Natural Beekeeping International Forum

[The pollinator]

I have just found a few cells with larvae have chalkbrood the queen is laying well and the majority of brood unsealed looks fine .The bees are bringing in plenty of pollen and some honey would it be advisable to feed them as there food stores are not great .

[Barbara]

Many hives have chalk brood, certainly all of mine do, so as long as it's only a small amount, it's nothing to worry about.
If they are bringing in nectar and they have some capped stores there is no need to feed them and doing so might cause them to swarm.
They should regulate their brood production to the nectar flow which is pretty good at the moment, but of course, it is always a good idea to keep an eye on stores levels. Problems arise when they have very little and there is no nectar coming in to replace it. Here in the UK that usually means prolonged cold wet weather when either they can't forage or the blooms don't open enough for them to harvest it. It hotter drier climates, it is often when there is a drought and the plants cannot suck up enough water from the earth to produce nectar.

It sounds like your hive is doing pretty well at the moment.

[The pollinator]

Thanks Barbara
Ive never noticed that in my hives before they seem pretty happy and doing well I try to keep my bees happy and healthy and try to think of myself as a bee carer rather than beekeeper .