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INTERNATIONAL * Natural Beekeeping online course UK * Balanced Beekeeping courses * British Black Bee Project * UK Plants database * UK DEFRA advisory info BEEHIVE PLANS * Phil Chandler - hTBH * John Vendy - hTBH * David Heaf - Warré * Nick Winters - Warré Garden Hive | ||
| Search found 978 matches |
| Author | Message |
|---|---|
 Topic: wasps again? |
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| Barbara Replies: 2 Views: 471 |
 Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2019 2:38 pm Subject: wasps again? |
| Hi and welcome
Sorry to hear that you have lost so many colonies to wasps. Usually it is weak colonies which succumb to wasps and or/other bees robbing them. I get the impression your hives are not ... |
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| Topic: What's happened? |
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| Barbara Replies: 2 Views: 787 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Thu Sep 26, 2019 9:07 pm Subject: What's happened? |
| Hi David and welcome back
I'm really not sure what happened except that Phil no longer seems to have the time and without his enthusiasm and drive, it has dwindled. I know we lost a lot of content ... |
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| Topic: Hole(s) drilled in follower boards |
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| Barbara Replies: 3 Views: 522 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Tue Sep 24, 2019 5:29 pm Subject: Hole(s) drilled in follower boards |
| I would imagine it is to allow bees into a feeding area beyond the follower for those times when they need a little help. Personally I prefer to put a feeder adjacent to them inside their end of the h ... | |
| Topic: Blackened combs |
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| Barbara Replies: 2 Views: 671 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Tue Aug 27, 2019 4:38 pm Subject: Blackened combs |
| Hi
So sorry that your colony has declined. Depending upon how old the colony is blackened comb can be normal. What was the history of the hive? Do you inspect regularly? When was the last time y ... |
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| Topic: First timer! |
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| Barbara Replies: 9 Views: 2456 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Tue Aug 20, 2019 11:14 am Subject: First timer! |
| Sadly there is nothing you can do to save those remaining bees.
Wasps are a real problem for weak colonies at this time of year and being observant and reducing the entrance size right down to one ... |
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| Topic: Feeding bees .... |
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| Barbara Replies: 3 Views: 823 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Sat Aug 10, 2019 6:04 pm Subject: Feeding bees .... |
| I would probably do it now, but take a couple of combs out so they have a little room to build new comb which may enable them to move stores from the brood nest and produce a few extra bees before win ... | |
| Topic: Feeding bees .... |
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| Barbara Replies: 3 Views: 823 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Sat Aug 10, 2019 5:09 pm Subject: Feeding bees .... |
| Are all four of the supers on that final hive full? If so then, yes giving one of them to the brood box only colony might not be a bad idea. You could still harvest one or two combs of capped honey fo ... | |
| Topic: Broken honeycomb help please |
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| Barbara Replies: 3 Views: 1178 |
Forum: URGENT Help needed now! Posted: Sat Aug 10, 2019 5:06 pm Subject: Broken honeycomb help please |
| Hi
For future reference if this happens again, it is best to leave the broken comb inside the hive for the bees to recover the honey out of. They will do this if you place it propped up in the back ... |
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| Topic: Reasons for swarming apart from overcrowding/honey bound |
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| Barbara Replies: 1 Views: 652 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Fri Aug 09, 2019 1:11 pm Subject: Reasons for swarming apart from overcrowding/honey bound |
| It is hard to comment on that particular case without seeing it but there is also a primitive urge to reproduce and that has a genetic element in that some bees will be more predisposed to swarming th ... | |
| Topic: First timer! |
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| Barbara Replies: 9 Views: 2456 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2019 7:56 pm Subject: First timer! |
| It is possible that the queen got injured during that comb collapse and they are trying to replace her or she was just not s strong queen to start with. Quality of virgin queens in cast swarms is pret ... | |
| Topic: Perone build with observation window. |
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| Barbara Replies: 7 Views: 1527 |
Forum: Perone Hive Posted: Thu Aug 01, 2019 12:36 pm Subject: Perone build with observation window. |
| In a natural vertical cavity like a hollow tree, the combs are long but not so many of them in number and the cluster moves upwards into their stores as winter progresses mostly between the combs with ... | |
| Topic: Perone build with observation window. |
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| Barbara Replies: 7 Views: 1527 |
Forum: Perone Hive Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 1:59 pm Subject: Perone build with observation window. |
| If you are a joiner, then a cathedral hive might be something else you might like to build. Basically it is a Kenyan TBH but with a vaulted roof/top bars. The advantage is that the combs have more sup ... | |
| Topic: Perone build with observation window. |
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| Barbara Replies: 7 Views: 1527 |
Forum: Perone Hive Posted: Tue Jul 30, 2019 12:05 am Subject: Perone build with observation window. |
| No reason why not. People incorporate them into Warre Hives too.
I will be interested to read how you fare with your Perone if you go ahead. My personal feeling is that my bees prefer smaller volume ... |
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| Topic: Do bees care about e.g. screw heads inside hives? |
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| Barbara Replies: 5 Views: 1121 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Wed Jul 17, 2019 12:33 pm Subject: Do bees care about e.g. screw heads inside hives? |
| If it is on the inside of the hive and sealed with beeswax, it should be fine. I have a hive made out of a veneered chipboard corner cabinet intended for indoor use and it has been in use as a hive fo ... | |
| Topic: Do bees care about e.g. screw heads inside hives? |
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| Barbara Replies: 5 Views: 1121 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 4:26 pm Subject: Do bees care about e.g. screw heads inside hives? |
| As you realise the screws will draw heat away from the inside to some extent but not sure it will be a huge issue unless you have lots of them. They may snag on your knife when you are cutting away co ... | |
| Topic: Do followers poke through the eco floor? |
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| Barbara Replies: 4 Views: 1237 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Mon Jul 08, 2019 1:22 pm Subject: Do followers poke through the eco floor? |
| The important thing is to ensure that the body of the hive is bee tight (or more importantly wasp tight, apart from the entrance of course. Any gaps where wasps can sneak in round the back, where ther ... | |
| Topic: Do followers poke through the eco floor? |
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| Barbara Replies: 4 Views: 1237 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Fri Jul 05, 2019 4:05 pm Subject: Do followers poke through the eco floor? |
| Simple answer is no, just like they don't have to be a perfect "bee-tight" fit to the sides. | |
| Topic: Apiary location (aka where do bees fly?) |
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| Barbara Replies: 1 Views: 1178 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Wed Jul 03, 2019 1:57 pm Subject: Apiary location (aka where do bees fly?) |
| Hi Josh. Your concerns are I think unfounded. Unless the bees have found a fantastic source of pollen and nectar, you are very unlikely to see a stream of bees travelling in any direction. I have 10 h ... | |
| Topic: Sac Brood |
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| Barbara Replies: 3 Views: 1616 |
Forum: Ask a Bee Inspector Posted: Sun Jun 30, 2019 4:23 pm Subject: Sac Brood |
| What is the brood pattern like? Is there any drone brood?
It sounds like there may be some problem with the queen bearing in mind the time it took to come into lay and they are probably looking to r ... |
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| Topic: Sac Brood |
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| Barbara Replies: 3 Views: 1616 |
Forum: Ask a Bee Inspector Posted: Sat Jun 29, 2019 12:00 pm Subject: Sac Brood |
| So sorry to hear both about your friend not being well and the hard decision you made to destroy the colony. My gut feeling is that these viruses are in the environment anyway and a strong healthy col ... | |
| Topic: First timer! |
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| Barbara Replies: 9 Views: 2456 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 1:36 pm Subject: First timer! |
| Sorry to hear you had some comb collapse... it happens and probably a good idea to have rescue bars to hand when you do an inspection. That said, I think you will struggle to reattach them in those te ... | |
| Topic: First timer! |
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| Barbara Replies: 9 Views: 2456 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Thu Jun 13, 2019 3:25 pm Subject: First timer! |
| Hi again.
Sadly waxed grooves are not the most reliable form of comb guide and most people use a triangular profile wood guide, rubbed with bees wax under the bars. Even then it is not infallible a ... |
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| Topic: Odd top bar problem |
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| Barbara Replies: 2 Views: 890 |
Forum: URGENT Help needed now! Posted: Mon Jun 03, 2019 2:11 pm Subject: Odd top bar problem |
| Hi
Sorry for the delayed reply. I think you have the following choices..... 1. Cut it out and reattach to rescue bars.... top bars with chicken wire attacked that the combs can be hooked onto. ... |
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| Topic: New to Beekeeping and Warre Hive |
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| Barbara Replies: 2 Views: 1491 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Mon Jun 03, 2019 1:28 pm Subject: New to Beekeeping and Warre Hive |
| Hi and welcome
The way I look at feeding is that the difference between a package of bees and a natural swarm is that the bees in a swarm packed a picnic in preparation to leaving the hive to set u ... |
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| Topic: Not taking syrup |
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| Barbara Replies: 5 Views: 1708 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Thu May 23, 2019 6:11 pm Subject: Not taking syrup |
| Sad to hear that you purchased a package of bees to populate your TB hive because it is a trade that, as Natural Beekeepers, we try to discourage because of the unethical way in which they are often p ... | |
| Topic: Deleted |
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| Barbara Replies: 7 Views: 1960 |
Forum: Horizontal top bar hives Posted: Sat May 18, 2019 1:24 pm Subject: Deleted |
| Is there a reason why you are keen for them to build up quickly. That can bring problems of it's own like possibly swarming late in the season. It is still very early in the year for bees to build up ... | |
| Topic: 20 day old colony in HTBH - Inspection technique advice |
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| Barbara Replies: 3 Views: 1440 |
Forum: Beginners start here Posted: Sat May 18, 2019 1:16 pm Subject: 20 day old colony in HTBH - Inspection technique advice |
| Hi Tim
Pleased your young colony are doing well. Taking photos of both sides of each bar would be better still. If you build a comb stand you can just remove the bar, put it on the stand, a quick p ... |
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| Topic: North East UK swarm list being composed |
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| Barbara Replies: 1 Views: 1116 |
Forum: Swarms and sites - offered and wanted Posted: Wed Apr 17, 2019 2:33 pm Subject: North East UK swarm list being composed |
| It is fast approaching swarming season and this glorious weather will almost certainly hasten that.
I am compiling my annual swarm list, so if you are looking for a swarm to populate a hive this s ... |
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| Topic: Large swarm capture in Florida |
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| Barbara Replies: 4 Views: 1472 |
Forum: TV, Video, Blogs and Other Media Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 7:49 pm Subject: Large swarm capture in Florida |
| That is so interesting. Two swarm seasons!
Do you find that once they swarm the parent colony seems to take a break and rest on it's laurels? Here, my hives will throw up to 4 swarms in May and Ju ... |
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| Topic: Large swarm capture in Florida |
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| Barbara Replies: 4 Views: 1472 |
Forum: TV, Video, Blogs and Other Media Posted: Sun Mar 17, 2019 2:39 pm Subject: Large swarm capture in Florida |
| Wow! That is a whopper! So weird to watch your videos when we are still so far off swarming season. It really is amazing how many swarms you get in Florida and the length of the season..... do you in ... | |
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