The later Spring flower dearth has already arrived. Recognizing that there are microclimates all over Victoria this may not be true for every location, but it is certainly true for the Fairfield area! On going into my hives last weekend I noticed the boxes were lighter and frames that were previously full of nectar were now emptier. And there was a prodigious amount of capped brood, so even more mouths to feed are coming online soon! So, you may want to keep an eye on your own hives and supplement with some 1:1 syrup.
We are also still in the middle of swarm season, so you should be into your hives every 5-7 days to check for crowding and queen cells. Remember the 7-10 rule – if the bees are working on 7 frames in your 10-frame boxes, add another one or, as Larry has drilled into us – add three! And don’t just dump another box on top, or the bees may ignore it, decide that they are still crowded – and vacate. Move some frames of brood, some of honey, up into the added box and put some of the new box’s frames into the spaces vacated in your top box. Don’t break up brood formations, though. Keep them together and move them en bloc. And it’s always good to have the equipment for an extra hive, or have a nuc box handy in case you need to do an emergency split or recapture a swarm.
Insurance Waiver Forms
For the last several months we have been having some frustrating and enlightening conversations with our club’s insurance carrier. From those we have learned that, while the club has coverage for third party claims against it, we do not have any coverage for injuries or damage incurred by club members participating in club activities – such as swarm collection and outyard participation.
As a result we are reluctantly pushed into requiring members participating in the swarm collection service or outyards sign a waiver form. These are being distributed by Cristina Dimarzio, our Swarm Line manager and Janet Fontaine, our Outyard Manager. I’m happy to answer any questions at this week’s meeting.
Happy beekeeping!
Our monthly meeting is this Thursday, June 12th 6:30-8:30 p.m.
- Venue: Central Saanich Seniors Citizens Association, 1229 Clarke Rd., Brentwood Bay [1]
- Agenda:
- 6:30-7:00 Beginner’s Corner
Those ^%&@$# Mites! – Don L - 6:30-7:00 Intermediate’s Corner
Topic TBA – Bill F - 7:00-7:40 Main Meeting: Mite Control
Mite Gone – Don L
Formic Acid Fumigation – Bill C - 7:40-7:55 What to do this Month – Larry L
- 7:55-8:05ish Club Business – Bill C
- 8:05-8:45 Social Time: Network with colleagues over coffee, tea – and cookies!!
- 6:30-7:00 Beginner’s Corner