Jan...a quiet build up to the new year!

Since my last post I have to say it's been pretty quiet:

The bees are hunkering down, I'm pretty reluctant to open them up in this cold wet weather;  Bees are amazing little beasts, their winter is spend pretty much just ensuring the queen is kept alive, the 'cluster' simply moves over the frames eating food stores basically, surviving.

They will maintain a temperature of 35oC in the hive whether it be a hot day or sub zero conditions by either fanning cool air into the hive, or vibrating their little bodies around the queen to generate heat,

Needless to say cold isn't really the killer, add a little wet and damp to the mix and you're potentially in trouble. Bees do not like damp at all so it's really important that your hives are of good quality or at least preserved on the outside.  The bees will to their part too however, producing 'propolis' and sealing small gaps.  It's a mixture of tree sap an resins that they utilise to plug small holes (generally smaller than 5mm) and can range from a brown to a brilliant red colour.  Brittle in winter and ridiculously sticky in summer it has anti microbial properties and has been used in medicines, allergens and It's also been used in foods.

Ideally it's best to use cedar wood to construct your hives.  This is a hard wood and as such is more dense and structurally sound, cedar also holds a lot of natural resins so is a lot more hard wearing without treatment, than say a soft wood.  It is slightly more expensive, but it will last so much longer.

I simply treat the outside of my hives with teak oil. Just to improve longevity and bring out the natural wood appearance.  Though many people don't treat theirs at all, if you do have a lot of hives in your apiary it can aid the bees navigation if the individual hives are painted.  With all treatments or preservatives it is important to only treat the outside and leave the bare wood to the bees.  Strong smells and odours won't be that favorable to the bees inside.

My hives, well I gave them some fondant in Dec as a supplementary food source but having checked last week this has barely been touched. A good sign in one way in that they obviously have enough stores inside the hive.  That said, bees can often die through winter by not moving around the hive to eat stored food and can starve.  The fact I have seen mine flying on warmer days, and that a little fondant has been taken does gives me a little confidence that they should winter well!

As for my chickens...

I now have three layers! McNugget seems to have copied her 'bestie' The Colonel, in fact it was pretty funny to watch. When The Colonel first started making nests ready to lay, McNugget copied her behaviour... She laid 2 weeks later.

In fact she laid as I was cleaning, you can see the D'earth on the back of the nesting box I didn't have a chance to dust into the cracks and crevices of the hive until I got booted out the way for an egg session! She looks nervous....

I am just waiting for the long awaited blue egg layer to come into action which I'm sure will be soon.  We are getting on average 3 a day as they find their rhythm for want of a better word.

Looking forward to some nicer weather but other than that all is well and good.

Please get in touch if you have any questions or queries.

Dan