Mar
23

Colony Inspection 23rd March 2019

Observations:

The weather has been warm and the temperatures have picked up and are now around 12 -14 C. Lots of blossom now out because of the very warm February.

Bees are very active and taking in pollen. This is the first inspection of the home apiary colonies and I wanted to to see how they are doing for stores as experience has told me that they get through more stores if the Winter is mild. All 5 colonies are low but 2 of them are bringing in quite a lot of nectar.

inspected the Mole River apiary on 30th March

Flowering: Quince, Cherry, Laurel And Gorse.

 

Added feeders to 3 of the colonies as the stores are low and if the weather turns colder they may struggle.

Hive Record
Colony
Q
BIAS
Brood
Stores
CommentNext Inspection
AquaYY5 frames, large brood pattern2 framesbees nice and clam, added feeder 1/2 full (emptied on Friday)check for queen and stores. Add super give size of colony
BlueYY2 frames with small patches of broodOKlot of dead bees on flooreither add brood frame from another colony , move to nuclear or unite
CyanYY5 + 2 on brood and halfbringing in stores into top box, but not much overallnice and calm bees, added feeder, 1/2 full (nearly gone by Friday)check for stores
DenimNY3 framesPlentynot many beescheck if expanding - considering uniting with Blue
EmeraldYY4 + 2 on brood and halfsome stores in end framesadded feeder 2/3 full (not taken much down by Friday)check for stores and expansion
FlaxYY4 biasOk.around 2KgsOnly on 7 framesAdd missing 4 frames
GreenYY3 bias, not many beesPlenty of storesNot as many eggs as FReplace manky frame and add 1 to get to 11
HoneydewNY4 frames, expandingPlentyLooks to be starting wellCheck if super needed