Just a quick update on the bees: they took down 14Kg of sugar in October, so that should help them through the winter. On my last inspection I could not find the new Queen even though she was marked. There were 43 varroa on the board over 9 days and this calculates at 660-1,300 varroa in the hive – too many. There’s not much I can do now. Oxalic acid in Dec/Jan and hope there’s a Queen in there. I need to get better at this.
However, I am finding some other ways of regaining my sanity. I saw a bloke picking some berries and asked him what they were. He explained they were sloes. I have tried my friends sloe gin in the past, so thought I would give it a go. Heidi and I picked 1kg of sloes at the weekend and made some sloe gin. Recipe: 750ml gin, 500g sloes, 340g sugar. Have to resist drinking it for 3 months. Using the liquer as an ingredient in crumble and mixing the left over fruit with dark chocolate sound like good ideas too. (Nat – do you have any sloe gin cocktail recipes you can share!)
I have also really enjoyed gardening (now that I have a garden for the first time in my life). It’s a lot less stressful than beekeeping. I planted some honeysuckle at the weekend.
I would love to hear summaries of your 2012 bee experiences. Have I been a terrible beekeeper (possibly losing both my colonies even before Winter), or has my experience been common this year?
You might not hear anything from me for a while. Heidi is due on 18 November.
Let’s hope I am better at babies than bees.
Read More
- Bees RIP – What happened next to the bees
- Is Foraging The Answer (to gaining my sanity)- How I got into foraging.
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This has been a really tricky year, from having two hives I’ve had to combine them into one after getting a drone laying queen. The rain’s made it really difficult.
Hope all goes well with you, Heidi and your little ba-bee!
IBRA released a press release last week where the science director urged beekeepers to continue checking and feeding (fondant) throughout winter because this was ‘the worst year for honeybees in my experience’! So, you’ve started on a difficult year!
I agree, not much you can do now as opening hives after late October is more harmful than even varroa to the colony because it gets them so cold. We use oxalic acid in December (choosing the warmest driest day possible) putting 5ml solution on each seam of bees and this is usually effective. Where a suit and have a smoker though, as the bees hate this and get quite angry and stingy. Our association advises this is a two-man job to get it done as quickly as possible.
I really hope your bees pull through winter, you can tell how much you love them from this blog. Fingers cross next year will be more normal for bees and beekeepers!
Thanks for the tips. I fed them 14Kg of sugar … so hopefully that will see them through. And I’ll get a bee buddy around to help with that acid treatment. You might not here from me for a few weeks, due to the imminent arrival.
I’ve heard lots of people were having a hard time this year, bee-wise. The weather hasn’t been good.
I am making nocino, a liqueur made with black walnuts. I have to wait for a year to drink it.
Good luck with the new addition to the household.
I am sure it will be worth it. I’ll look it up. Any thoughts on making home made wine?