Checking the forum on the phone while steering those 500 ponies along a forest track will do that to a pallet of bees mate
Apiary Diary February 2021
- Thread starter Sailabee
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broken guide rail due to almost nonexistent welding and staff being rough with the foot control. flogged a couple of mounting bolts out.
so a winter welding job and probably a redesign of the foot control. probably make it a hand control and get rid of the spastic safety switch setup.
Ha ha ... very funny man ..... to busy thinking about the contract on the phone for a honey sale .....
No story tonite about the run over pallet ..... another story .....
Please Grant .... don't shift as it is Diary .....
We employed new labour . Young fellah out of town who recently married the Mayor of Horarata's daughter. He's a lovely young man who had applied for quite a few bee jobs, but always got turned down.
He's full of questions, brought up a 30 kg bucket the other day to fill from the bulk tank to take home and put down a brew with ...... good man.
Ex chef, ran out of work in Covid.
We were in the bee yard on Monday taking off honey and I hear this muttering behind me. I turn around and say to New Man ....
"Whadya say'
He politely says ' Comin in behind '
Oh crap .... I know we gotta be culturally sensitive and all that ...... but just how cultural and sensitive do you have to be.
No, No .... he explains ..... In the kitchen you always warned people where you where with a hot pan ......
I guess a hot pan is no different from a heavy box ..
Please Grant .... don't shift as it is Diary .....
We employed new labour . Young fellah out of town who recently married the Mayor of Horarata's daughter. He's a lovely young man who had applied for quite a few bee jobs, but always got turned down.
He's full of questions, brought up a 30 kg bucket the other day to fill from the bulk tank to take home and put down a brew with ...... good man.
Ex chef, ran out of work in Covid.
We were in the bee yard on Monday taking off honey and I hear this muttering behind me. I turn around and say to New Man ....
"Whadya say'
He politely says ' Comin in behind '
Oh crap .... I know we gotta be culturally sensitive and all that ...... but just how cultural and sensitive do you have to be.
No, No .... he explains ..... In the kitchen you always warned people where you where with a hot pan ......
I guess a hot pan is no different from a heavy box ..
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Dude, I've changed the whole way the diary thread runs to accommodate yer, but you're gonna have to wait for March for it to kick in.
Meanwhile actual hive observations can now go in this forum.
Rata has nearly finished in Otira. Bees are getting angry. Took sections off two days ago, all Rata by the colour. I will do this weekly until there is nothing drawn.
No they have not they are till between Kelly's and the village or were yesterday morning
Oh ... those are the other neighbours. I think they have to pay. Someone some dollars to remove the boulders
Hives are getting tall and the clover is still blooming.
Was doing some afb checks before putting on escapes and found brood slabs that I’m not too disappointed with.
Was doing some afb checks before putting on escapes and found brood slabs that I’m not too disappointed with.
Nice one Paul ... are you running singles or doubles.
We had 28 ml of rain yesterday which may bring the clover on for a while. Taking honey off today, we were shaking nectar from the brood .....nodding thistle.
We also went up into the bush and put boxes on and staples in some hives we made up at Christmas ..... hit and miss splits that we pulled off some singles as we had spare cells.
We had 28 ml of rain yesterday which may bring the clover on for a while. Taking honey off today, we were shaking nectar from the brood .....nodding thistle.
We also went up into the bush and put boxes on and staples in some hives we made up at Christmas ..... hit and miss splits that we pulled off some singles as we had spare cells.
They’re double FD BBs and there is brood like this upstairs and downstairs! Flippin’ unreal for this time of year.
@Alastair these queens are from the same mother that I sent you half a doz. Machines!
Putting down another graft tomorrow for a bit more splitting and when I was shaking extra nurse bees there was nectar going everywhere. And that’s in an apiary that I’ve long since harvested 😬
Global warming
Nice Paul, and I am very happy with your queens. Too soon for their bees to have taken over the hive and let me do a proper assessment of them as bees, but the queens are big and fat, the laying patterns are excellent, and the new bees from them looking pretty. Especially as I used them to requeen some particularly nasty aggressive hives and looking forward to the change in temperament.
I'm expecting good things
.
V nice Paul. Maybe something to do with superior stock & excellent queen cell production powerpoint presentation?!
Great photography
took some honey frames off my hives on wed.
my hive that was going great and i had not looked at since Dec was queenless.
there was some drone lava but no obvious sign of eggs.
i put a frame of eggs in that hive.
today i saw no sign of them making a queen cell and upon closer inspection around the frame of drone brood i saw some eggs laid on the cell wall.
i suspect a laying worker. i removed that frame of drone brood and put it in a nuc box away from the hive.
i am hoping the laying worker was on the frame.
i added another frame of eggs.
in a few days i shall check again and keep removing the frame with eggs if they are still happening.
my hive that was going great and i had not looked at since Dec was queenless.
there was some drone lava but no obvious sign of eggs.
i put a frame of eggs in that hive.
today i saw no sign of them making a queen cell and upon closer inspection around the frame of drone brood i saw some eggs laid on the cell wall.
i suspect a laying worker. i removed that frame of drone brood and put it in a nuc box away from the hive.
i am hoping the laying worker was on the frame.
i added another frame of eggs.
in a few days i shall check again and keep removing the frame with eggs if they are still happening.
Bees know best... that should be my mantra.
Never had such a full hive before... and I think it’s also honey locked. So added a box and can always reduce again for winter. But I figured 3 x ¾ would be ok for winter. Strips in as I have no intention of taking this honey.
Weird season, no idea what the flow is but must be weeds and clover.
Never had such a full hive before... and I think it’s also honey locked. So added a box and can always reduce again for winter. But I figured 3 x ¾ would be ok for winter. Strips in as I have no intention of taking this honey.
Weird season, no idea what the flow is but must be weeds and clover.
Not dry. The paddocks are green and full of clover. But the bees are in a ‘native compound’ (full of weeds)!
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