What a season this is proving to be!
The bees seem determined to make up for lost time and have swarmed repeatedly. A number of members have reported that their bees swarmed before the queen cells were sealed and a few, including myself, had swarms without any queen cells left behind. This is definitely not in accordance with the books!

On the positive side, we started the season wondering how to ensure that everyone had the opportunity to acquire at least one nuc of bees. We are now in the position where everyone who wanted bees this season, has some. At one point swarms of bees were far more plentiful than hives to house them.

By early June one of my colonies had amassed sufficient honey for me to take off two supers – the first time I have ever managed to do this. However, from then on they have only just managed to forage enough for their needs and have not built up any significant stores. Reports from Stuart Beattie, our local Bee Inspector, say that bees are starving on many of the sites he has inspected in Cumbria. Whether this is because the number of bees has exceeded the forage supply or the “June gap” has extended through July and into August, is difficult to assess. Fortunately the gap has now ended and my black bees have turned deathly white as they ceaselessly work the Himalayan balsam that grows in great profusion along the banks of the Lune. Hopefully this will produce a reasonable honey crop.

However, the main challenge now is to prepare all our nucs and colonies for the winter in order to ensure, as far as practical, that they start next season in as strong a state as possible.