Struggle for bees in May and June

Published 9 Jun 2011 13:00 0 Comments

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After superb weather in April which allowed the bees to take full advantage of the nectar and pollen from the plentiful dandelion and pollen from the willow, as well as the numerous other plants, garden and truly wild, beekeepers have experienced a disastrous May.

Ethel Irvine of Fermanagh Beekeepers Association reports that in April, colonies had built up very fast and had large numbers ready to forage on chestnut, sycamore and other trees producing blossom. One of these other trees was the hawthorn or May. This can be a source of food but in 29 years of beekeeping, 2010 was the only year in which my honey bees made use of the beautiful starry white flowers.

"Because of the strong winds, which can dry the nectar from flowers, and the rain, which often dilutes the nectar, honey bees were unable to fly for the long hours which are necessary to bring in the nectar which is converted to honey to be stored until needed, whether by the bees or by humans!

"May is traditionally the month when beekeepers can expect their bees to swarm. The swarm mechanism is the honey bee's method of reproduction and is a totally normal phenomenon, however much beekeepers may wish to prevent it. When a colony swarms, up to half of the bees will leave for a new home with the old queen, destroying the hopes of a good honey harvest. Also, casts can leave with newly hatched virgin queens, further depleting numbers in the hive. We do what we can to delay the colony making swarm preparations by putting supers on in good time so that the bees have plenty of space. "Many beekeepers rely on catching swarms as a method of replacing any colonies which may have died out or as a method of increasing the numbers in their apiaries. On lifting a swarm, isolate it from the rest of the apiary until it is certain that it does not carry disease. The queen with the swarm may be old and near to the end of her useful life, that is, her ability to lay 1500 fertile eggs per day, be prepared to replace her with a young queen towards the end of August so that the colony goes into winter with plenty of young bees which can survive the long winter months.

"With changeable weather, another danger is that of starvation of the bees. A strong colony, at this time of year, needs approximately 2.5kg of stores to keep it going for a week. This is a large quantity because the bees are rearing brood and there are more bees in the hive than in winter. If the beekeeper has frames of stores which were removed earlier in the year to make room for the queen to lay, these make ideal food at this time. This is because they can be placed in the brood nest and there is less danger of robbing starting and no danger of honey stored in the supers being contaminated. Thin syrup can be given in a rapid feeder but care must be taken to ensure that the brood nest does not become choked with unneeded stores when the weather improves.

"This month is known as 'the June gap' because of the scarcity of flowering plants which provide nectar. Trees are the most prolific sources and most of them have already bloomed. Blackberry is the next major source but clover and many other flowers will yield later in the summer.

Members of Fermanagh Beekeepers' Association and their friends are reminded of the barbecue and demonstration day on Saturday, June 18 at the Association apiary.

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 09 Jun 11

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