This was my first apiary visit of the year and also the last apiary visit as a unmarried man! In a few days I will be married!! I have been getting rather exited and commenting every time I do something for the last time before I get wed. Anyway, back to the apiary visit...
The visit was the first time I have seen the Bees this year however I have had a couple of reports from my dad saying how active they were; one particularly warm day he said that there were hundreds of them flying in and out of the hive carrying baskets full of pollen. This is an especially good sign as if they are bringing in pollen then they must be feeding young larva which in turn is a good indication of a laying queen. So far this spring has had some really warm days and there are plenty of trees already in full bloom not to mention the daffodils and other bulbs.
When I went to visit the apiary it had been a sunny day but not as warm as the last week. Due to this my visit was very short, just enough to see the Bees really. When I arrived and suited up I notice there was no activity outside the hive but when I put my head next to it I could hear a gentle buzz from within. I removed the hive roof and was surprised that the fondant I had added was still there in part, I had been fairly panicked that they would have consumed it all! When I put the fondant on there were 2 tubs full and now 1 was completely empty and the other was nearly full! After I had removed the tub I could see the Bees inside and although I didn't fully open the hive, what I could see inside was plenty of female worker Bees crawling about the comb and no sign of any drones! I believe the production of drones will start soon when the Bees get into swarm season.
I made a short video of what I could see. In the video you can see where the Bees have been eating the fondant from the tub, also you can see where the other tub has been placed as there is layer of fondant still on the crown board. Unfortunately you can also see where I have been a little clumsy and killed a couple of Bees by placing the fondant on top of them, I was a lot more careful when replacing the fondant this time.
Congratulations on the wedding!
ReplyDeleteThis is a really nice blog and I am going to follow it if you don't mind.
I am very interested in keeping bees but before I start, I will be following your blog so I learn and hopefully do not make too many mistakes!
Everyone says I am mad to think of it and I had to admit I hadn't seen anyone selling honey round here or even seen a bee. Then two things happened. I found your blog and then I swished a buzzing insect away as I was typing and saw it was an African honey bee.
They're out there somewhere but as to how I collect a swarm I am not entirely sure. The bees are mean buggers here.
Glad you enjoyed reading. I am still only in my first year as a beekeeper so there are many mistakes left for me to try. I'm not sure how acquiring bees works in Africa. In the uk generally bees are bought as a nucleus hive while in America the norm is a package of bees, which is basically a swarm in a box. I would search the internet and ask around a lot first. I think a lot of my friends think I am mad also!
DeleteIt is an excellent read and the fact that you are a sophomore is excellent as it means that you will make all the mistakes and the following Freshman, this one in parrticular, won't! Effectively, I am that oily little kid sat next to you in class copying your notes.
DeleteI have no idea how to acquire bees in Angola and this will be my biggest hurdle. They can be quite mean and tend to live in hollow trees and logs but kids go in there with a bit of burning brush and scoop all the honeycomb out. Since the war ended ten years ago so many new enterprises have sprung up so maybe someone has started commercial bee keeping. I am trying to find out but this place is not blessed with the internal communications network more common to developed countries so most of it is still word of mouth.
I will of course, let you know how I get on. One problem will be dressing up in net curtains and a biological warfare suit when the kids here shin up a tree clad only in tattered shorts. I might lose a bit of street cred. I did ask them, casual like, about getting stung and they assured me I would get used to it.
I am quite lucky with my bees, they are gentle and I have only been stung twice. They often fly around my head as if they are saying hello! The stings I've had have been painful but not unbearable, however I have yet to receive a face sting and they apparently hurt a lot!
DeleteJust read your mead recipe. I never realised it was so easy.
ReplyDeleteThe honey we can buy in Angola is collected by hand from wild hives (usually in hollw trees, those sorts of places) and is a rich caramel colour and is packaged into empty 1.5 litre mineral water bottles (complete with a few dead bees and other bits and pieces). As an aside, it is very good for treating tropical ulcers or infected cuts and scrapes.
Surely this raw, natural honey would make the finest mead?
Just one question, though. We have a consistently high ambient temperature here (like your hot summers). Would that affect the process or give me problems?
The mead recipe is for a super quick simple mead however, I find it absolutely lovely. I have just finished drinking a couple of bottles in the last few days. I have played with the method slightly and where I live it takes a little longer to ferment, about a month and a half. With a higher ambient temperature it would probably ferment quicker as long as it want too hot. If kept in a dark area that may help stop the temperature getting too high. One thing I would recommend would be to filter the dead bees out!
DeleteThe honey is far more runny than the processed stuff in jars I remember so I was thinking of warming it gently in a Bain Marie before straining it as only slightly above ambient it flows nice and thin. I will get my brother to send me the yeast from Germany as well as the other kit I need. I can get large wine carafes wich will substitute demi johns and they are dark brown glass so that and the shady place I have in mind for them should cut out the light. I really am looking forward to trying this. Let's see what the Angolan's think of it!
DeleteJust as an aside, I thought you just got married and here you are admitting that for the last few days you have been polishing off your own Mead? Faced with that or a bride moaning with desire in the marital bed, this mead must be shit hot...
DeleteI can't wait to see how it turns out.
DeleteThe word honeymoon it's apparently derived from ye olde speake and refers to drinking mead for a month to help conceive! We are not going for that just yet but a glass or 2 (or more) can't harm!
They call Honeymoon 'Lua da Mel' here which means, erm, Honey Moon.
ReplyDeleteJust thought I would share that one with you.
I have no hives yet but one of my customers has told me about a wild hive in the forest across the road so we are going for a look in the morning.
They say it is the carbon dioxide in exhaled breath (or halitosis) that sets them off so if I can hold my breath for half an hour I should be OK.
Lol, good luck with that! I'll stick to my suit! Visited my bees earlier and I think I would have been stung a few times in the face if I didn't have my protective gear on!
DeleteWith all that facial hair I didn't think you needed any extra protection!
ReplyDeleteYeah it was an impressive beard, it is slightly more under control now as I tidied it up slightly for the wedding!
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