are a bit guardy.

6 or 7 frames a fair amount of capped honey but lots in most frames part filled ....any thought?

3 frames of brood. That hive should be in a nuc, which has 3 brood, one food frame and one empty comb.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

I have just taken today and yeasterday off extra food that queens can lay.
And hives need plenty of room for pollen.

Recipe is that double brood hive has 2 full frame food. It is 5 kg. It is enough for 10 days now. Then other stores off and empty combs instead.

Why should bees heat extra stores? In my hives it takes 3 weeks that colonies start to expand.

One hive had 2 boxes mediums, 20 frames. 10 frames has capped winter food. Eight frames were brood. So extra food away that frames have altogether 2 frames food stores.

To many strong hives I added one new box under brood box.
.
.

 

[Finman]

.
I have very small colonies too. They were normal size in September when I fed them. Varroa has reduced them to 2-3 frame size.

 

[Hivemaker.]

.
Varroa has reduced them to 2-3 frame size.

Have you treated them for varroa now?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Also to add at lot of bees prob a few hundred drowned in the feeder in the autumn in this hive before I changed it too a less slippery one would this make a difference

I don't know
My point was that if you suspect nosema you should test for it
There is no diarrhoea with N ceranae

 

[Finman]

Have you treated them for varroa now?

No, I have not, but I treated in Winter.
They should be treated in August. Situation is worse than I expected last summer.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Also to add at lot of bees prob a few hundred drowned in the feeder in the autumn in this hive before I changed it too a less slippery one would this make a difference

No

 

[irishguy]

3 frames of brood. That hive should be in a nuc, which has 3 brood, one food frame and one empty comb.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

I have just taken today and yeasterday off extra food that queens can lay.
And hives need plenty of room for pollen.

Recipe is that double brood hive has 2 full frame food. It is 5 kg. It is enough for 10 days now. Then other stores off and empty combs instead.

Why should bees heat extra stores? In my hives it takes 3 weeks that colonies start to expand.

One hive had 2 boxes mediums, 20 frames. 10 frames has capped winter food. Eight frames were brood. So extra food away that frames have altogether 2 frames food stores.

To many strong hives I added one new box under brood box.
.
.

I have a nuc with a few frames of full stores, would you recommend I remove stores apart from one frame and install empty comb or frames with new wax. If yes, does the store frame go against the nuc wall and the rest around the brood area.

 

[GoEnviro]

To many strong hives I added one new box under brood box.
.
.

This will be a brood box that you have added below?.
What do you define as a strong hive Finman?
Have you been moving your hives around to allow better foraging?


Got to say my bees are not doing all that well (as of 2 weeks ago), though i have left them to just get on with it - only have one decent hive, the rest would probably be better in nucs as you had suggested earlier.

Going to be looking at them again this weekend hopefully - just wish i could find more time for them, but have struggled to find enough time just to keep them going as they are the last year or two

 

[Finman]

This will be a brood box that you have added below?.
What do you define as a strong hive Finman?
Have you been moving your hives around to allow better foraging?

A strong colony.... It depens on the stage of year. My hives started brooding 1.5., when weather changed and bees started to get pollen for brood rearing. First bees start to emerge after a week. There is no new emerging bees in hives.

Just now most hives have one box brood, and some have layed 1.5 boxes.

I have now shanged poor layers. What bees need now us pollen, and big stores inside the hive.

Hives have now reducing number of workers up to last week of May, when new nurser bee emerge, and recent homebees move to outdoor work.

All wintered bees will be dead in my hives 1.6. , so after 2 weeks!

Now I cannot say what is strong hive. Number of boxes may lie. It depends on the number of brood frames.

In July all my hives must have 6 langstroth boxes, if they do not have, I join week ones to such.

A strong hive has 20 frames brood in summer.

Yeah, yield comes from pastures. I move my hives according pastures. 2-4 hives/site. Quite a job to find every year new sites.

 

[Finman]

.
When I have added boxes to hives, reason is good weather and good pollen flow.
Bees can store pollen into lower box that brood has space upstairs.

As you see, I add super boxes downstairs, that bees fill them with pollen. To some such is an disaster.

I use those supers as brood boxes. Then bees eate pollen off and fill supers with larvae. They eate all pollen in a week. But now the pollen is needed for bad weathers.

Stores of pollen are amazingly different in different hives, when I compare what I saw on entrance when they bring pollen to home.

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

This will be a brood box that you have added below?.
What do you define as a strong hive Finman?
Have you been moving your hives around to allow better foraging?


Got to say my bees are not doing all that well (as of 2 weeks ago), though i have left them to just get on with it - only have one decent hive, the rest would probably be better in nucs as you had suggested earlier.

Going to be looking at them again this weekend hopefully - just wish i could find more time for them, but have struggled to find enough time just to keep them going as they are the last year or two

I am NOT lecturing, more sympathising, but they need attention these days; too many stressors for let-alone beekeeping, I am afraid, which is too bad given my inclination (see moniker). Good be anything (seems to be a lot of Nosema around) but any colony that could be in a nuc now is not doing well.