Philippa Thomas

My goodness, how bad is the English????

Had a small swarm arrive in my bait hive last spring - didn't do much all summer and nearly requeened it. Built up slowly over the winter then hey presto!! it exploded! Is probably my strongest hive this season. Some of my best hives have been from small swarms with virgin queens the previous year.

A glorious day here in the 'Naki. No pre 31 December harvest here due to a very late start, but Pohutukawa and clover are going nuts, with a bit of lotus and boxes are filling up fast, with the first hopefully coming off next week. Sampling at the hives are indicating a tasty brew.

Same here in the 'Naki, feeding bees hard out in early Dec, would've lost them otherwise. Not due to overstocking, was all due to bad weather. First fine day, heaps of nectar. Have to attribute the appropriate cause and effect.

Very interested to see that Muehlenbeckia produces nectar for two months - I have always hated the stuff and have never seen a bee on it.

I would've been in time as they were just in the process of moving in - a good portion of the bees were still in the air. Thanks for the tips, I will give it a go next time.

I have seen them on the flowers with cream pollen sacs. I think it was December three years ago that I was walking through the bush on a warm day and I could hear the roaring of bees - I thought there must've been a huge swarm, but it was coming from two huge NZ Oaks up above, they were thick with them. I got my best honey crop that year, of course not just from them.

That's what I wondered - that there is a chance if they have not yet set up camp.

Huge Swarm Entering Cavity - How to Capture? Got a call from our pest control guy last night. He had been called out to a bee swarm that was obviously in the process of moving through a grating into the cavity of a bay window of a house. He said he had ever seen anything like it, so many bees in the air and dripping from the trees, said you could bring 10 beehives and it wouldn't be enough...I think that may be a slight exaggeration presuming they came from one hive! I would be interested to know if anyone has been successful in using smoke or fume board stuff to flush them out and dive

Sounds interesting! Must check it out?

Made by yourself?

There are masses of bees in the Titoki at present. Looks like some are gathering pollen but there must be an abundance of nectar to produce such a hum. Does anyone know what sort of honey it produces?

Hmmm yes wondered about that...very nutritious items of nature...

When our cows calves in Spring there were bees all over the afterbirths lying on the paddocks.?