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Reigate BeekeepersBeeNews April 2017

Photo opportunity of the Month

Comments about and contributions for publication in will be welcomed by the editors.For inclusion in an edition, contributions are required by the 25th of the preceding month.

Honey Bee Cousins and RecordsAs the honey bee keeping year gains pace -with swarms a feature in this months edition -look out for the many other varieties of bees inyour garden. There are around 250 species ofbee in the UK, 24 species of bumblebee, around225 species of solitary bee, and just 1 speciesof honey bee. This photograph by Jeremy Earlyshows just a corner of one of his bee hotelswhich in 2015 had over 50 mason bees nestingin the hotel. This was a record for the masonbees. Will we see further records this year,perhaps another record for honey bee swarms?

Got an unusual, topical, or interesting bee relatedimage that could be featured here? Please send it to the editors today!

Dates for your DiaryDate Event / Description Venue / Contact

Apr, Sat 1st

& Sun 2ndHenfold Apiary Winter Team (ask Simon for times)Preparing the hives & colonies for the Summer Season

Henfold ApiarySimon Ford

Apr, Mon 3rd Wimbledon BKA - Celia Davis talk (20:00 - 21:00)Promoting well being in the hive. £5 entrance

Tooting SM4 [email protected]

Apr, Wed 5th First Summer Meeting (18:00 for 18:30 - 21:00)Basic & Improvers Training commences.

Henfold ApiaryAndrew Buchanan

Apr, Fri - Sun7th, 8th & 9th

BBKA Spring Convention £4/£5 entranceLectures, Courses, Workshops, Trade Show.

Newport TF10 [email protected]

Apr, Wed 12th Summer Season Meeting (18:00 for 18:30 - 21:00)Beginners begin, Basic & Improvers training continues.


Apr, Wed’s19th & 26th

Summer Season Meeting (18:00 for 18:30 - 21:00)Beginners, Basic & Improvers training continues.


May, Mon 1st Lower Kingswood Village Fete (13:50 - 16:30)Promoting Bees, Beekeeping, RBKA & Honey Sales.

Lower KingswoodVince Gallo

May, Wed’s3rd,10th,17th,24th

Summer Season Meeting (18:00 for 18:30 - 21:00)Beginners, Basic & Improvers + First Aid Lecture.


May, Sat 6th Meon Valley BKA - Auction (from 11:30)Basic & Improvers Training commences.

Gretham Vlg, nr LissMargaret Pallant

May, Sun 14th Cow Pie Show (11:00 - 17:00)Promoting Bees, Beekeeping, RBKA & Honey Sales.

Blindley HeathMike Hill

May, Mon 29th Surrey County Show (10:00 - 17:00)Promoting Bees, Beekeeping, Honey Show & Honey Sales.

Stoke Park, GuildfordMichael Main

More dates? The Members website has the full year’s Diary Dates Click Here

Contents

Photo Opportunity Honey Bee Cousins and Records 1

Dates for your Diary 1st April - 29th May 1

Editorial Off to a Flying Start 2

Members News

Chairman's Chat - Reasons to be Cheerful 1,2,3 3

Show Stewards and Entries Still Needed 4

Condolences - Carol Humphreys 4

Apiary News New Labels for RBKA Honey 5

Events News Auction and Spring Clinic at Mickleham 5

Notice Board Events, Courses, and other Beekeeping Activities 6

Swarm Stories

Countdown to a Swarm 7 - 8

Cherry Picked Rewards 9

Prepare Your Swarm Boxes and Supply to the Swarm Team …. NOW 9

Questions & Answers Is It Necessary to Find the Queen ? 10 - 11

Horticultural News Bee Friendly - Oilseed Rape 12

Section Features Page

Our website is updated much more regularly than this monthlyedition of , so click on Members Website for lots more

information and, all the latest news and activity updates.

Editorial

There has been considerable activity both behind the scenes and in plain sight by your committeeand many members towards the commencement of this ‘summer’ season of beekeeping.And by all accounts and observations, our bees have been pretty busy themselves. Not for themthe waiting for their first full inspections. After a winter of playing hide and seek in their hives,they are clearly signalling “coming ready of not”.Or should that possibly be “going, ready or not” ?Yes, the swarming season is upon us, with a number of reported swarms already … and thosewill only be the ones that someone has noticed. Are you ready to head off your colonies urgesto swarm, adequately manage found preparations to swarm, look after the remains of coloniesthat have swarmed, or be able to accommodate a found or offered swarm ?This month we have included a mix of swarming related information, tips and stories to fire youinto proactive preparations … hopefully before your bees force reactive responses upon you.A big welcome to our Class of 2017. We trust that you enjoyed and were enthralled by theWinter Course and your first visit (for many) to our Training Apiary. We look forward towelcoming you more formally on the 12th April, when the Beginners Practical Trainingcommences. We also trust you are not too phased by all this talk of swarming. Trust, us, thisis a major topic of conversation amongst beekeepers at the best of times, and all the more soduring the coming two or three months.

To all other existing members, long or short in the tooth, and whether mentoring, training orbeing trained some more; it all commences for us on the 5th. See you at Henfold Copse.

Richard & Graham

Off to a Flying Start

All photos Reigate BeeNews copyright - unless otherwise stated

Several beekeeping related things have givenme much pleasure during March.

On a personal basis, my two colonies havecome through the winter intact and I have beenable to set up a Bailey Change on the strongestone. I shall unite the weaker one with thestronger one when they will have a nice newhome to go to in about two weeks time.

Spring has been good and my bees have takenthe opportunity to gather both nectar andpollen from an abundance of flowers. Thismeans that the brood, covering some fiveframes in my strong colony when I carried outthe Bailey Change, should have increased verywell and, in addition to uniting the weaker one,will encourage me to add a super as soon aspossible. I was also impressed by the MAQSdose that I administered in the Autumn. Theresult seems to be a very low Varroa count.

You may recall that last month I asked for helpto Tidy Up Henfold on two Saturday mornings.My plea did not go unheeded! Just over 30members gave their time and effort on one orboth days. The work done not only includedtidying up the copse from the ravages of theWinter but also moving a lot of equipmentbetween containers. On the second day weplayed host to 17 visitors who had attended the2017 Beginners Course and we received manykind and encouraging comments about the site,the Pavilion and the friendliness of ourmembers. Not only that, nearly everyone tookadvantage of the Bacon Butties provided.

Congratulations and a very big thank you to allwho participated. Your support is very muchappreciated.

Two other events in our annual calendar wereheld on Saturday 25th March.At RBKA's Mickleham Apiary, our increasinglypopular Auction was very well supported bymembers and non-members, buyers andsellers.

Paul Cleaver and Vince Gallo, who betweenthem organized the event, took advantage ofthe sunny weather and were joined by anothereight or so helping members.

Meanwhile and in tandem with the Auction, BobMaurer and another team of about eightmembers in the local Village Hall, prepared andanalysed samples of bees submitted bymembers keen to know whether their coloniessuffered from Nosema. During the entire dayanother five members supplied refreshmentsto the madding throng.

Good news came from the Bee Health Clinic. Itappears that my own bees don't suffer fromNosema. And the news that all the colonies atHenfold Copse are also clear of this debilitatingailment is testament to the commitment andwork carried out during the winter months byKaren & Simon Ford and members of theirWinter Team. Many thanks to all of them fortheir work that has produced this result. I hopethat all members find their bees in suitably rudehealth.

All in all it was a really super day and provideda significant addition to our coffers. Hugethanks are due to all who contributed to anoutstanding success.

Earlier in this epistle I mentioned thatequipment had been moved betweencontainers at Henfold. As a result, theQuartermaster’s stores have moved. See the

Noticeboard section for details.

Owing to the soft grass areas of Henfold Copse,the parking is restricted.Please respect the 'NO CARS ON THE GRASS'signs, PLEASE PARK TIDILY, and PLEASE DONOT BLOCK ACCESS FROM HENFOLD LANE TOTHE BEE HIVES.Our neighbouring farmer has kindly consentedto allow members to park in the drive to hisfarm until the ground becomes firmer but ...PLEASE DO NOT BLOCK THE FARM ENTRANCE.

I look forward to seeing you at Henfold Copsefrom Wednesday 5th April.May your 2017 year of beekeeping give you areal buzz.

Andrew Buchanan01306 71277307879 552582

[email protected]

Members News Reasons to be Cheerful, 1,2,3


First up is the Surrey County Show, StokePark, Guildford on 29th May 2017 (BankHoliday Monday) where Stewards are neededfor manning the Honey Tent.

Chief Steward, Michael Main is asking forvolunteers for at least six hours. From this timeyou will be allocated one hour for lunch. Therest of the day you are free to go around theshow. Please indicate on the application form(downloadable here) your preferred time to goaround the show. You will be provided a freeentrance ticket, tea and coffee during the dayand a two-course lunch in the tent.

If you would like to be a steward and are willingto commit the time, please complete theattached form and return, by 15th April, to:-Michael Main, Hill House, Northfield Place,Weybridge, KT13 0RF. Phone - 01932 849080email [email protected]

The County Show also needs entries for theshow bench and encourage each division to getas many entries as possible for the show.Arrangements can be made for entries to betaken to the show as most divisions have amember who is on steward duty at the show.The schedule can be downloaded from here:http://surreycountyshow.co.uk/surrey-county-show/competitor-zone.htm.Click on the ‘download schedule’ button and onthe ‘Download entry form’ button to obtainthose forms.

The South of England Show at Ardinglyfollows on the 8th, 9th & 10th June 2017 forwhich activities within the Bees & Honey tentalso need Stewards for a day or more to helpwith the live demonstrations, observation hives,honey sales and information stands.And of course the Show Benches need to befilled to ensure that the show’s Blue Ribbonstatus is maintained.

This event has for many years enjoyed asignificant operational input from RBKAmembers; in particular, Eddie & MarianWebster and Pauline and her late husbandRobin Sparkes. That involvement is nowstrengthened by Maggie Minter and RichardBradfield, as well as an ex RBKA member, nowChairman of Croydon Division, Bob Barnes.

The Bees and Honey tent it rightfully seen asBIG public attraction by SoE organisers, theSouth of England Agricultural Society.Help us ensure that the event lives up to theirand our expectations. And by helping us duringa day, you will receive a free Day entry into theentire show, saving £20.

For details of duties, hours and of the freeshowground entry and lunch arrangements,email: [email protected]

For your Show Bench entries, first visithttp://www.seas.org.uk/info/competing/competing-south-england-show/bees-honey/ fromwhere the Bees & Honey Schedule andBooking/Honey Entry Form can be downloaded.

For BOTH shows, Richard Bradfield is offering to take (and return) members registeredShow Bench Entries to the Shows on the mornings of the 29th May and 8th June respectively.So even if you are not able or planning to help at, or visit, the shows, there is no excuse notto enter. Just Register your entries with the Competition Secretaries and deliver those entries

to Richard at Henfold Copse, by the preceding Wednesdays.Entering the Surrey Show? Then also enter the same exhibits into an equivalent class at the

South of England Show as well.

CondolencesIt with regret and great sadness that the sudden death of Carol Humphries,

as result of a fall, was announced during March.Carol’s husband Cyril, is a long serving member of Reigate Beekeepers.

Carol was very active in working with disabled children and the Girl Guides, andour thoughts are with Cyril at this difficult time for him, and his family.

The funeral will be at 11:00 am Friday 7th April, at Randalls Park Crematorium,Randalls Road, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 0AG.

Two upcoming significant Honey Show events are still in need of Stewards to help with thesmooth operation of those events and plenty of entries to fill the Show benches.

Show Stewards and Entries STILL Needed


Apiary NewsNew Labels for RBKA Honey

Auction and Spring Clinic at Mickleham

After all the efforts being made during last yearto improve the honey yields from the Division’sfive apiaries, attention has been turned to thepresentation of that honey to the public.As a result, two fundamental changes are aboutto be implemented.

RBKA will adopt the 345g/12ozhexagonal jar, with a gold coloured

metal lid as our new ‘standard’.

Introducing our ‘Reigate BeekeepersSURREY HONEY’ branded face label,

incorporating an apiary sourceidentification panel on the lid, connected

via a tamper evident tail.

And on the reverse face … the ‘legal’label also includes information about

RBKA and advice about granulation andthe non-suitability of honey for infants.

These main labels will all be pre-printed onwhite glossy s/a vinyl labels, costing 16p to 18pper jar depending on order quantities.

The BBE/Lot code will be laserprinted as bottled on 19mmround s/a labels applied to thebase, cost ~ 0.3p/jar.Label dimensions also fit 1lbjars, with only the weightdeclaration change needed.

As our Chairman has remarked, an excellent day was enjoyed by the organisers, helping andattending members and by visiting beekeepers from a number of other Associations and Divisionson Saturday 25th March. So little more to do than provide a few images captured at the time.

Events News

The sun shone on Auction activities, outside uponthe Lots (above) and inside Settling-up. (right)

Learning, Assessing, Grinding & Selling (above)


Harper Adams UniversityNewport, Shropshire, TF10 8NB

Fri. 7 April - Members Day & Trade Show Sat. 8 April - Public Day & Trade Show Sun. 9 April - Education Day.

Download Full Programme here.

Book your Tickets, Workshops & Courses andAccommodation by clicking on the hyper-links below - make a real weekend of it!

Visit the BBKA WELCOME page forthe 2017 Spring Convention foradvice on what, when and how

to make your bookings.Click Here

Notice Board (click the to also find it and more on our website)

Please Note

the Quartermaster Storeis now in the

Middle (2nd) ContainerAnd

The Quartermaster( Andrew Buchanan )

Is

Ready To Take Your Orders forBeekeeping equipment at

discounted prices for collection fromHenfold copse free of delivery

charges.

A copy of Paynes 2017 Catalogueand an Order Form may be found on

the Members Website, or seeAndrew on any Wednesday Meeting

during the summer.

Stoke Park, GuildfordBank Holiday Monday

29th May 2017Organised in conjunction

with theSurrey Beekeepers’

AssociationStewards are needed for manning the Honey Tent atthe Surrey County Show, Stoke Park, Guildford.This year again we are asking for volunteers for at least 6hours. From this time you will be allocated 1 hour for lunch.The rest of the day you are free to go around the show. Pleaseindicate on the application form your preferred time to goaround the show. You will be provided a free entrance ticket,tea and coffee during the day and 2-course lunch in the tent.If you would like to be a steward and are willing tocommit the time, please complete the form and return,by 15th April, to:-

Michael Main, Hill House, Northfield Place,Weybridge, KT13 0RF

email [email protected] 01932 849080We also need entries for the show bench andencourage each division to get as many entries aspossible for the show.Arrangements can be made for entries to be taken to theshow as most divisions have a member who is on stewardduty at the show.The schedule can be obtained from this website page:http://surreycountyshow.co.uk/surrey-county-

show/competitor-zone.htmScroll to the bottom of the page, click on the

”Download Schedule” and “Download Entry Form”buttons and select “Honey & Bee” options.


Swarm Stories

We are now in the ‘swarming season’, and asmentioned last months edition of we asbeekeepers need to be prepared.

But our bees have also been preparing -perhaps to swarm. So what is their countdownto a swarm ?

The days in the table are average time scalesonly, and the earlier activities are subject togreater variance in timing. But they do indicatethat a lot of activity is taking place within thehive, and for a long time before the swarmemerges from the hive.

A prime swarm usually meansthat around 60% of the adultpopulation of the hive leave,possibly up to 30,000 bees -and of these bees, 70% maybe under nine days old (this

proportion is shaded green onthe graphic opposite).

This departure of a large majority of the beeshas a significant effect on the colony throughoutthe year as illustrated by the graphs below.

Scouting for a new nest location starts aroundthree days before the swarm emerges. Olderbees abandon their foraging duties and beginscouting.

A likely cavity location is inspected for up to anhour. Initially the bee spends around a minuteinside the cavity, alternating with trips outside.They scramble all over the inside, walking allthe surfaces, measuring the size of the cavityas they successively venture further inside.

When inspecting the outside of the cavity theymake scurrying and slow flights around,sometimes landing and walking on the outsidesurface.

They return to the original hive and dance togive information about the possible new nest,and to recruit supporters for this new locationTheir dance tells the other bees where the newnest is located, how far away and in whatdirection, and describes the cavity.

The decision about a new nest location maytake up to four days, and may not have beenfinalised when the swarm leaves the hive.

Adult Population through the year

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Popu

latio

n (th

ousa

nds)

not swarmedswarmed

Adult Population through the year

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Popu

latio

n (th

ousa

nds)

not swarmedswarmed

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Countdown to a Swarm

Swarm Days Bee Activity

-28 to -14 Queen Cups Built inQuantity

-28 to -14 Queen FeedingIncreased

Laying Rate Increases

-10 Egg Laid in Cup

-10 Workers Gorge onHoney

-7 Queen FeedingReduced

Laying Rate Reduces

-5 Workers Rest in Hive

-3 Scouting Begins

-3 Queen TreatedRoughly

-1 Queen Cell Sealed

0 Buzzing Runs

0 Prime Swarm Departs

0 Swarm Clusters(often nearby)

0 Some ‘Returners’ tothe Hive

0 to ? RBKA SwarmCollectors Arrive !!!

Source of Table / Graphic / Graph - Dan Basterfield / Mark Osgatharp / Ivor Davis


The swarm tends to go through a few differentphases whilst it finds a new home. The queenis often forced out of the hive by the workers,who guide her to an appropriate local restingplace such as a nearby fence post, tree orhedge. The workers and drones follow thepheromones of the queen and the swarmundergoes a period of settling with more beesjoining from the original colony. Lots of beeswill be flying for some time while the swarmclusters around the queen.

After the prime swarm has left the hive furtherdepartures of bees may occur, and these areknown as ‘Casts’. They involve a virgin queen,unlike a prime swarm which involves theoriginal old queen.

Following a prime swarm brood developmentcontinues, and the sealed queen cells start tohatch in around 5-6 days. The workers keepemerging queens in their cells, but after thefirst virgin is released she may depart with acast after 2-4 days.

Further virgin queens can also depart with morecasts, and this may continue until the colony istotally depleted, down to 10 - 25% of thenumber of bees it originally started with.

The following table shows the activities thatoccur after a prime swarm.

The days in the table are average time scalesonly, and the later activities are subject togreater variance in timing. Cast swarms mayof course not occur at all.

When a prime swarm leaves to fly to a new nestit carries enough reserves to build 800 sq. cmof comb area, which is about 3% of the total broodarea required.

Around 90% of this required brood area isconstructed within six weeks. This requires 9 -11 kg of honey which is equivalent to around athird of a colony’s total winter stores.

The survival rates for swarms are not high, onlyone in four generally survive. (And the rate ismuch lower for cast swarms because they aremuch smaller and don’t have the necessaryreserves to build the initial comb.)

The survival of a swarm is highly weatherdependant, and particularly dependant on theirability to forage enough to be able to build therequired comb, and of course requires that theyhave made a good decision about their newnest location.

So capture by an RBKA Swarm Collector,temporary residence in a well prepared swarmbox, and then transfer to a purpose made hiveis highly preferable.

inspired by and based on a Surrey BKA talkby Dan Basterfield

Swarm Days Bee Activity

0 Prime Swarm Departs

+5 Virgin Queens in Cells

+5 First Virgin QueenEmerges

+5Workers DelayFurther Queens

Emerging

+8 Cast Swarm mayDepart

+8 Another Virgin QueenEmerges

+8 Virgin Attacks QueenCells

Workers Tear DownQueen Cells

+11 to +20 Virgin Leaves onMating Flights

+26 Mated Queen StartsLaying

Source of Table - Dan Basterfield


It was only the tail end of February when yourswarm team were already being rather busy.Gerry James got a call from a householderwho we have known for some time now. Butrather than simply seeking advice, she neededserious help. So for some reason Jerry passedthe call to me.

The Winter had taken its toll on a tall, freestanding chimney, which was no longerstanding free. In fact it had broken and fallenover onto the roof of the house, necessitatingremoval and rebuilding. The builders refusedto start because once they got up to it, a nestof bees expressed their displeasure.

The builders, inpreparation forthe removal, hadarrived with a'cherry picker'which just aboutgave access, butat full reach itcould not carryboth me and thedriver, so I had acrash course(fortunately notliterally) ondriving the deviceand took myselfup to the roof top.

Once there, the nest removal was reasonablystraight forward. Especially as the impact haddislodged all of the comb and it was laying onthe side of the chimney ready to be lifted outinto a nuc box. The weather was cool the beesdidn't stay flying for too long, but even so I leftthe nuc strapped to the roof to be recoveredthe following morning to take home.Meanwhile, the builders needed to get on thewith job and didn't wish to wait another day.So as soon as I had removed the nest into thenuc I was sent back up with a Hilti breaker andproceeded to demolish the first couple of feetof the chimney.This then allowed allfurther work to be doneby the builders, nowseparated sufficientlyfrom the bees. In fact,one of the builders wassufficiently comfortablethat he borrowed a suit and found that he wasquite okay to continue the work - so I left himto it. He was so fascinated by the episode wemay even gain a new member.The best news was that the householder andbuilder agreed that continuation of the workwas totally dependent on the bees' removal,and therefore they accepted an invoice for thework … so the 2017 swarm team donation potalready stands at £235.

Cherry Picked Rewards by Vince Gallo

Last months included a report about howour Swarm Team is preparing … at least interms of who will be covering what areasacross the districts of Reigate & Banstead andMole Valley. The team do, however perhapsneed to be assured that the antics that Vinceget up will not be expected of anyone.But the Swarm Team members do havesome significant expectations of YOU …… the prospective swarm receiver.Whether you are certain you will, or only thinkyou might want (or need) a handy ready madecolony caught ‘on-the-wing’ by one of theTeam; before they can set out in response toa call-out from the public (or embarrassedbeekeeper) … they need to take someone'sprepared swarm box with them on that call, tohouse in it.

Read The Swarm Collection System post for thegeneral method adopted by the team. NOW isthe time to prepare a suitable swarm box andliaise with your nearest Swarm Collector toensure it is available to be taken by them tothe site of a call-out.PLEASE PLEASE; considerable experience hasshown us that not just any old box will suffice.Read the Preparing your Swarm Box post fordetails of what and how best to make life forthe bees, the collector and yourself much easier.The essential message, is that the closer theswarm box can be to a fully equippedsecure brood box with a solid floor, thebetter … so why not use a spare brood boxwith frames, floor, crown board and a roof, plusonly a couple of extra brackets, straps and anentrance cover ?

Prepare Your Swarm Boxes and Supply to the Swarm Team … NOW


Questions & Answers

Is It Necessary to Find the Queen ? (and How Do I Find Her ?)Most of the time when you are inspecting thecolony, there is no need to see her.

● If you have sealed worker brood then 10 to20 days ago you had a mated queen layingfertilised eggs.

● If you can see larvae, then the queen waspresent 3 to 10 days ago.

● If you see eggs in the cells, the queen waspresent 0 to 3 days ago.

For routine inspections, you do not need to seeher majesty - just evidence that she is there.

However, there are times when it is importantto find the queen, and others when it is essential.

If you find queen cells and want to make anartificial swarm you must find the queen. Somebeekeepers believe that marking your queensis an essential part of husbandry, making iteasier to identify her, and of course if you wantto clip the wings of your queen to reduce thechance of loosing her, you must find her first.

So what is the best way to find your queen ?

A few guidelines and suggestions.

● Use the minimum of smoke or none at all sothe bees remain in situ on the comb withoutpanicking and chasing around.

● When you lift a frame out, look at the darkside first - the side next to other frames.

● Look for unusual activity on the frame.● Young queens scurry about - focus in on fast

moving bees.● Scan the frame and look for a different

coloured bee. The queen is often a differentcolour to her workers. She may have red legs.

● She is also larger and a different shape. Herthorax is different to that of the workers.

● If you have a cluster of bees on a frame,stroke it with your finger - she may beunderneath.

● Look for eggs - a small LED torch is useful.If the eggs have just been laid, the framewith eggs is often the most likely one to findthe queen.

● Look also for polished cells; the queen layseggs in polished cells and workers preparethem for the onset of egg laying.

If you still cannot see her, go and have a break,then try again later, or the next day.

If you have never found a queen, the first thingto grasp is that it is, to some extent apsychological problem. Try to set aside oneinspection, aimed solely at finding the queenand approach it with confidence: an ‘I will’ mindset, rather than an ‘I might’ one.

The time set aside for the job should be on aquiet, warm, sunny day in the early part of theyear, before the colony has reached fullstrength and while the bees are still in a benignframe of mind and haven’t become tetchy.

(1) The usual technique and method

Approach the hive quietly and use as littlesmoke as possible, the aim being to keep thecolony working normally and prevent thequeen from chasing madly round.

Gently remove any supers and the queenexcluder and, if there are two boxescomprising the brood area, remove the top oneand place on an upturned roof (not on top of asuper even with a queen excluder between).

Look to see which box has the most bees andcover the other one with the crown board. Nowconcentrate on the single box you haveearmarked.

Remember that, providing you have used littlesmoke and been very gentle and quiet, thequeen should be in the brood nest undisturbed,But queens can walk anywhere and it is quitepossible that she is on the outside frame or theside of the hive, or the floor, so don’t makeassumptions. With a modicum of luck, she willbe occupied with egg laying and surrounded byher retinue.

Remove the outside frame, look at it quicklyand put it somewhere safe (an empty nuc boxis ideal). Go through the frames one by oneusing the following technique.

Lift each frame smoothly from the hive and,holding it always over the hive, turn it so thatyou can see the side that was furthest from youi.e. the side that was darkest (the dark side).

Hold it well away from you and look, not for anindividual insect, but for something that movesdifferently, appears in a different configuration.Scan the frame quickly at first.


Let your eye move in a systematic way – roundthe outside of the comb and spiralling inwardsto the centre, then glance at the edges of theframe. Queens will often try to get away fromthe light so will move towards the edge.

Reverse the frame and look at the other sidein the same way. Then replace it gently againstthe first frame you looked at.

You should try to be really quick as the sooneryou get through the frames the better, both forkeeping the queen in place and for leastdisturbance of the colony in general.

Go through all the frames in this way,remembering always to look at the dark sidefirst and, if you haven’t spotted her, come backthrough them. If you still haven’t spotted her,do not go through them again.

If you removed a second brood box at thebeginning of this exercise you need to inspectthis, but don’t put it back on top of the first one.

If you fail to find the queen you need toprogress to the next method.

Method (2)

Take out a few of the outermost frames withno brood on them and put them in a nuc box.Shake the bees off these frames into the hive.

Next arrange the frames in tight pairs withspaces between the pairs and leave the boxopen. (With two boxes you can do both atonce.) Leave it open to the light for a littletime, five or ten minutes should be sufficient.

At this point, the help of a companion is reallyuseful. Return to your box and lift out the firstpair of frames simultaneously. Quickly look atthe dark sides of the combs and replace thepair in the hive. Do the same with each of theother pairs. It is amazing how often this worksreally well.

If the first two methods have failed and thatelusive queen is still running about, it is timeto get really serious.

Method (3)

The method relies on the rule that if you shakeor remove every bee in the hive, the queenmust be amongst them.

To put this into operation an empty box isrequired, it may be a brood box or a super,depending on what is to hand, but it must nothave any frames in it.

The original hive is moved to one side and theempty box placed on the floor. Then all thebees are shaken, or brushed into the emptybox and all the frames returned to the originalbox, now full of frames with brood and food,but with no bees. A queen excluder is placedover the empty box containing the bees andthe full brood box is put on top. The hive isclosed up and left until the next day.

The next day very carefully remove the topbrood box to one side, keeping it covered,before the queen excluder is moved. Thequeen excluder is then removed very carefullyand inspected on its lower side. As often as notthe queen will be found on the underside of thequeen excluder, but she may be elsewhere inthe box, so don’t jump to conclusions.

Usually she will be surrounded by a few otherbees. If she is not found on the underside ofthe queen excluder you will need to inspect theempty box further.

A word of warning: only carry out thismanipulation when the nights are warm asbrood left in the top box can easily chill.

adapted from articles courtesy of CeliaDavis, Warwickshire BKA and John Everett,

Ipswich & East Suffolk BKA

A marked queen is so much easier to spot

An unmarked queen

Photographs - Marked Queen Celia Davis / Unmarked Highlandbees.com


Bee Friendly - Oilseed Rape

Oilseed rape (Brassica napus) (OSR) isa widely grown crop. The bright yellowpatchwork of fields bring colour to thecountryside in the Spring for the Autumnsown crop and in the Summer for theless common Spring sown crop. OSRproduces a seed which is pressed torelease the oil for use as vegetableoil, animal feed, and in bio diesel production.

As a major mass-flowering crop producingan abundance of nectar and pollen, OSRis very attractive to honey bees, bumblebeesand solitary bees. It provides a foodresource of considerable value to bees.

Although the flowers are self-fertile, theyare entomophilous, and pollination studies,both in the glasshouse and in the field,suggest that bee foraging activities onthe crop have many beneficial effectsfor the grower, including improving thequantity and quality of the seed produced.

Bees love it and collect vast quantitiesof nectar and pollen. They will takethemselves to a field three miles awayin preference to closer forage.

But the honey produced can be a problemfor the beekeeper who isn’t aware ofits properties, the main one being thatit granulates rapidly in the comb makingit impossible to extract.

● Be prepared to extract the honey fromOSR as soon as the nectar flow fromit has stopped, when the flowers aredropping. The bees may become moreaggressive with the loss to them ofthis source. Extraction should takeplace before the cells have been sealed.

Test the ripeness of the honey by shakingin a downward movement with the combface down over the hive. If very littlenectar is shaken out the honey it shouldthen be extracted as soon as possible.The honey will granulate even if thesupers are left for a couple of days.

● Once extracted the honey can be storedin honey buckets but will become viscousand will not pour. However, the honeycan be returned to a fluid state bystirring it using a clean paint mixingpaddle turning at low speed in a electricpower drill.

● If OSR honey has granulated it cannotbe extracted, you have two options:

1. To recover the wax and honey –Cut out the comb and melt it downin a container over boiling water (waxbeing of course flammable). The honeyand wax will separate when cooled.The honey is second grade havingbeen heated and is only suitable forcooking (not a bad thing!). The framescan be boiled to clean them.

2. To reuse the comb but lose the honey– Score the surface of the cells sothe honey is visible. The metal uncappingfork is the best tool for this. Soakthe frames in water for a few days.Ideally starting at hand heat. Agitatethe frames from time to time untilthe honey has dissolved. The waterwith the dissolved honey is then discarded.The frames can be put back in thehive for the bees to clean up anduse.

(Note - Granulation of honey from otherforage can occur if it is stored in thethese frames because of residues of OSRcrystals in the cells.)

courtesy of Pembrokeshire BKA and GeoffBazin, Essex BKA

Horticultural News

Photographs - Tony Harris, Moray BKA

Honey Bee on OSR Flower Bright Yellow OSR Pollen

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