The 2010 beekeeping season has begun at last and it’s good to feel the sun on on your back once again. April is an important month to catch up and get things sorted before the colonies get too far ahead. Spring cleaning - new combs - foundation purchases - supers - spare equipment - Queen finding - and Queen marking etc. The bees won’t wait for you they will just carry on and do what bees do, so if you are late don’t worry it’s you who will have the clearing up to do. Having to fight propolise all summer is not my idea of happy beekeeping.
A couple of weeks ago I had a look in at a few Nucs. and Colonies, stores were all OK but there was a lot of variation in the amount and age of brood present, however now that nectar and pollen are freely available there is still plenty of time for the slower ones to catch up.
I got a phone call from Jenifer Rowley about the Association Hives - the woodpeckers had been at work and when I got there all three hives had large holes and only one still had bees. There were even holes in the hive where the bees died out last Autumn. I put some Chicken Wire screens around them and went back to my car to get some drawing pins, as I arrived back a Green Woodpecker flew off! We will have a lot to do at the Apiary Meeting there on Sunday 25th. April. For our new members we will meet in the Bayford Church Car Park by the War Memorial at 3.00pm.
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