Tagged: Beekeeping

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Honey Harvest

The bees have had their usual ups and downs this years. Things started well but we then lost a couple of swarms while I was in hospital. I did manage to split a colony though and caught an errant swarm too. We now have four colonies all of which are (we think) queen-right. The smallest...

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Those Bees!

I probably can’t really blame this on my recent heart attack but I may as well. Having been out of action for a few weeks I haven’t been able to inspect the bees properly. Typically this was during peak swarm season and sure enough the bees made the most of it. I did manage to...

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Apiary Updates

My plan for Saturday included some apiary updates. Things here tend to rot really quickly so some hive hardware needed replacing. We’ve been gradually replacing our plywood and pine hives with cedar ones which do tend to last a bit longer. I had a new flat-packed hive ready to build and today was the day....

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The First Hive Inspection of 2021

With temperatures just about getting to double figures, the sun shining and no wind I decided it was time for the first hive inspection of 2021. The bees and been flying for a couple of days. They’d even looked quite busy for a few minutes at one point. I therefore knew that there were at...

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Beekeeping with Morgan

It’s difficult to persuade Morgan to get out of his room these days. He’s such a typical teenager! I did manage to get him out to inspect the bee-hives last week though. All was looking good in the hives. An Extra Brood Box The biggest colony was bursting at the seams so I decided to...

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Another Weekend in Lockdown

Another weekend in lockdown and things in Ynyslas were pretty much the same as they have been every weekend lately. The beach was looking lovely in the sunny spells. The torrential downpours were impressive in their own right. At one point on Sunday afternoon the Borth & Ynyslas Weather Station was reading a rain rate...

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Creative Honeycomb Building

I’ve had a busy day already and it’s only lunchtime while I’m typing this. A quick swim in the sea first thing, followed by some work and then a nice surf ski paddle into the estuary at high tide. I then had some time for a quick inspection of the bees. Everyone else is reporting...

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Flowers Everywhere

There are quite a few flowers in the garden at the moment. The bees are loving the chives still and there’s even a surprise rose. I don’t know why it’s always a surprise as it flowers every year but I also do nothing to it and kind of forget that it is there until it...

Hives at the bottom of the garden 2

Beekeeping Hardware Maintenance

With the sun shining and Spring on it’s way you’d think it was the perfect time for the bees and for beekeepers alike. It should be and would be if it weren’t for Ivor our local katabatic wind. He’s been blowing his socks off with wind speeds exceeding 50 knots for days on end. No...

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An Apiary Update

The weather has been pretty good for the bees. There have been a few days that have been too windy for them to venture out and it has remained fairly cool most days but the afternoons tend to be getting up into double figures on the thermometer and there has been plenty of sunshine. I...