Cooler nights now - 3C last night. 14C today. Stopped feeding now - I did wonder if I was over feeding them and not leaving enough room for the queen to lay but today there were plenty of eggs, larvae and eggs on the central frames and in a good pattern. Saw the queen and added a bit more green paint to her thorax as my last effort had left only a feint green tinge!
Went to a NFBKA meeting on Friday with Steve - Clive De Bruyn (pronounced - Brain). He has so much experience from all over the world; he was fascinating. Easy to remember life cycle - it goes in 3's: Egg - 3 days, larva - 6 days (2x3), sealed - 12 days (6x2). 3 + 6 + 12 = 21 days to hatch. After 3 years beekeeping you think you are an expert - in reality you never stop learning because no one year is the same in terms of weather, pests, colony characteristics etc. 1 hive for 100 years = 100 years experience OR 100 hives for 1 year = 100 years experience
Sunday 17 October 2010
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