Spring Opening of the Pond Hive and the Copper Hive
I had a first proper look at the frames in the brood boxes of the Pond Hive and the Copper Hive.
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Keeping a lid on it
Today is not the day.
Read MoreListening
It's 7 degrees Celcius (45 F) outside, and even though we've had some sunshine there haven't been many bees flying from the hives today. It's too cold and anyway there's very little forage available at this time of year. So all is quiet. I went out on to the gin terrace and put a stethoscope to the wall of the Disc Hive. I listened. At once I became aware of how noisy it actually is round here - a light aircraft was passing overhead, traffic was rumbling, and then for good measure a train went past. The bees were probably huddled inside trying to get some peace.
I couldn't hear anything that sounded like inner hive noise. I tried knocking on the hive wall to see if that would ruffle the bees into making a sound. But at that point another train went past. And the aircraft was still puttering on. Things were the same when I tried the Cedar Hive.
So I went out into the garden. I put the stethoscope against the front of the Copper Hive brood box, and knocked. There was an answer! A susurrus rose and fell. I went to the Pond Hive and tried the same - another answering susurrus!
Feeling encouraged, and having got my ear in, I returned to the Disc Hive and Cedar Hive and retried. Yes - both answered.
It's a quiet sound, a bit like a gust of wind stirring the twigs at the top of a tree. I guess it's a rustle of wings as the bees react to the disturbance. I will leave them in peace now. I am waiting for the first day when it is warm enough to open the hives, when I will revert the hives to their "summer configuration" (that is, a super above the brood box rather than vice versa) and at the same time I will insulate the rooves. They have insulation in spring, rather than in winter, because it is in spring that we get the big temperature fluctuations - warm days and frosty nights - and the bees must keep warm enough during the night to cover their growing brood. If they have to huddle back into their winter clusters, the brood will become chilled and die. On the other hand clustering in winter is their way of conserving energy and they need less honey to get through the cold months that way, so I don't insulate the hives for the onset of winter.
Preparing for Spring
A bright January day and the buzz is back.
Bees are active in all the hives, even Pond Hive which is always the last to get up in the morning.
The occasional nice bright day like this is good for letting the bees get out to stretch their wings on cleansing flights. They may even be planning for spring already. Although the spring nectar and pollen are many weeks off yet, perhaps the queens are starting to lay now in order to build up worker numbers in time for the harvest.
The beekeeper had better start preparing for spring too. I want to rub the outsides of the hives with linseed oil for weatherproofing, replace Pond Hive's landing board and swap Cedar Hive on to a stand with taller legs. All of which I'd prefer to do on a cold, gloomy day when the bees are huddled inside, rather than when they are zooming curiously about. I'm sure that chance will come...we have many more weeks of winter to go. But today is a reminder that spring is on the way.
Comb Honey
This past summer, the bees in the Copper Hive worked on a new project: sections of comb honey.
Guess what people have got for Christmas!
I put the section rack on the hive in June. It has an array of individual boxes for the bees to build honeycomb in. Take off a full section rack and voilà, a set of neatly packaged comb honey sections, each in its own wooden box.
Although you can just cut up ordinary frames of honeycomb, or indeed press out squares of it using a bespoke device, I rather like the neatness and simplicity of having the bees build the comb directly in the individual wooden boxes. The outsides of the boxes get marked with beeswax and propolis, but that is the fate of all objects placed into beehives, reflecting the fact that honeycomb is made in the natural world not a sterile factory.
Also, wooden sections require precious little handling, so producing comb honey this way is neater and cleaner than manually slicing up the comb into blocks to fit in little plastic trays.
Further reading, eating and drinking
I melt honeycomb into a hot drink with lemon, and I hadn't given much thought to how to eat it. But then I read this question:
Most humble apologies for the following dumb question:
Are you supposed to eat the wax or spit it out? Do you swallow it? I assume if it is all mixed in with corn meal mush or oat meal, then you’re not going to be bothering much with separating the wax from the food in your mouth. But I don’t presume to know that, either.
I just filtered all the wax out of my comb honey and rendered it because it seemed like the “thing to do.” Next time, I’ll set at least a little aside for “eating” or whatever you are supposed to do with it in your mouth.
The person to whom this endearing question was asked is American Master Beekeeper, Rusty Burlew, who wrote about comb honey and how to eat it. Her recommendations in brief: spread it on hot, lightly buttered toast, chew it and swallow it. The wax will soften and blend deliciously with the honey and toast. Don't just eat the honeycomb directly because you'll end up with a lump of wax like chewing gum in your mouth. You can read Rusty's reminiscences and advice yourself on her website Honey Bee Suite. I've included her serving suggestion in the information leaflet that I include with each gift comb.
I hope you enjoy your honeycomb however you eat (or drink) it!
Thermal Imaging
I wondered whether heat from the bees would be visible, providing a way of checking on affairs in the hive without opening it in winter.
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