The weather here has been absolutely dreadful for the last fortnight but there was no option this morning but to inspect inside the hive. The temperatures remain very cool still far below what we could expect. It's struggling to get to 16 degrees and the wind has been quite strong. [I am not helping the cause of the Irish Tourist Board, am I?] The inspection had to be a rapid affair for fear of chilling any brood.
Despite this, the girls still seem to taking every chance they get to fly outdoors for reconnaissance and refilling the fuel tanks. They were still bringing in plenty of the vivid orange pollen although I remain unsure where this originates given our surroundings. It's fairly rural here with a lot of what is known as "bog" all around. In beekeeping terms, these low lying peat bogs can be tremendously important due to the heather which flowers around this time of year. The story of the peat bogs is a long one and is crucial to the tale of Irish history especially in terms of the supply of heating fuel. [Horticulturally, there is a growing movement away from the use of peat particularly in domestic gardening products e.g. compost materials because of the recognition that the peat is limited [see http://www.ipcc.ie for further details]. I will return to the subject of peat another day maybe.
Many beekeepers or beeks - a term I learned from Mark in NC - take their hives to the moors and bogs to allow their bees to forage on the heather during the latter part of summer. A honey known as ling is a speciality in itself but that's also a subject for the future and something which I hope to try out in 2010.
Getting back to this morning, the hive stores were dangerously low although there's been no serious harm as I could see - just a reduction of stored honey in the brood chamber but I hope that this can be raised back up through some intensive feeding. Given the late start there was always going to a limited opportunity for supering and it looks like the weather isn't going to allow it now.
Interestingly, I noticed the presence of several drones once again which surprised me as I thought they'd been given the elbow by now, especially given the low levels of supplies. Although I never seem to spot her, I am sure that the Queen is laying well and the drones don't indicate anything amiss. Definitely something to keep an eye on though.
Probably the most important plant in this area for late flowering is the evergreen common ivy (hedera helix) which is just starting to come into flower. It's really the bees' last opportunity to stack up on those extra goodies prior to the winter - we have ivy over some of the walls around our cottage garden although, in beekeeping terms, more would be better. Planting for honeybees is going to be an important part of how we progress the garden. Maybe I should plant some ivy around the local gardens in the local area when the neighbours aren't looking!
Lastly, I noticed half a dozen dead workers on the ground around the hive. Not too alarming but I'm noting this for my own records.
With the refilled circular feeder in situ I will be checking this daily for signs of uptake and keeping it full so as to build up the stores again.
Sorry about the epistle but it's been a while...
