Colony 47 is a remarkable colony. It started as a walkaway split last year. From colony 236. It is placed in apiary 4 as colony no 7. The split was moved from apiary 23 to apiary 4. When I checked
Colony 47
Clover, fertilizers and bees
In Wanganui Chronicles in New Zealand April 14 there’s an article by Rachel Rose titled Bees play vital role in food chain. In New Zealand they know bees are important for dairy and meat production. Yes, for dairy and for
Spring after winter in Indiana
Larry from Indiana wrote me March 30 about spring approaching at his side of the globe on about 39° latitude: Mother Nature continues to exact her winter revenge in the Midwest USA. Once again rain mixed with snow dominates the
Multitest colony prepare to boom
You know the MT-colony – testing natural positioning, plastic frames, mostly honey as winter store, and a mouse nest… A couple of days ago, about 12°C (52F) and sunny, still no fresh high value pollen (some from early blooming trees).
Honey for winter
In US I understand it’s more common than in Europe to let the bees keep honey for winter. On the other hand I’ve heard more and more beekeepers giving sugar for winter. And the discussion which sugar is the best
Plastic positioning and the mouse
You remember the previous post about the “multiple test”(MT)-colony, natural positioning, plastic frames, a mouse (or mice), mild winter and what a good condition this colony came out with now in spring. I’ve been thinking about it. Mild winter Yes
Natural positioning, plastic frames and a mouse
The bottom box with the cozy home of the mouse. To the right the two upper boxes full of bees, waiting for return on top of the bottom one. You know there is a front and a back, and up
First cleansing flight after winter
Autumn was warm, with bees flying in november. That’s rare. Winter was mild, only 2-3 weeks with steady freezing temperatures day and night in January. That’s rare too. Spring has come slow with temperatures just above freezing. Sun is rising
Only real treatment tell real mite population
Marco Moretti made a valid comment to the sugar shaker post. It doesn’t surprise me that Antonio Nanetti found checking mite populations besides a real treatment is unreliable. It is many factors making the results uncertain. Why beekeepers want to
Sugar Shaker
Larry Garret uses the powdered sugar shaker method to count mites. The method works well for his smaller number of colonies at each apiary and the tools are very easy to transport and store. Although there may be a slight