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Survivor condition

  • 12 Mar 2022 1:23 PM
    Message # 12659119
    Anonymous

    Four out of 5 colonies survived the winter (so far) and yesterdays warmth prompted me to open them up for a look. I saw things that I’m not sure about and seek advice.

    1). strongest colony: capped and uncapped honey up top. Lots of drones but also LOTS of foragers crawling all over with pollen on them. A little capped brood but I saw no eggs or larvae. Placed medium super with foundation to draw out

    2). Two colonies were similar to each other. Good enough numbers. Plenty of resources (honey, pollen, uncapped honey from sugar). No brood, no eggs. Lots of drones. A fair amount of mold the worst I scraped off.

    3). Weakest colony had fewer resources but still some. No brood or eggs. Lots of mold and perhaps a pound of moldy bees on the bottom screen. Cleaned it up. All drones I think. I discovered the Vivaldi board I made had vent holes mostly covered by the top cover so it didn’t vent well ( the other boxes vented properly).

    I plan to test for mites during the next warm spell next week and look hard for Queens. Anyone one else have any suggestions?

  • 13 Mar 2022 9:12 AM
    Reply # 12660153 on 12659119
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Feeding syrup during winter will cause high humidity. Use fondant or dry sugar.

    Lack of insulation on the lid will cause hive humidity to condense on the bottom of the lid and rain on the hive.

    There is no mold known to man that the bees can't deal with. However if the humidity is straightened out no more mold will be produced. I expect this is white mold.

    Congratulations on a high over-winter survival percentage!

    I'm not sure what to think about the lack of brood, but I suspect you may have missed it, likely well covered in bees.

    For a quick judge of colony strength how many frames of bees are covered when you pop the lid?

    Don't give the bees too much space, there is no flow yet, they should be rearing brood and expanding population near this time of year. 2 deeps might be too big for a small colony. If the bees are in a double brood box the bees will have moved up through their honey and will be mostly in the top box. Some will reverse the boxes around this time of year to force the queen down, but for back yard beekeeping I prefer to let the bees figure out how they want the brood chamber configured, they will build it out as needed.

    If your small colony is down to one box, you can boost it with some brood from your large hive, or you could put it on top of a larger colony with a double screen board so the larger colony will warm the weaker colony.

    Are you Akovia on BS?

    Last modified: 13 Mar 2022 9:56 AM | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 13 Mar 2022 2:26 PM
    Reply # 12660528 on 12659119
    Anonymous

    Vivaldi and burlap captured moisture except one which I configured incorrectly. Fixed now. BS=BeeSource? Yes, probably.

  • 14 Mar 2022 3:45 PM
    Reply # 12662795 on 12659119
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Very similar post, I thought it was you.

    This place is sorta quiet, I expect it will blow up shortly.

    I am in Cornelius and also have boxes in Yamhill, NP, and on Pumpkin Ridge. New spots, how is the forage over there? I'm curious to see what different kinds of honey the different locations provide.

    Another reason I don't reverse is I don't use a double deep.

    Last modified: 14 Mar 2022 5:13 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 15 Mar 2022 7:45 AM
    Reply # 12664525 on 12659119
    Anonymous

    My apiary is at 1100’ a mile past pavement end. Getting maple and alder pollen now but I saw no nectar blooms when up there last week. I have about three acres of pollinator meadow that I irrigate. Do you put a medium on top of your deep or just overwinter with a single deep? Next warm day I will open them up for a good look.

  • 16 Mar 2022 7:42 AM
    Reply # 12667236 on 12659119
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    A smaller colony will over-winter in a single, a larger colony needs some more space. 


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