Natural Beekeeping International Forum

[barshambees]

Hi All. Hoping you can help again.

I hived a 6 frame Nuc from a national, chop and crop style, and they are doing really well. I have been feeding them. Now they have drawn out 4 more bars. I now have the problem of wasps. I have the tops covered in Hessian, but there are still small gaps. I bought some Hoffman converter clips to space the top bars from the nuc, laid flat along the top bar ends (as opposed to being normally put vertically on the side bars).

These filled most of the gap at the ends where the top bars rest. The bees have propolised the Hessian down in top. But there are tiny gaps where the triangular part of the plastic converter doesn't touch the top of the hive. I think the wasps may be able to get in.

Any ideas what I can do to stop them? Or as there a just 6 small holes either side, will they cope?

Thanks in advance
Andy

[Adam Rose]

Go to a garage and buy a sponge. Cut the sponge into small squares and rectangles and squeeze them into the gaps between the ends of the bars until it's completely bee and wasp tight.

Reduce you entrances to one half on one hole.

And stop feeding if you haven't already. It was probably the feeding that caused the problem in the first place.

[barshambees]

Thanks Adam. I have a new sponge. I have stopped feeding.
Beekeepers have to be the most engineering / inventive people that I have come across.
Simple solutions to simple problems.......

Thanks again
Andy