What did you do in the Apiary today?

[The Poot]

Inspected one and added a third super. Second super has been filled in five days.
Ordered more supers from Abelo………

 

[philipm]

Checked hives today added more supers as they had filled the ones I added last week ,and there was me thinking there would be no spring crop just goes to show how wrong you can be.

 

[gregior]

Checked hives today added more supers as they had filled the ones I added last week ,and there was me thinking there would be no spring crop just goes to show how wrong you can be.

Yeah exactly the same here,best flow i've ever seen.

 

[gregior]

Bees super busy today!

 

[E&MBees]

What a difference a week makes. Last week I had a colony running on fumes, this week supers are full to overflowing and being capped. I only have one spare super left .
Reinstated a split from the same hive, the daughter this time. Mother (2021) was returned from a nuc last week after the qc I left came to nothing. Mother and daughter must have overwintered together. No sign of mother today but more early staged qc’s. Reduced to one and nuc’d daughter instead. Not overly impressed with daughter currently, multiple eggs in cells and only a small patch laid up. Interestingly the bees were very reluctant to stay in the nuc with her despite being sealed brood present. Their behaviour is poor too, so I fear the gatepost is looming. Next week might be completely different!

Addition: it never ceases to amaze me quite how much kit can be squeezed into a Honda jazz, Mary Poppins carpet bag, just in car format!

 

[Moobee]

Checked the hive I split last week. Thought I had knocked down all QCs except one big fat sealed one but found two more sneakily tucked away so those were squished too. Will leave them now for at least two weeks. Meanwhile the queenless bees are busy packing the supers with nectar.
They seem to have gone from 0 to 90mph in no time.

 

[JamezF]

They seem to have gone from 0 to 90mph in no time.

I'm seeing the same with some colonies that I thought were being slow to build up. What had perhaps five frames of brood at the most last week all of a sudden has more than double that.

James

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

0600 start this morning for a full day with the bees - colonies to be moved in the morning cool then inspections and supering, a few hours off for tea (nice takeaway curry) and some honey bottling for next week deliveries then load up the truck with supers for the range tomorrow.

 

[BeeBird]

Inspected all 6 colonies today, gloriously sunny day bee’s were very active and piling in pollen and nectar. Supers on 4 and will put one on 5th probably at end of next week as I recently promoted it to double brood. Have re queened 2 colonies over the past couple of weeks. First one accepted and laying, second one I removed the Q cage today and did a post introduction 7 day inspection. Couldn’t see the Queen or eggs, but there were 4 charged uncapped Queen cells. Could they have killed the new queen in favour of making their own? I knocked down the cell’s and thought I would leave them another week and check them again. Right plan?
The Queen in the picture is definitely being pampered

 

[JamezF]

Went through my home hives this morning and added a few supers. Found a queen whose red dot had almost worn off. "No problem", I thought, "I'll just catch her in a CoT and re-mark her now". So I did, and left her in the CoT whilst I went through the rest of the frames to allow the paint to dry. When I picked her frame up to replace it the top of the CoT was covered in bees and they'd removed most of the paint! Still, it was better than when I started, so I left them to it.

James

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

a post introduction 7 day inspection.

I would never clatter around in a hive so soon after an introduction, but it looks like they didn't accept her.
Was there open brood in the hive before you put the new queen in?

 

[Curly green finger's]

Transferred two double nucs into double brood but put all the brood in the upper boxes except the frame the queen was on in the bottom with qx between, bottom box was filled with all comb.
Added a super each as well because the suycamore flow is good

 

[Nannysbees]

After reading here that supers are being filled and adding another super I thought I'd have a quick peep, the super we put in to two of the hives after empty but the second brood is absolutely chocca with nectar, bursting with bees, concerned they won't take it up and the queen will be struggling for room, took some open nectar brood frames out and put in foundation , donated to another hive. But will they eventually take it up or will we have to keep donating

 

[BeeBird]

I would never clatter around in a hive so soon after an introduction, but it looks like they didn't accept her.
Was there open brood in the hive before you put the new queen in?

Yes there was BIAS, I dispatched the old Queen and put the cage with the new Queen in straight away, damn it . Do you think I should give them until the end of this week and have another look? Knock down any cells to make them hopelessly Queenless and order another Queen? I was wanting to introduce a F1 Buckfast Queen to upgrade my mongrel bees. I accept your advice to keep out of the hive for longer following introduction, every day’s a school day

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

if they actually released the new queen, she may still be in there, just take down the QC's and wait a week to see what transpires

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

After reading here that supers are being filled and adding another super I thought I'd have a quick peep, the super we put in to two of the hives after empty but the second brood is absolutely chocca with nectar, bursting with bees, concerned they won't take it up and the queen will be struggling for room, took some open nectar brood frames out and put in foundation , donated to another hive. But will they eventually take it up or will we have to keep donating

they'll move it up there when they see fit, and not before

 

[BeeBird]

if they actually released the new queen, she may still be in there, just take down the QC's and wait a week to see what transpires

Great, I’ll do that. Thank you for your advice

 

[B_north]

Fortunately, that's not a shook swarm ..

A shook swarm is where some raving lunatics empty all the bees from an existing colony into another hive with just frames and foundation, discarding any brood and sometimes stores ... not the answer to anything much in the normal run of beekeeping - apart from some SBI's who will allow it when EFB is found.
It's recommended by lots of less than thinking beekeepers for everything from 'spring cleaning a colony' to 'swarm control' and a load of other things as well ..

All it does is sets back a thriving colony .. not the best idea that has ever come down through the annals of beekeeping.

Kirsten Trayor -- Reading a Hive from the National Honey Show. Her take on shook swarm.
Start at timeline around 45:18

I have a slight problem with the idea that a shook swarm is evil on this forum. Just the mention of the phrase can garner some pretty strong words.

I have done them and they work fine. You do not discard the brood and stores, you use them to make nucs or, or give to another colony. Yes it sets back a thriving colony but that is the point, to prevent swarming, it also gives you great timing for a zap to the mites. It works wonders in getting new fresh comb but you can leave drawn frames so that the queen starts laying immediately and the set back is minimal.

FYI Kirsten Traynor is not a "less than thinking beekeeper", nor is she a raving lunatic.

Done properly I fail to see the harm done between a shook swarm and a swarm.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

You do not discard the brood and stores, you use them to make nucs or, or give to another colony. Yit also gives you great timing for a zap to the mites.

but if you are using the brood to boost other colonies you are just dumping the mites elsewhere
As I said, it the domain of the non thinking beekeeper

Yes it sets back a thriving colony but that is the point, to prevent swarming,

no it isn't - shook swarming has got nothing to do with avoiding swarming - and it's not what it's used for in the UK

I have a slight problem with the idea that a shook swarm is evil

If you think it's good, you definitely have a problem

Kirsten Traynor is not a "less than thinking beekeeper", nor is she a raving lunatic.

we'll have to beg to differ there.

 

[Sutty]

Interesting point she claimed, that giving all the extra brood to another colony may reduce its inclination to swarm too.
I can see the advantage to the shook colony of reducing mite load and giving an opportunity to treat. On the other hand you have given 80% of its mites to another colony.
She says she uses it when the bees insist on making QCs despite all her efforts (more space etc), she doesn't say why she prefers it over an A/S, though maybe to get more fresh comb or she doesn't want to increase numbers of colonies.