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Category: Queen Rearing

25th May 202024th June 2020 Jim Featured, Hive Husbandry, Inspection, Queen Rearing

This Year’s Queens

Two of this years queens successfully mated and laying now, so I marked them today. Both colonies aught to do well, they are nice and strong, and in a good location.

19th April 2019 Jim Featured, Inspection, Queen Rearing, Swarm Control

Start of a new season

I did the first proper inspection of the year today, checking all the hives in my garden. All were lovely and strong, plenty of bees and brood, but one was a bit low on stores, so I will have to keep my eye on that one. I moved the overwintered nucs into hives for them … Continue reading Start of a new season

20th March 2019 Jim Featured, Hive Husbandry, Queen Rearing

Spring Build Up

31st August 201810th December 2018 Beekeeping Equipment, Hive Husbandry, Maintenance, Queen Rearing

End of season work

I'm taking advantage of the decent weather and painting a load of new poly mating nucs so I think it's time that I tidy up the stands for them too - 'insect friendly' paint being used, of course. I also have some new Maisemore's 6 frame poly nucs to paint. I use Valspar "Oxford Blue' … Continue reading End of season work

21st August 201810th December 2018 Hive Husbandry, Queen Rearing

Looking good

I inspected all my garden hives and nucs today, and merged some of the mating nucs to make larger colonies for over-wintering. I have to say, I am very happy with the queens I have produced this year, they have all come on really strong, have lovely brood patterns and are very calm. I got … Continue reading Looking good

5th August 201810th December 2018 Hive Husbandry, Making Increase, Queen Rearing

Planning ahead

After a bit of hive husbandry and swapping frames between a couple of hives and nucs, shaking in some nurse bees etc I have done what I think will be the last grafts for this year. 20 grafts gone into a starter colony, with a frame of soon to emerge brood and some nurse bees … Continue reading Planning ahead

25th July 201811th December 2018 Beekeeping Equipment, Hive Husbandry, Inspection, Making Increase, Queen Rearing

New Queen, New Palace

I moved the nucleus colony with my new breeder queen into a full-sized hive today, it was too hot to wear a bee suit or jacket, so I wore just a hat and face veil. I'm pleased to say that even though my smoker was lit, and on standby, I did not have to use … Continue reading New Queen, New Palace

24th July 201811th December 2018 Making Increase, Queen Rearing

New Breeder Queen

I had a phone call last week, from Marco Melo of Api-Bees in Kent, offering me a new breeder queen, with a colony of bees in a poly nuc. I was very happy to accept Marco's offer, and we arranged a time for me to collect the nuc from Marco's home in Kent. I tied … Continue reading New Breeder Queen

20th July 201811th December 2018 Hive Husbandry, Queen Rearing

Queens All Doing Well

I inspected all the hives and nucs in my garden apiary today, all looking good I'm happy to say. The queens from my own queen rearing programme are all doing very well, with nice solid, healthy looking brood pattern. I also introduced 2 new virgin queens into nucs, hopefully they'll be out on their mating … Continue reading Queens All Doing Well

18th July 201811th December 2018 Hive Husbandry, Queen Rearing

Good all round

I inspected the hives at my out apiaries today, all in good order and the new queens are laying well. I found a new queen in one of the hives at Friars Green and marked her. One of the new queens that I placed into a hive two weeks ago is laying up a storm, … Continue reading Good all round

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