Winter Feeding for the BeesofSpike: Getting Fondant into the Hive

Tuesday 29th January.

After 3 weeks of wintry weather including sub-zero temperatures and a liberal helping of snow, the weather changed for the better and, for one day only, the temperature in the Apiary rose to a daytime high of 13.4C.

It was mild enough for the bees to be out stretching their wings and finding forage.

This was the window of opportunity.
Having failed to get fondant into the hive during the mild spell over Christmas and the New Year, this was the chance to make amends.

Adding fondant to your bees' stores of honey helps to decrease the likelihood of the colony starving to death during the long winter months.
It's not good to expose the inside of the hive to the cold so inserting the fondant would have to be done swiftly. The plan was to keep the roof off for the minimum amount of time possible.


It was also the time to see if the new homemade wooden eke would fit onto the polystyrene hive.
The fit had been tested on a spare hive but this was going to be its first use on a live box full of bees.

Dry fitting the unpainted eke on a spare brood box

An eke increases the available vertical space between the top of the frames and the base of the roof or top feeder. 

Without an eke in place there would be no room for the block of fondant.

It would also be the first chance to have a peek inside the hive since the last inspection of autumn. 

And the only chance to look inside before the arrival of the nice spring weather.

The operation went incredibly smoothly.

After smoking the entrance, LandofSpike and Neighbour Jane popped the top off the hive and gave them another small puff of smoke. 
The bees were, as usual, extremely placid and accommodating.

A quick inspection revealed that there was still plenty of capped honey left in the super and in the, ahem, large chunk of burr comb also nestling in the same super.

All seemed well.

The fondant packaging was slit open across the underside to expose the sugar and then placed on top of the uppermost frames so the bees could access it directly from below.

2.5kg of fondant in place, eke in place and, erm, prodigious amounts of burr comb in place.
However, you can see plenty of capped honey on frames 2 & 3 and on the burr comb.

Adding the homemade eke was extremely satisfying.

It was a snug and perfect fit.

Like a glove...

Perhaps the EPS hive makers could consider stocking EPS ekes for their beebox system as it is a pretty essential bit of kit and seems like a bit of an omission from their catalogue.

However, it's so relatively simple making your own that the lack of a store-bought eke is no great hardship.

So with the roof safely strapped back down, the BeesofSpike have their supplementary winter feed sitting nicely on top of their own stores. 

Their hive is now shut to humans until the spring.

Although the winter closedown is in place, LandofSpike will still be observing the little fellers on a daily basis, observing any activity and recording temperatures in the Apiary. 

He also needs to construct some new frames, paint some supers and brood boxes and build a new hive stand. 

And he really needs to get reading and bone up on what to do in the springtime.

The BeesofSpike Apiary is Snowbound

The winter freeze has finally arrived at the BeesofSpike Apiary.

After an extremely mild holiday period, which saw workers foraging on winter blossoms, the weather has taken on a more seasonal feel.

Initially, on the 17th of January, as the temperature dropped, there was the traditional 'light dusting' of snow.

The next day the light dusting became a slightly heavier dusting. 
There was more snow overnight and more the next morning. 
It was now just deep enough for LandofSpike to take the kids sledging. Just deep enough for him to mangle himself on the slopes and end up in A&E.

Then, on the 21st of January, as the snow kept falling and the temperatures continued to drop, it became, at least by London standards, proper snow.

Spike Acres looking a bit wintry. The hive is just visible through the screen

LandofSpike knew that, despite the freezing temperatures, his bees would more than likely be quite cosy, all clustered together, safe indoors.

But as the snow got deeper, he realised that a 7-10 cm covering of snow sitting on the bees' landing board would block the tiny winter entrance to the hive and they'd all be trapped inside.

Even a 2 cm covering of snow would have covered the entrance. It was obviously time for a bit of beekeeper intervention.

The Apiary. The Landing Board is covered in snow

However when LandofSpike got to the Apiary, intent on clearing their front path, he realised that his snow-shoveling skills were not needed.

The landing board, like everything else, was indeed covered in a thick layer of snow but the area around the entrance was completely snow-free and open for business.
This wasn't the work of the bees clearing the snow away with tiny shovels but was a result of the warmth of the hive radiating from the doorway and melting the snow in the immediate area.

The warmth from the hive keeps the entrance clear

As a first year beekeeper LandofSpike was initially amazed by this but, of course, he realised that it's actually just very logical primary level physics.

That aside, it is however a brilliant example of the natural world coming up with a simple and elegant solution to a possibly disastrous problem.

Again the beekeeper needs to do nothing apart from observe and learn. Honeybees have, of course, been dealing with snow just a tiny bit longer than LandofSpike has been dealing with being a beekeeper.

As the snowy days continued LandofSpike noticed that the numbers of dead bees in the space immediately outside the entrance gradually increased.

It wasn't enormous numbers but there was a definite build up of bodies.

Initially he thought that it might be fearless or foolhardy flyers unable to deal with the freezing conditions but it seems more likely that this was the work of mortuary bees clearing out dead bodies but being unable to get them any further than the front step because of the weather.

Just bung 'em on the front step guys, we'll get rid of 'em once it warms up

There are always casualties though.

Venturing out in these temperatures is a guarantee of more or less certain doom.

It's just too cold for a honeybee to function.

LandofSpike found this apian equivalent of Captain Oates lying perfectly frozen in the grounds of Spike Acres, alone in a pristine field of snow. It was only a metre from the hive.

"I am just going outside and may be some time."

Apart from these few winter observations there has been no sign of the bees.

Sensibly, they have been staying inside keeping toasty.

But the snow won't last forever.

And on the very next warm, dry day LandofSpike's next beekeepery task will be to get some fondant into the hive to supplement the bees' winter stores.

It's also an opportunity to take a quick look inside the box while the lid's off.

We'll also find out if that newly fashioned custom eke is any good.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the BeesofSpike Apiary

The old year is now fast receding into the dim and distant past.

Not receding into the dim and distant past is LandofSpike's remarkably resilient cough; a legacy of a festive season of which he spent every single day afflicted with A Ghastly Illness. 
Moan, whine etc. 

His Man Flu was so virulent that he was unable even to drag himself to the western borders of Spike Acres to monitor his bees.
So the daily Apiary observation chart, over the Christmas & New Year period, records nothing apart from a maximum temperature of 12.2C, a minimum of 3.5C and a scribbled note that it had been rainy but mild.

The bees didn't seem to mind his absence though. They just carried on without him.


Another consequence of The Great Illness, but also partly due to A General Uselessness, was the LandofSpike Christmas cards failing to meet their December deadline.
So, in time honoured fashion, the Apiary Christmas Message is making a belated, yet still heartfelt, appearance.

LandofSpike and his Bees would like to wish all you Friends of Bees a belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Join them for more bee-related nonsense in the coming year.

Foraging in January

Yesterday, as reported on this blog, the bees were out and about in great numbers due to the unseasonably mild weather.

While in the Apiary, LandofSpike also noticed a few workers returning with polllen. 
There was uncertainty as to where this pollen could be coming from so early in January.

Today, the 9th of January, it's still sunny and is a pleasant 9.3C in the Apiary. 
And, with bees still in the air, the mystery of where the pollen's coming from has been solved.


It now transpires that at least some of it was coming from the thicket of Mahonia just outside the front gates of Spike Towers.
Mahonia is a dense little shrub which bears blue-black berries and is armed with some pretty spiky and tough evergreen leaves.

The council's favourite loiterer deterrent 

The local council plant Mahonia in places where it deems people need to be deterred from loitering. 
Seemingly, the raised bed area in front of Spike Towers has been designated a No-Loitering Zone as they've filled it with a healthy patch of the stuff.
This has the happy bonus of supplying the BeesofSpike with a reliable local source of winter forage.

Bright January sunshine, bright yellow flowers

At this time of year Mahonia has the most brilliant yellow blossom. It's amongst the earliest bloomers of the year.
And the BeesofSpike were all over it.

A BeesofSpike worker enjoying some January forage 

NeighbourJane takes the credit for spotting foragers industriously working the Mahonia in the sun this morning and LandofSpike was able to get some nifty photos to record the event.

Pointy leaves to deter humans, Lovely yellow flowers to attract bees

The bees don't usually have many opportunities to fly in the winter months but, if it's mild enough, Mahonia can now be officially added to the Winter Forage List.

More Winter Activity at the Apiary

It's 1 o'clock on the 8th of January. The Apiary thermometer is reading 11.9C.

And the BeesofSpike are taking another opportunity to stretch their wings.
The Apiary is alive with flying bees.

The whole colony seemed to be out enjoying the mild winter weather today

It's good to see the little fellers out in such healthy numbers.
However, the flightpaths seem much less direct and focussed than they are during pollen gathering.
An Apiary visitor is usually able to judge where to sit to watch the comings and goings of the workers, but this flight is much more random, with bees seemingly flying with no particular destination or direction in mind.
Just being in the Apiary today more or less guarantees that you'll be crashed into, landed upon and, generally, be in the way.
Mainly it looks like one big orientation flight but LandofSpike has seen a few workers returning with pollen.

A BeesofSpike worker takes a winter rest on a nearby beekeeper

All this excellent winter activity would seem to imply that, so far, the colony seems to be surviving the winter.
LandofSpike hasn't supplemented their winter stores with any fondant yet. As a first year beekeeper this is a source of worry. Opening up the hive at this time of year is not the best of ideas but the fondant will have to be introduced at some stage.

There's also the burr comb to get rid of. Oh yes.
It's a beautiful bit of construction, and fully loaded with winter stores, but unfortunately it doesn't comply with Apiary building regulations.
LandofSpike left it in place for them to use over winter but excising it and restoring order in the spring should be interesting.
The bees won't like it.

A Thermometer for the Apiary

The BeesofSpike Apiary has a sparkly new min/max thermometer. 

It was installed in a sheltered spot on the western perimeter wall on the 19th of November and has now been in place for a month.

LandofSpike had previously been relying on the BBC's online, London-wide weather forecast for all his bee-related activities but had reached a point when this was no longer site-specific enough. 

Also, at times, it had proved to be a mite inaccurate. 

LandofSpike can recall for you a day in July when he was watching yet another biblically proportioned rainstorm turn the grounds of Spike Acres into a swamp. Simultaneously, on their website, the Beeb were defiantly claiming that the sun was, had been and would keep on, shining brightly.

This clearly wasn't good enough.

His legacy lives on

So after a bit of research, the most robust, accurate and bee-budget-friendly min/max thermometer was ordered and hove up at Spike Towers just in time for his birthday.

At this point thanks go out to the venerable and bee-friendly MumofSpike who funded the purchase.

It's billed as a greenhouse thermometer but does seem to function just as well in the great outdoors. 

Although just to be on the safe side LandofSpike has built it a little roof to keep the rain off.

Operation couldn't be simpler. 

The middle reading is the current temperature. 

Top and bottom are the maximum and minimum temperatures recorded since the reset button was last pressed. 

Maximum 14.1C, Current 13.9C, Minimum 13.7C... Simple. 

And it's been a great success.
The daily chart of maximum & minimum daytime and nighttime temperatures, when correlated with LandofSpike's general Apiary notes, make it easy to match bee activity with fluctuations in the weather.

As a consequence, The Apiary's autumn and winter thermometer-related highlights so far include these thrilling events:

   After a season-shifting cold snap starting on the 26th October (which arrived too early for the new device to record), the daytime temperature in The Apiary hovered, generally, between 11C and 14C. 
This still allowed plenty of foraging and a variety of different coloured pollens were seen being brought back to the hive. 
Despite the continued activity bee numbers were noticed to be steadily dwindling.

   The rain and cold of the 24th of November effectively ended any significant flights.
After that it didn't get back above 10C and was often well below that.
Around about now any interest in the top feeder seemed also to end.

By the 29th of November a nighttime dip below zero heralded two weeks of wintery weather and flying bees disappeared off the radar.

   As reported in the BeesofSpike post 'A Mild Winter's Day', a little warm spell on the 15th of December saw bees out and about for a little while but generally, the new Apiary Thermometer has so far recorded only seasonally cold temperatures.


Winter has set in at the BeesofSpike Apiary.

A Mild Winter's Day

It's been a bit quiet down at The Hive since the winter weather set in on November the 24th. 

LandofSpike has had the occasional glimpse of the odd worker peeking out of the entrance but, in general, the bees are hunkered down indoors and are not venturing out.

The BeesofSpike winter hive. A super full of stores and top feeder still
in place. Entrance professionally secured with duct tape.

But today, December the 15th, the weather's taken a turn for the better.
After a spell where the nighttime temperatures have regularly been below freezing, suddenly it's a balmy 10.9C in The Apiary and the bees have been back out flying again in decent numbers. 

Somewhere in the area there must be plants in bloom because foragers have been returning with pollen. 
The mortuary bees have been busy too, taking the opportunity to clear out some casualties. 

And some of the flyers just seem to be enjoying getting out in the fresh air after being cooped up for the last few of 

weeks.

After three weeks indoors, a rare chance to stretch their wings 

Interestingly, the sound of their buzzing seems to be at a lower, less urgent, tone. 

Somehow, it gives the impression that they're more languid.

LandofSpike isn't sure why this is happening or whether it's of any significance.

Maybe it's a winter thing.

Or maybe they're a bit jaded after their long confinement. 

However, it is genuinely lovely to see them flying and to see that, so far, they're wintering well.