Very similar here in Brittany. We had the jet stream south of us for most of the summer flow. Spring was ok « ish » then summer flow only really good for 10 days. Like you also, supers added after the first week, virtually empty! You need a residual stock and no matter how bad things are, trying to maintain a consistant stock is key!! Next year will be better!!🤔😜 good video! See you in a couple of weeks!! 🤠💪🏻🐝🐝🐝
Watching on the big screen here tonight colors and bees , the fields are alive thanks for sharing this. Shut the gate. 👍🏽❤️❤️❤️❤️😕😕😕for summer 80 plus 😕😕😕😕😕
Edge of my seat waiting for you to get popped 🐝haha never been so disappointed with one of your videos lol😂 Same here with summer flow rubbish, bad start with spring too cold, no rape honey even though the bees were so big but luckily a late spring flow that bumped it up 🤞 for a better year next year Great video 👍
Awesome honesty from a master beekeeper! Let's hope the Himaylan balsam will underpin the colonies in the low lands at least!. Ghost bees taking advantage of a stunned summer!
I got 6 frames total for myself this year, i have 1 last super out there. The rest not touched! Focusing on letting the new colonies build up ready for next year. Not sure about Dorset rams, i'll ask a couple of people and get back to you.
😮 A huge amount of effort and time in making all of those supers. Obviously on a far, far smaller scale than you but we bought extra foundation and supers and they are also being taken off empty. Hardly any summer crop.
Optimistic beekeepers, we make the kit and hope! It is all we can do. So different to last year when it was so dry the nectar dried up. It so often happens at one point or another, for me in Cornwall the only season in 16 years was 2018 when they never stopped putting on weight. I have just finished tidying up the redundant kit and little bit of summer honey. Having barely lifted a lid for a month I was pleased they had managed to hold their own and actually all looked well and strong so that is the main thing, it's now looking to next year time !!....😳🧐
Thanks for another honest video. Very similar here on the Isle of Wight. Very good spring, probably harvested 3/4 of last years total in spring but summer harvest not looking good. Some colonies I will not get any summer honey from. Great tip about the observation hive, leaving a frame behind in the nuc.
We were lucky to have a few supers in spring, virtually nothing for the summer harvest. Poor people that are holidaying in Wales this year, a washout!!!!!
It certainly has been rough. On another subject , i was watching a store lamb sale up in Scotland. 35 kilo average lambs we're going for just over 80 pound's a head. But that's the auction.
Spring was amazing for me in the south uk, the bees filling 2 supers in 2 weeks, then the flow nearly stopped for 2 weeks then just dribbling in for the rest of the year. I still managed 80lb from each honey production hive
I was thinking that you were going to get one on the nose when you took the veil off 😂 Good thing you didn't 👍 I think we may not know the full cost of the poor summer until we see how well our colonies manage to prepare for winter, and not least survive the winter. We are lucky to still have some Himalayan Balsam in flower where I am, for those rare moments with sunshine, but conditions are certainly less than ideal. It would be very interesting to see how you store and process your honey. Personally I find that I start getting issues with crystallisation - I am already seeing that starting with this years spring honey - so I would love to see how you deal with this potentially money earning, or money losing, part of being a bee keeper/farmer.
If you listen to the radio we are constantly being told to take shorter showers in the sw still. I dont know how to cope with all this heat, normally id shower to cool down, but the drought has made it even worse. "The message" aside. With all the seed oil crops around the year was off to a bumper start, maybe next year we'll see some sunflower crops with the predicted shortage which will be a nice late year flow.
I waited too long for my first inspection due to poor weather and my Bees swarmed, I think they came through the Winter too well and were short of space for the Queen to lay when pollen started coming in. Then a caste swarm 2 weeks later . . . by the time I had them sorted they had no intention of putting anything in the Super despite lots of stores in the brood box. 😤
I'm going to start feeding my Bees 1:1 this week to try and get them to draw out the foundation in my Super so they can get off to a easy start next year . . .
@@gwenyngruffydd diversity is definitely is a big factor, I also think the urban heat island 🏝️ effect plays a big part too as they over winter better and build up early. My Dartmoor apairy is so swingy, I've had to feed at times this summer Vs my city bees still cropping 😅
As a newbie, if I posted something on Facebook about my face being so close to my bees I get shouted down as a complete idiot. Nothing as such on here.
Indeed! Some political headliners, activists and polarising doomsayers don't help the public discourse and understanding of the real nuances of climate change. As per the actual climate change predictions, a 'warmer climate', can lead to less predictable weather, wetter summers, warmer winters etc. So what we had this year, especially with nature being out of synch like this... matches the actual science. We sense weather, but plants have evolved to our climate, not our weather. So our bees' reduced production this year are merely indicating these environmental fluxes and changes.
That's the average around the world - not just in the little bit that you see out your window. Also it was the rain that ruined the Summer crop not temperatures.
Love the honesty showing the empty supers. I ordered 20 extra supers after the spring and never even built them.
Very similar here in Brittany. We had the jet stream south of us for most of the summer flow. Spring was ok « ish » then summer flow only really good for 10 days. Like you also, supers added after the first week, virtually empty! You need a residual stock and no matter how bad things are, trying to maintain a consistant stock is key!! Next year will be better!!🤔😜 good video! See you in a couple of weeks!! 🤠💪🏻🐝🐝🐝
Can’t wait!! 🏖️
Watching on the big screen here tonight colors and bees , the fields are alive thanks for sharing this. Shut the gate. 👍🏽❤️❤️❤️❤️😕😕😕for summer 80 plus 😕😕😕😕😕
Edge of my seat waiting for you to get popped 🐝haha never been so disappointed with one of your videos lol😂
Same here with summer flow rubbish, bad start with spring too cold, no rape honey even though the bees were so big but luckily a late spring flow that bumped it up 🤞 for a better year next year
Great video 👍
Thanking God for you and your family
😊❤️
Sorry to hear Gwenyn! That rain can be a bugger!
Sure can be! At least we had a good spring
Sun on the May, rain on the clover. I've seen it several times over my 50 years of beekeeping.
Lots of people have told me that this year.
Awesome honesty from a master beekeeper! Let's hope the Himaylan balsam will underpin the colonies in the low lands at least!. Ghost bees taking advantage of a stunned summer!
🤞🏻🤞🏻
Thanks for sharing your summer honey status
I got 6 frames total for myself this year, i have 1 last super out there. The rest not touched! Focusing on letting the new colonies build up ready for next year. Not sure about Dorset rams, i'll ask a couple of people and get back to you.
Sorry, Nobody i know has a ram, or Dorsets i'm afraid. Welsh mountain blacks, Llanwenogs, Lleyns and Suffolks only. Good luck!
😮 A huge amount of effort and time in making all of those supers. Obviously on a far, far smaller scale than you but we bought extra foundation and supers and they are also being taken off empty. Hardly any summer crop.
Next year 🤞🏻
Optimistic beekeepers, we make the kit and hope! It is all we can do. So different to last year when it was so dry the nectar dried up. It so often happens at one point or another, for me in Cornwall the only season in 16 years was 2018 when they never stopped putting on weight. I have just finished tidying up the redundant kit and little bit of summer honey. Having barely lifted a lid for a month I was pleased they had managed to hold their own and actually all looked well and strong so that is the main thing, it's now looking to next year time !!....😳🧐
Thanks for another honest video. Very similar here on the Isle of Wight. Very good spring, probably harvested 3/4 of last years total in spring but summer harvest not looking good. Some colonies I will not get any summer honey from.
Great tip about the observation hive, leaving a frame behind in the nuc.
😊👍🏻
We were lucky to have a few supers in spring, virtually nothing for the summer harvest. Poor people that are holidaying in Wales this year, a washout!!!!!
It’s been horrendous
It certainly has been rough. On another subject , i was watching a store lamb sale up in Scotland.
35 kilo average lambs we're going for just over 80 pound's a head. But that's the auction.
Trade is down guaranteed when I’m selling!
Spring was amazing for me in the south uk, the bees filling 2 supers in 2 weeks, then the flow nearly stopped for 2 weeks then just dribbling in for the rest of the year. I still managed 80lb from each honey production hive
That’s excellent 👌🏻
We also had a REALLY rainy summer in my part of Canada (Quebec) I'm convinced it hurt the honey crop.
very same here in Ireland , nothing in summer
I was thinking that you were going to get one on the nose when you took the veil off 😂 Good thing you didn't 👍
I think we may not know the full cost of the poor summer until we see how well our colonies manage to prepare for winter, and not least survive the winter. We are lucky to still have some Himalayan Balsam in flower where I am, for those rare moments with sunshine, but conditions are certainly less than ideal.
It would be very interesting to see how you store and process your honey. Personally I find that I start getting issues with crystallisation - I am already seeing that starting with this years spring honey - so I would love to see how you deal with this potentially money earning, or money losing, part of being a bee keeper/farmer.
There is a video up on my channel about my warm room and how I extract honey 😊👍🏻
I too have a large stack of undrawn supers😥
If you listen to the radio we are constantly being told to take shorter showers in the sw still.
I dont know how to cope with all this heat, normally id shower to cool down, but the drought has made it even worse.
"The message" aside. With all the seed oil crops around the year was off to a bumper start, maybe next year we'll see some sunflower crops with the predicted shortage which will be a nice late year flow.
Plenty of water in wales!! 😅
Hi Gwenyn! I love the observation hive. Where did you buy your observation hive? Are you going to sell them in the future? I'd love to buy one.
Mine came from Hyde hives. Look them up I’m sure they still make them 😊👍🏻
@@gwenyngruffydd Thank you!!!
It’s hard but look at the bright side, a lot less work making supers next year.
😂
Will you reuse the foundation next year ? If so how will you have it fresh for them next spring ?
The bees will use it as it is. All they need is a flow 😊
I waited too long for my first inspection due to poor weather and my Bees swarmed, I think they came through the Winter too well and were short of space for the Queen to lay when pollen started coming in. Then a caste swarm 2 weeks later . . . by the time I had them sorted they had no intention of putting anything in the Super despite lots of stores in the brood box. 😤
It’s been a frustrating year
I'm going to start feeding my Bees 1:1 this week to try and get them to draw out the foundation in my Super so they can get off to a easy start next year . . .
I have started feeding last week. Never known this before
Worst summer ever in NE Scotland, horrible northerly wind most of the time, bee's at the heather now, just hoping for warm weather.
🤞🏻
Looks like my stack.. just alot larger.
You gonna do anything to them for the wax moth or just keep them sealed?
Wax Month tends to favour dirty old Brood comb, so foundation should be OK
Just foundation will be fine 😊
We've had the same kind of season in the South West, great spring horrendous Summer 😅 interestingly my urban hives are doing far better 🤔
More range of plants flowering at different times of the year maybe?
@@gwenyngruffydd diversity is definitely is a big factor, I also think the urban heat island 🏝️ effect plays a big part too as they over winter better and build up early. My Dartmoor apairy is so swingy, I've had to feed at times this summer Vs my city bees still cropping 😅
I think it’s my fault I do apologise! I got my first mob of bees in late may and it’s been raining ever since, that’s the kind of luck I have lol
Thanks a bunch!! 😂😂
Will the wax in those supers be good to use next year ?
Of course no problem
They will be perfect 👍🏻
As a newbie, if I posted something on Facebook about my face being so close to my bees I get shouted down as a complete idiot. Nothing as such on here.
I’m not an idiot…..just a crazy bee farmer! 😄
That orange bee suit pm me the cost please
It’s sold by BJ Sheriff 😊👍🏻
I thought it was the hottest summer EVER in the history of the world.
Yes, since records began around the 1800’s I think.
Indeed! Some political headliners, activists and polarising doomsayers don't help the public discourse and understanding of the real nuances of climate change.
As per the actual climate change predictions, a 'warmer climate', can lead to less predictable weather, wetter summers, warmer winters etc. So what we had this year, especially with nature being out of synch like this... matches the actual science.
We sense weather, but plants have evolved to our climate, not our weather. So our bees' reduced production this year are merely indicating these environmental fluxes and changes.
That's the average around the world - not just in the little bit that you see out your window.
Also it was the rain that ruined the Summer crop not temperatures.
The average temp is the hottest. Here in UK it’s cool, wet, overcast.
Fideo gonest. Y Gwir yn erbyn y byd!
😊