Hives

Wintering your hives

By |2021-07-01T18:43:17+10:00July 1st, 2021|Beekeeping, Bees, Hives, Native Bees|

Honey (APIS) Bees  Beekeepers need to manage their honey bees for winter otherwise they may die.  It is important to take measures in autumn to prepare for winter. Before the onset of winter a final inspection should take place in April or the beginning of May at the latest.  Pick a sunny day. The NSW DPI has put out a

Chalk Brood Advice

By |2021-01-29T19:01:08+11:00January 29th, 2021|Beekeeping, Hives, Pests and Diseases|

We have been advised that now is the perfect weather for the fungal disease, CHALKBROOD, to take off in European honey bee, Apis mellifera, hives.  It has been hot and now it is cooler and wet. Chalkbrood is caused by a fungus, Ascosphaera Apis, and it affects sealed and unsealed brood in a hive. Chalkbrood is

Langstroth Bee Hive Temperature Variations

By |2020-01-16T06:00:35+11:00January 16th, 2020|Beekeeping, Hives|

This is an article by a club member relating to internal Langstroth hive temperatures made over various summer and winter periods in 2016.  It also includes notes and comments related to hive ventilation and humidity.  Included are a number of graphs of the measured temperature variations.  The PDF article can be found in the “links

Solitary Bee House Plans

By |2020-01-14T08:25:49+11:00January 14th, 2020|Beekeeping, Hives|

One of our members constructed this Australian native solitary bee house suitable for any backyard. The insect entering the “hole” is a bee – not a wasp, and the bits of grass were placed there by the bees.   These are the plans – suitable for building from any scrap or recycled timber / tin (no

The Warre Hive

By |2020-01-14T06:51:31+11:00January 14th, 2020|Hives|

For those interested in alternate bee hive design, this copy of the book by Abbe Warre and associated design plan makes interesting reading. Even if you do not plan to experiment with this hive design (and it could be modified to suit our removable frames), there is a wealth of general beekeeping information. Here is