Apiary Diary: Encouraging Bees into the New Super

Diary Entry:

29 July, 4pm, 19.4C, a bit overcast, rain forecast but 2 hours later it's still dry.

Inspection:

Smoker fired up first time using egg-box pyramid technique.

Entrance smoked, lid popped and given a puff.

Lid lifted, bees calm and occupied. 

Set up of hive at time of inspection

Super 4 has been in for a couple of weeks but has seen no action at all. It is still just 10 frames of foundation.

Super 3 is approaching completion. F10 is empty and not yet drawn but F9 has construction on the inner side.

The photos below show F6 from super 3. It is a mix of capped and uncapped honey.

Frame 6, Super 3

Frame 6, Super 3 (detail)

Supers 4 & 3 are removed and placed carefully aside. Super 3 is heavy.

Super 2 is a deep and is extremely heavy with honey and bees. I decided to leave it in place as all indications imply that below it, all is well.

Action:

I'd quite like the bees to start drawing out comb on super 4. I'm not particularly impatient; I'm just a bit excited about wanting to see it happen.

There are several schools of thought about whether to and how to encourage bees into a new super.

I suspect that the best course of action is to let the bees decide to move up when they're good and ready, forcing them up by various methods may just mean that you get a pyramidal laying down of honey with the outer frames not being used.

However, because I've never tried this before, I thought I'd do it and see what happens.

So...

I took F4 & F7 from the well-under-way super 3 and placed them in their same positions in super 4.

The equivalent blank foundation frames  F4 & F7 from super 4 I placed into the now free spaces in super 3. It's sorta like checkerboarding.

So super 3 now has 2 new frames of untouched foundation at positions F4 & F7 and the previously untouched super 4 now has frames F4 & F7 fully drawn out and replete with honey.

Switching Frames between Supers

In this way the bees might start drawing out the blanks F4 & F7 in S3.

Similarly, with a viable F4 & F7 now in S4, this may encourage them to expand that work to the neighbouring blank frames in S4. 

That's the theory anyway. 

We'll see if it's worked when next we inspect.

The amended supers 3 & 4 and the lid are replaced and secured with the hive strap.

I've also re-inserted a varroa tray. I took it out to help with air circulation when it was really hot a few weeks ago, and as there weren't any issues in the hive, I've been a bit slack in getting re-inserted.

Varroa Tray Re-inserted

Living in a Box... Some New Accommodation

It's all very well waxing lyrical about the splendour of being a beekeeper but at some point our beeless blogger does need to have some actual real-life contact with his own boxful of bees.

It does cost though.

So LandofSpike has eventually had to bite the bullet and release funds from his Empire's not particularly vast Reserves of Wealth.

Over the last few weeks Purchase Orders have been raised and orders have been placed.

Subsequently, the Post Room at Spike Towers has been kept busy receiving regular deliveries of Bee-related Equipment from a worthy array of suppliers.

It's very tempting to list all the exciting new arrivals but this post will put aside hive tools, bee brushes and smokers for the time being and deal with our Most Important Piece of New Kit...

The Hive has arrived.

It's rather smart.

It's from Finland and is called The Beebox.

It takes National frames and is made not of cedar but is lovingly crafted out of EPS.

Yes, that's Expanded Polystyrene. 

Not particularly traditional in this country, but hopefully functional, user-friendly and warm in the winter. And with any luck, the bees will love it.

LandofSpike and BKJ1 have spent some time piecing it together and painting it.

It comes flat-packed and slots easily together.

The unpainted Beebox

It currently comprises of (from the top down) a roof, an inner cover, a top feeder, 2 supers, a queen excluder, a brood box and a base with varroa mesh and tray. And a big strap to tie it down.

The Beebox has a cool entrance reducer

Modern Beekeeping recommended painting the Hive with Dulux Weathershield Smooth Masonry Paint. 

So it got several coats of the stuff in different colours for the different components.

LandofSpike thinks it looks pretty good.

How it all fits together

The boys have also been constructing a big stack of frames.

The delightfully and cunningly designed Hoffman ones.

Ten full size frames for the brood box and ten smaller frames for each super.

Frame components

Completed frame

It's a goodly task once you get your rhythm and is extremely satisfying.

BKJ1 was particularly good at it.

LandofSpike will spend some time on frames and frame making in a later post.

The Beebox, painted, but still masked up

So with the Hive now looking box-tastic the next task is to make a stand to keep it well above the ground.

LandofSpike will be lovingly handcrafting this himself.

Anyone who has seen his previous attempts at woodworking will have some idea of exactly just how magnificent this will be...