Pests and Posies

 

2020 continues to be a challenging year for everyone, but back in the spring we tried to mitigate things a little for our bees. We decided to turn over a section of our land to provide forage for pollinating insects; we're very lucky here to have the space to do that! In April the field was ploughed and we spent a few back-breaking days clearing it of roots and stones, then after the earth was tilled, we had fun sowing around 5kg of mixed wildflower seed. Stunning purple phacelia was the first to appear at the end of May, then over the next few months cornflowers, calendula, cosmos, zinnia, crimson clover, poppies and anemones showed up in force. Our delight was shared with that of bumble bees, honey bees, butterflies and many more, and we are overjoyed to see that the flowers are still blooming even in mid November. Even better, new young phacelia plants are growing again, so hopefully we'll have some early flowers next year too. With everything else going on in the world, the spirits are certainly lifted when a cloud of purple and pink blossoms greet you on a gloomy day.

 

Unfortunately the Asian hornets are also thriving this year, and our bees have been under sustained attack for a couple of months now. We have done our best to protect them by fitting muzzles on the hives and restricting the entrances so that the hornets can't get in. We've also put out several traps which are specifically designed to trap Asian hornets, minimising the amount of other insects that are caught. As yet we haven't been able to find the nest which is a real shame, but we're hoping that the coming winter will mean the workers will die off and we'll have trapped young queens before they go into hibernation. We'll be ready for them when they emerge in a couple of months, and will do our utmost to trap them before they start making new nests.

Here's to better days...

Cheeky Blighters!

Last week we moved a couple of hives to a new location elsewhere in our meadow. The colonies in these hives have grown quickly this Spring and all of a sudden there were far too many bees flying close to the house for my comfort.

A Surprise Visitor!

At this time of year we are usually very busy running our beekeeping taster sessions and other courses but, due to the current lock-down situation, we have had to postpone those. Our work as beekeepers doesn’t stop though, and we still have the challenges of ‘swarm season’ to face, as well as ensuring our colonies are healthy. We also keep an eye out for predators and pests, and have the perennial debate over the issue of whether or not to put out hornet traps. 

While Asian hornets are an acknowledged threat to honeybees, and in our experience a very real problem, we also are keen to avoid killing any ‘innocent bystanders’

Hello and Goodbye!

Thanks to the current virus pandemic, 2020 is turning out to be quite a different year from the one we had planned, but our bees are carrying on as if nothing has changed. Lockdown caused by adverse weather is the only thing they are experiencing and, like us, when they can get out, they do!

Spring is always an exciting time of year; we’ve got our colonies through the winter, we’ve found the queens and checked that they are laying, and we’ve seen pollen being brought in by the foragers. We’ve noted how rapidly the numbers of bees are increasing – it’s still amazing to see a baby bee hatching, pushing its way out of a wax cell, and to see newly-emerged fluffy pale drones wandering around on the frames. It’s now that we have to pay attention to what the bees’ plans are, and to keep an eye open for queen cells, and if the bees are planning to swarm and propagate the colony, or replace the queen without dividing the colony.

Honeybee swarm hanging 5 metres up!

Typically, if we judge the bees are planning to swarm, we try to beat them to it, and split the colony so that we don’t lose the majority of them. I swear our bees wait until our backs are turned and then they’re off! There they are, quietly getting on with the business of constructing comb, storing nectar, generally moseying around – we say ‘hello’, don’t spot the queen cell (usually covered in bees) and the next thing we know, they’re cheerily waving ‘goodbye’ as they thrum up into the air. Well, this year we were ready for them, and within a matter of days we went from six colonies to ten. During the current situation, beekeepers are allowed ‘out’ with the correct paperwork, and in the past fortnight we have been asked to collect four more swarms. We’ve seen queens in all of the swarms we captured, so now we just have to check that they are laying in their new homes….wish us luck!

Stay safe and enjoy your beekeeping. If you have any questions about bees, please call us or email us and we’ll try out best to help.

What is a bee's favourite take-away food?

When the weather isn't great, it seems unfair that bees have to go looking for their food when the rest of us have so many easier options... (well some options for those of us living in rural France!).  As Spring approaches though, things on the food front do change for the better for our girls and as more plants and trees start to come to life, the range of pollen and nectar available grows which means a varied diet and (hopefully) healthy young bees.

We have a challenge for the eagle-eyed this week!  How many different 'take-aways' are the bees bringing back to their hives where you are?  Or, how many different colours of pollen can you see on the bees' back legs, just flying around the garden?

You know when your bees have been ‘tanged’!

Firstly, Happy New Year to all!  We hope you had a chance for some relaxation recently and are as keen as we are to embrace 2020 with gusto :-)  To get the ball rolling, here's a first blog which was inspired by our swarm planning for this year... it's amazing what you can find!
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Winter is almost behind us, so we’re now looking forward to the challenges of the new beekeeping season. In no time at all the bees will be flying and, if all goes well, swarming. Despite careful checks and the utmost vigilance, everyone who has ever kept bees will have, at some point, missed a swarm. The noise bees make when swarming is incredible and unmistakeable, a large thrumming dark cloud, growing bigger and bigger as more bees leave the hive.