The Poultry Keeper

layla · Joined: 26 Oct 2007 Posts: 532 Location: West Midlands

Helloooo i'm a beekeeping virgin too Very Happy

,we've had them four months now.We have two hives in the chicken run (Fenced off part of the garden).They seem to live quite happily side by side with the girls.They are currently being fed on fondant (yummy or what!).Can't wait to get honey next year. We managed to get a jar full a month or so ago and entered it in a couple of shows and won highly commended certificates in both shows Cool

not bad for a virgin eh! Wink

Hugs Layla x

Itsybitsy · Joined: 11 Feb 2006 Posts: 1325 Location: Leicestershire

Hi. Well re reading that my year went downhill from then on! the rape flowered too early before stocks had built up enough to take advantage, then they started to make preparations to swarm so I had to make an artificial swarm, then I ended up feeding them in the summer. Added to that one hive is a touch on the nasty side, and now we're back into winter, I have 3 hives all of which have done nothing but cost me money and I haven't had a single drop of honey Confused

Maybe better luck next year

Itsybitsy

nigel · Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 6:22 am Post subject:

It wasn't a good year, the wet summer made things very difficult. We got two new hives last spring. One is very strong and we got around 25lb of early season honey from that. We anticipated a really good summer crop, I was expecting at least 60lb per hive we ended up with a total of 50lb of summer honey which under the circumstances i think is bl**dy brilliant. Didn't need to feed as the brood box was jammed full of honey. I want another couple of hives next year, I'll have to talk nicely to the Frederik the young bee farmer we got these from they've been good stock.

It's a real disappointment when you don't get any honey, I remember we didn't in our first season.

Itsy if that nasty hive gets any worse I'd consider requeening, Andy once gave me the address of a guy he recommends but I don't think I still have it. I'm sure he wouldn't mind you asking him though.

Layla, well done on winning your awards, I never got round to entering any of our honey into the local shows.

Itsybitsy · Joined: 11 Feb 2006 Posts: 1325 Location: Leicestershire

Thanks Nigel - I'm aready on the case! I have had the offer of a queen but wasn't able to find the old one, but the offer still stands, haven't re contacted the man (he's my bee mentor anyway). When I went through them to try and find the queen, he recommended heavily smoking them - so I did and didn't get stung once (usually about 3 or more times per opening of that hive) I then went through the other two and by the third one my smoker had gone out all bar a single puff so that hive really had no smoke but they weren't too much bother and nobody followed me back. . . I did sometimes think it was me being paranoid but that excercise showed me it isn't me!

The supers I put on were all new foundation and none of them managed to properly draw enough out to store honey and with the dry July I had to end up feeding Evil or Very Mad

The only good side of it is if I haven't produced any honey then I haven't eaten vast quantities of it on fresh home made bread with teeth marking thick butter Laughing

Itsybitsy

layla · Joined: 26 Oct 2007 Posts: 532 Location: West Midlands

Mmmmmmm honey! Other half did get stung a month or so back, we took the mickey (as you do ) Laughing

he was

his hand swelled up to three times it's normal size and he said it itched like mad. Looked like he was morfing into a fat boy Smile

Had to swallow a few pills .All is normal now ! well normal as he'll ever b but thats nothing to do with the bee sting lol.

Nigel they are soooooo fussy at the shows (no bubbles in the honey and all that Wink

) It's all good fun.

Hugs Layla
xx

skye girl · Joined: 27 Aug 2005 Posts: 638 Location: Isle of skye

mmmmm, all interesting stuff, we are looking into getting a couple of hives before next spring, for the Heather hill at the back of us(Heather honey Yum yum )but OH is starting to wonder a bit as he got a few books on Bees and has had a slight panic attack, I said to him if you read a book on Chickens you would not think anything would get out of an egg never mind die of old age, anyone with any advice please pm me please with encouraging advice or my dream for Bees will buzzzzz off Pray

Itsybitsy · Joined: 11 Feb 2006 Posts: 1325 Location: Leicestershire

I went on a course, I have a certificate of competence - although I don't know where to hang it so the bees can read it Laughing

If you can't get on a course do you know any beekeepers locally? that you can hang around with when they are doing their "stuff"? Or where is your local beekeeping society - course that may be mainland based so not very helpful, but there will be people to help you on the end of the phone. I have two mentors ( who give conflicting advice sometimes)

Failing that get a good book, there is a lot of rubbish written about bees and beekeeping but I will swear by ROB Manley. He died in about 1977 so his books are written in a rather old fashioned vein, but it's mostly as relevent today as it was then, the only update you would need is with regard to Varroa. I bought an armful of books from a second hand stall and one of my mentors gave me a Manley book and I've never looked at the others since.

Itsybitsy

skye girl · Joined: 27 Aug 2005 Posts: 638 Location: Isle of skye

Isle of skye has a society, they rang OH and told him not to get Bee's from anywhere but Wester-ross, highlands and Islands, and hung up, did not tell him were they hung out or anything Confused

nigel · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 4:02 pm Post subject:

best book i could recommend is

Guide to Bees and Honey by Ted Hooper, it is my bible and the one our local bee inspector recommended

Normally Beekeepers are a more friendly lot than what you describe, I'm guessing the man you contacted is the one listed here if not maybe you could give him a ring.

There is a beekeeping forum here it's not quite as lively or as busy as this one, but they are a friendly and helpful lot. I know there are some active scottish members.

Itsybitsy · Joined: 11 Feb 2006 Posts: 1325 Location: Leicestershire

layla · Joined: 26 Oct 2007 Posts: 532 Location: West Midlands