Tag: swarming

Queen bee diagram showing area of wing to clip off
1 Apr 24 Walrus

Clipping Queens Is A Good Idea

Queen bee by ISLA Bousfield-Donohoe The temperatures here have been about normal, I reckon, but the rainfall seems worse than usual. Nevertheless, there will be strong colonies somewhere in my apiaries which will be getting into ‘swarming mode’ in the…
Honey Bee Queens
images of swarms caught in 2022
8 May 23 Walrus

How To Handle Swarm Season

Three swarms last year You could write a book on the subject of ‘how to handle swarm season’, and several people have. In the one thousand or so words allotted to this blog post, I shall therefore have to miss…
Swarming
Newly painted Kieler mating nucs
10 Aug 22 Walrus

Murphy’s Law Applies To Bees

Kieler mating nucs Some Of My Beekeeping Mistakes Murphy's Law - "If anything can go wrong, it will" - comes from a chap in the US Air Force in the 1940s. He was involved in testing new engineering designs. Perhaps…
Beekeeping
Land Rover Discovery Sport
2 May 21 Walrus

In a bit of a tizzy

Bee Wagon Some weird stuff is going on. There I was, getting on with my life and feeling great when the Gods decided to remind me of my insignificance. Admittedly I'm one of those who tend to see the negatives…
Spring
Darth Vader
13 Jun 20 Walrus

Darth Walrus

Darth Vader I have just completed a Star Wars marathon, which involved watching all of the Star Wars movies and stories in the correct chronological order on Disney+. One film per evening, for eleven straight evenings. In order, they are:…
Steve Donohoe
A 2017 queen in 2020
28 May 20 Walrus

Loving it!

A 2017 queen in 2020 The bees don't care about COVID-19; in fact, they seem to be having a great time. I don't know if it's the reduced air pollution, the beautiful weather or something else, but my bees are…
Queen Rearing
2013 Swarm hanging off branch
24 Dec 19 Walrus

Swarm Predictor

2013 Swarm As I was thinking ahead to next spring and summer, and reflecting on seasons past, I decided to check my records to look at swarming. In the season just gone swarming kicked off much earlier than I'd seen…
Swarming
The Kyles of Bute from Anchorage House
9 Jul 19 Walrus

Science Vs. Experience

The Kyles of Bute I love science. I've even got a chemistry degree, but don't ask me about it because that was over thirty years ago. As soon as I left university, I went to the City to do accountancy.…
Swarming