Month: January 2013

Posted on

Super queen mating hive

I’ve been working on raising queens, so far only hatched, unplanned, queen cells. I’ve got a Apidea hive, and a mating hive that I created myself using frames similar to Apidea frames. Well Apideas are not cheap, and not big enough to be left alone for long without support feeding. My first attempt at making my own was pretty successful, but it had one of the issues that the Apidea had also, trying to load it with worker bees was not easy. Also it was multi chamber, with easy mini-colony only being big enough to hold over for a few weeks. Will I continue to use them? Well, yes, apart from anything else the project I’m about to outline is not proven.

What is a Super queen mating hive?

Put simply, the idea is to use a national super as a mating hive. The simplicity of taking a standard piece of hiveware, with standard frames with foundation; where the bees can be transferred easily by frame swapping from an active colony’s super.

Now using a whole super for one mating hive is a bit excessive, as as with my first DIY job, I split it into multiple parts. Given I wanted it to have it be a bit more self sustaining than the Apidea size model, I figured two frames would be too few, so three or more was the plan. A super fits 12 frames, but I needed a bit of space for walls between each compartment and for manipulation. Nine frames left a lot of space for brace comb, so I decided on having a 4, 3, 4 setup; having the extra advantage of trialling the different number of frames. The sections needed to be kept separate so the dividers needed to come up above the frames and to be affixed to the bottom.

 

The sections needed to be open-able independently to prevent the individual colonies fighting with each other on inspection. They also have a hole in the crown board for when I get round to making a feeder to support them.

 

Then finally, I decided they should exit the hive separately, two to the front, with their own ‘alighting board’ to land on ahead of entering through a small defend-able entrance.

What’s next?

Well I’m going to

  • cut a hole in the far side for the centre chamber
  • paint the entrances different colours to help prevent drifting. 
  • cut out the floor of each chamber and put mesh under them so they will have a varroa floor, and ventilation. 
  • make a roof for it 
  • make a stand for it 
  • add foundation to the frames that don’t have it.
Posted on

Visit two, sting two

A visit to check on the hives ahead of some very cold weather, just to check they were able to get to the food, and to swap liquid to fondant on two hives. My stingy friend decided to have ago at me again, but I think I might have found out why they are so upset. On taking the crown board off, I found that a mouse had found its way inside, munched away a comb and a half and brought in leaves and assorted bits and bobs to make a nest. Unfortunately their annoyed nature, the sting and the cold, persuaded me to put the lid back to return another day. It was my fault for not making a mouse guard for it.

In other news, of the five hives, two were a bit light, one had bees down below, and the other two boiled with bees as soon as I moves the fondant. The other apiary has the boiling with bees effect too as I swapped them from liquid to fondant.

Posted on

First sting of the year

Today I visited my hives for the first time this year. People at the local bee club had been talking about hives being on the light side, due to a mild winter, and I had just taken delivery of some fondant, so it was time for a visit. The other useful idea I had worked out was, rather than using a plastic bag to ‘apply’ the fondant to the bees, to use a plastic Chinese takeaway container. The benefits being that it would be easy to handle, easy to apply the same amount to each hive (and of course be reusable on top of the fact it was already being reused).

image

Anyway, I took the fondant to the first apiary. This hive still had an upturned bucket of thick syrup on top of it that was half full but I had been reliably informed that they would not take this in winter. I removed the bucket only to find that this was not as true as I had been led to believe, and the cloud of annoyed insects is what earned me my prize. Luckily I had my lovely new bee jacket on (more on that in another post, it arrived under the Christmas tree), but I don’t wear gloves, and this time I didn’t smoke as I hadn’t expected so much interest. Anyway I figured as they liked the syrup so much to top it up from the stores there, and put it back on. On this crown board, which I bought as part of a second hand hive, there were two holes, so to the bucket went on one and the fondant takeaway had its lid removed and was upturned over the other hole. Well can’t see those bees going short, unless it gets very cold. Either way I think I will be re-queening for some nicer bees there this year, they have always been a bit prone to stinging.

I went to the next apiary and the bees there were much nicer there. The first and second hive went without concern, covers off, bees seen, fondant on, close up. On the third hive, my tyrolean hive, I looked in and could not see any activity, although I could see honey stores; then I could hear some buzzing, the I saw them coming up from below. This hive has a commercial deep and a national super, I’d let them put sugar syrup in the super because I didn’t want to take any chances with this one, being the house for my Danish Lady buckfast queen. Anyway I fed them and wrapped them up again.

The next hive was fine and uneventful with one additional task of turning it 90deg to the south. The last however was different case. I’d left a miller feeder on this and a lot of bees had committed suicide in it. I removed that and found quite a small cluster underneath, so I’m not sure that will make it through. That hive needed turning too and I found, much to my annoyance, that the Thornes stand it was on, I’d only bought last year, was already rotting and wobbly. Grr, that will teach me to just make my own in future, or at least buy from elsewhere.

So, I have two more hives to do at the last apiary, and some extra woodwork to get done on top of the one brood box, 3 supers and 50 frames to assemble. Lucky I like that kind of thing.