Stings: None
I'm writing this up a few days after I went to see the bees, so there might be some details I've forgotten.
Anyhoo, in this visit I started some of the changes I need to make to ensure they are okay for the winter. I swapped out a frame that was all stores for an undrawn brood frame. I'll need to do that a few more times to get enough to see them through but it's a start. The good thing is that I did it in the middle of the main flow and the good weather means it is likely to continue for a while. Though if it goes on too long then the nectar will start to dry up. A day of rain now would be perfect.
I also removed the super frame in the brood box that had lots of frame some of it drone, built underneath. I might put that back in on the next visit as its a good way to get rid of some varroa.
The super I have got on is pretty much full which means that I should get some honey this year. Not a huge amount and it does depend on whether they have raided it to build wax down below.
This visit I also noticed that there is still a lot of brood to emerge. I think when I next go I'll put on another brood box with mostly undrawn comb just to give them more space. If I don't they are really going to be squeezed in tight. They won't swarm, the queen has her wings clipped, but if they don't have enough space they might get a bit grumpy.
I also have a mesh floor to put on them so I can do a better job of monitoring varroa levels. I've not noticed any bees with bent wings or anything like that so I think they are okay at the moment. It'll pay to keep an eye on it though.
No comments:
Post a Comment