Well what a time I have had with the bees this season!
The weather has been so changeable, stormy & windy not good for taking off stores of honey. But with other committtments getting closer I had set aside on afternoon to take off the honey. I was a bit concerned about the weather, rainy..would the bees have used up all the honey stores?
Well. it started off OK, not alot of honey to take off just a few full sealed frames from hive 5. I brushed the bees off with the bee brush and started placing the full frames into an empty box placed on the wheelbarrow.
I moved onto hive 4. A big strong colony. I took off 2 supers that were full, brushing the bees off each frame again I placed them in the wheelbarrow. By now there were quite alot of flying bees around the wheelbarrow. I covered the frames over in the super with a crown board so the bees could not get back in - or so I thought..they sneaked in underneath where the wheel barrow's sides went up there was a 2 inch gap at the bottom - the supers did not sit flat. I moved the wheelbarrow further away into the shade and moved onto hive 3. As soon as I took the cover off I knew something was not right - no honey, I moved down into the brood chamber (where the queen, eggs and larvae live) some pollen, no queen, no eggs or larvae. Previous re-queening had not worked. Possible robbing from other bees or wasps? Closed the hive up and made a note that I will have ti unite 2 hives togehter or re-queen again. Moved onto hive 2, doing OK but will need feeding, not alot of honey, but enough for me to take off 2 supers three quarters full.
By now the air was thick and full of bees. They were very noisey - the weather had turned and it was feeling very muggy and stromy. We pushed the 2 wheelbarrows back away from the hives and were followed and joined by ever more retuning foraging bees. We decided to put them onto the woodden bench and open the supers up so the bees could fly home - big mistake!
3 out of 5 supers full of honey were completely robbed of honey stores. The bees had reclaimed their winter stores - and we lost the summer honey supplies, a year's bee keeping work.
Feeling very stupid, frustrated and fed up I had to accept it was nature's way. The bees are in charge, I am their guaradian and observer - not their keeper. It has been a costly reminder that beekeeping is a practical art that you can learn the theory by the book - but who wrote the book? certainly not the bees!
I'll extract the 3 reamining supers and let the bees keep what they reclaimed...they must need it, and it will be better for them than feeding sugar solution for their winter supplies.
The 2 new hives Rose & Hoenysuckle I have left alone and not tried to extract any honey this summer. The were bothe new swarms and need their supplies to see them over winter. They are both doing well with bees over 9/12 frames lovely temperments and easy to handle. The new brood and super frames I put in with them have all been drawn out - so they have worked hard this season.
Now I am looking into various natural methods of reducing verroa mite over winter. As an aromatherapist I can blend and mix various natural oils to help the bees and make up small patties to put in the hives - it's just finding the right combination! Research beings .....
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