JOIN ME AT MY APIARY!
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So many people tell me how much they enjoy the video’s I make, the pictures I put up and my general chit chat about the honeybees on social media, I have now decided to put it all on to my blog, on a weekly basis, so you can have a real insight into what goes on at an apiary throughout the coming season.
But before I go on, I must add a caveat. My way is my way and may differ from other beekeepers methods. We all learn our skills from the bottom upwards and then work with them the way that suits us best! But like anyone with a hobby, that you share with others, we all look to one another for advice, when things aren’t going as you hoped or thought they should and we are all there to support each other.
All that, is to say, that what you will see me doing is ‘my way’ but if it helps new beekeepers learn something along the way… boom! If it inspires someone to become a beekeeper… boom! If helps people differentiate between wild bees and honeybees… boom! And, if people become more aware of how incredible honeybees are and of their importance to us and our planet then… double boom!
So join me, why don’t you, as I take you with me, every week, to my apiary throughout the season of 2024!
As you can see from the weather chart below, where I live in Herefordshire, we have had the usual highs and lows that February brings but with more rain than usual. This means that, although the temperature has, on good days reached 14° to 16° - the addition of rain means the honeybees cannot always get out to forage on the wonderful snowdrops, crocus and blossoms that are bidding them welcome.
Honeybees can sense when it’s going to rain from atmospheric changes and return to the hive before the rain starts to fall, or not even go out to forage at all if they sense that rain is on its way. They’re better than any weather channel at predicting rain!
Rain is the enemy of the honeybees when it comes to harvesting nectar. It dilutes the nectar in the flowers so they have to wait for it to strengthen before it’s of any use to them.
Why do I tell you this? It’s because of our unpredictable weather conditions that I keep a check on my hives throughout the winter and continue to feed them with fondant icing until the weather settles and the bees can get out more.
Why do I feed them fondant if they have stores in their hive? In winter the bees cluster around their queen. They don’t heat the entire hive, they concentrate only on keeping the cluster warm. If, during the course of the winter their stores have, through consumption, become further away from the cluster, when it’s cold they won’t leave it to go looking for food. When I go up to the bees I can tell from the Varroa Board, (a shelf that sits underneath the mesh floor), where in the hive the bees are from where their droppings are on the varroa board. The crown board that sits on top of the brood box, has holes in it. I put the fondant on top of the hole which is closest to their droppings which means the bees don’t have to go far to fetch their food. (The other holes are covered with a bee-escape so as not to let cold air in.).
If honeybees teach you anything, throughout the season, it’s never take anything for granted. Bit like life really! I always say they’re great teachers!
A new season is upon us. Spring is on it’s way. Snowdrops, crocus and many other blossoms are appearing on the trees and bushes and the queen will definitely be laying. A new colony is in the making. The ‘winter bees’ will start dying off as the new girls take their place.
What is a ‘winter bee’ I hear you ask?
During the spring and summer a honeybee lives for 6 weeks. The first three weeks she is developing inside the hive, (we call them ‘house bees’), and the final three weeks they, (the forager bees), are out flying, collecting pollen, nectar, water and propolis, everything that is required for the next generation. They selflessly work themselves to death.
As we get towards the end of August these bees die out completely and are replaced by a larger bee, the ‘winter bee’, who will look after the hive right the way through to March. They live for 5 or 6 months and it’s their job to look after the queen, help regulate the temperature of the cluster and care for the winter brood that will eventually inherit the colony in spring. Now their time is coming to an end and a new generation is preparing to take over. Exciting times!
Every week the honeybees bring something new to the table. I hope you enjoy your time with me… I’ll see you next week. Meanwhile I leave you with a picture of my girls making the most of a break in the weather!
”A work of art; and yet no art of man can work, this work, these little creatures can.”
(Geffrey Whitney)