From A to Bee(61)

My first job, once I had opened the hive, was to have a look at the frames in the super. Last week some of the cut comb was all over the place because of the heat which makes the wax very pliable. Usually frames of wax will have a wire strip going through them which gives extra support but these 'cut' comb frames are just open to the elements so I had to be very careful. When I opened it all up it was exactly the same and so I immediately replaced them back in the super and as they weren't drawn out, it was relatively easy. On reflection, not many of the frames were drawn out at all, which is a concern for my jar of honey. With the super frames replaced, it was time to move on and let the rematch begin.



Off came the super and it was immediately apparent there were a lot more bees even than last week. I gave it all a quick smoke and started to lift off the queen excluder. It was about this time that I again noticed, like last week, just how hot it was outside – I was baking inside the bee suit which is no surprise considering it was indeed turning into the hottest day of the year.



I started to work my way through and it took until the fifth frame for the kamikaze pilots to start. I have to say, it wasn't as bad as last week and I felt a lot more comfortable. The Marigolds were amazing and really helped to combat my nerves. It is strange seeing bees crawling all over your fingers but with these on I was a bit more at ease. I continued through the hive inspection and found that I was actually able to count the number of frames with brood which I had never been able to do before. Though nervous I was feeling far more in control.



I got to the last frame, having not found the queen but having found evidence that she was laying and so feeling quite satisfied. I closed down the hive and as I left I was only followed by three bees this week. They stayed around for a little bit just to make sure that I was really going and then finally it was silent. I had made it; I had won. It felt great, not quite as relaxing as the Beehaus bees but I had got through it. Bit worrying about the lack of honey though. Have I missed the window of opportunity to get a jar of honey this year??





JULY 14



It started as a normal Wednesday evening session with the Reigate Beekeepers but it soon turned into all-out war with the bees. I learned some very valuable lessons! Beware of a windy night, especially if you are checking a colony without a queen.



I was with my regular group of six, checking over our hives, and it had started well. We were a little worried about the weather as it looked like the heavens would open at any moment. Still, we knew we had a good-tempered set of hives, though we couldn't account for the other twelve hives on the apiary. I was also told the weather, and in particular a colder and windier evening like tonight, can do funny things to even the calmest of hives.



We took off the top supers of the first hive and had got down into the first set of frames when the wind picked up out of nowhere. It was like a mini hurricane centred over our two hives. This, along with the slightly cooler temperature this evening, meant the bees were not happy.



We should have realised something was slightly amiss before we even started. Maggie, one of our mentors, had already been stung standing about fifty metres from the hive – I even saw the bee hit her fringe. The bee obviously decided she quite liked it and so buried itself ever deeper. Having got smacked out of the fringe during what I can only describe as an elaborate dancing move from Maggie, she went again but decided that the longer hair at the back was a better place to nestle. Despite Maggie's best moves, she got stung.



We should therefore have realised that some of the hives would be feisty but I am not sure we were ready for what was about to happen. Once we had taken out a few of the frames it really struck us that something was just not quite right. Firstly they were really, really angry – there were plenty of kamikaze bees flying into our veils – and secondly we actually lost count of the number of queen cells we had seen. This meant only one thing as we were certain we hadn't seen any eggs; the queen was no longer there and they were madly trying to raise a new queen.



This would account for the temperament issues but as we worked further through the hive, it turned into a war. Everyone kept on getting stung. Andrew took one on the finger then, almost immediately, Richard took one on the wrist. Then, as Andrew was checking some of the frames (we all took it in turns) he was stung again on the thumb but this time it must have hurt – I think I learned some new words! It was mid inspection, a frame of bees in Andrew's hand, and as he started an unrepeatable diatribe, the whole world went into slow motion when his hand that was stung instinctively left the frame. The entire frame of bees began to swing wildly and was being held by one hand. The hive tool flew through the air at the same time and landed about six feet away and you could almost see what was going to happen next… Fortunately Andrew gathered his composure before the frame dropped to the floor, spraying thousands of already angry bees everywhere. We quickly closed the hive up and for the second time in a couple weeks I cut an inspection short.