This is a comb from a mating nuc which we ran without frames as a trial; it may represent a change of approach for us in future years as it presents a lovely option for growing the colony on into a larger hive....
Yet again we have a scratch-built comb with the cell walls orientated opposite to the 'text book' position. This is a comb from a mating nuc which we ran without frames as a trial; it may represent a change of approach for us in future years as it presents a lovely option for growing the colony on into a larger hive.... By using top-bars we're able to transfer the mating nuc combs into empty frames, the bees then follow the existing comb and fill out the frame. At a later point these unwired combs can be replaced but initially they present an opportunity to create new colonies very cheaply
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It may seem that all of our queens are of an orange variety, giving rise to the usual mixed appearance of the workers that we become so used to seeing but occasionally we find a throwback to a more uniform appearance, in this case the entire colony has a dark look about it, very 'carnica' like.
Below is a photo of the frames that they're on at present; a very basic construction put together out of cheap timber using our frame assembly jig which we blogged about last year. We over wintered them on five of these half size frames (approx area equal to two and a half langstroth combs) in an OSB box. At present they're being used to build more mating nuc combs for use in July. Back in the spring we did a short post about some small mating nucs which we'd built entirely from scrap wood; small off-cuts which were far too small for anything else we could think of at the time. We're now seeing the first of them finally put into use... Always lovely to see a new queen laying.
Total cost in financial terms? A few pence for the nails and a tiny amount of syrup just to give them a foothold when they were initially made up. Spent a few hours putting together a few bait hives today. In the past we've never used any specific design; empty broods and double nuc boxes probably being our favourite -because they've been available. This year we are making a few top bar nucs based around the warre idea but not strictly following the 'proper' design. In future years, as empty broods and nuc boxes become fewer in number this may well become a standard, cheap design for us. The photo is actually of an old modified dadant brood body which just happened to be waiting for some repair work... Do you overwinter 'spare' queens? Each year we try to leave a queen in each of our larger mating nucs as an insurance policy against winter losses; a spare queen at this time of year can save an otherwise good stock that has a drone-laying queen. Of course, we usually have plenty left over which we can then use to head increase nucs in May. Another advantage is that this method keeps the mating nuc frames stocked so when the time comes to place the first batch of queen cells we don't have the hassle of restocking empty mating boxes. Considering the winter which these small wooden nucs have been subjected to (relentless easterly winds for over two months) they seem to be doing really well for themselves. The frames are approximately the same size as a half length dadant shallow (langstroth medium) frame. The box in this photo holds eight frames during the winter months but is large enough to receive a central division board later in the season so that we have two four frame mating nucs in each box. There's recently been some interesting internet discussion regarding the application of oxalic acid by the trickling method. Dr Karin Alton of LASI has recommended that prior to applying the trickling method the colony needs to be checked for any sealed brood which, if found, should be uncapped by the beekeeper. The premise being that if mites are protected within sealed cells the oxalic application will be far less effective than it can be. This makes perfect sense but has caused some people to show great concern that such an intrusive intervention will have serious negative effects on their colonies. The initial exchange of views (and knowledge) has taken place on facebook, on the London Beekeepers Association page and LASI's own 'Laboratory of Apiculture and Social Insects' page. Worth taking the time to read Dr Alton's views if you can; who knows, it may make the difference. For now, here are a few more general photos, it's great to look through the seasons photos at this time of year. During the depths of winter it's possible that a colony may start to run low of stores. While this may be the result of initially going into winter with insufficient reserves to see them through it can equally occur in a colony which, well prepared the previous Autumn, has simply continued to rear brood due to a mild spell of weather, all the time consuming food which in a colder year might have lasted so much better. If for any reason we think that this may be the case then we need to take action to ensure the survival of our stock. Traditionally the method of choice was to make bee 'candy' and to place a block of this on top of the hive (very often, on or around, Christmas day; quite a nice family tradition for a beekeeper to add to such an important seasonal event). Recent years have seen many people move towards the idea of feeding fondant which can be purchased in blocks ready to distribute amongst the hives but really, if we only have a few colonies then traditional candy is an easy solution to consider and not at all difficult. We're just putting together a photo slideshow to demonstrate how we make candy which we'll be posting in the next couple of days. When making up frames we use a simple jig which can be built out of scrap wood but will give excellent service for many years if looked after. The one shown in these photos is designed for our own special mating nuc frames but you can build your own version to accommodate whichever frame you use. The keys to the construction are that 1. It should be a top bee space configuration. 2. The sidewalls should touch the sidebars when they are placed in position (we don't want a beespace at the sides). You can make the jig to any length that you find convenient as there's absolutely no need for it to take exactly the same number of frames as the hive box does. |
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