The Beekeeping thread

[Taff]

I still hate wasps though.

The ones here (yellow jackets) build underground nests/hives.. which most people don't know about until they run the mower over the entrance, at which point the entire tribe come boiling out of the ground & attack everything within 100ft. The little fuckers release a hormone when they sting to let the rest of them know to join the party & it turns into a total shitshow within a few seconds. People & pets die.

My mate had this last year and tried to deal with them by holding a running strimmer over the top of the entrance, he said it was great fun at first

The honey bee 'We're pissed off now' pheromone smells like pear drop sweets, and it's a good indicator to pack up and leave them to it.

[Cousin Jack]

I still hate wasps though.

The ones here (yellow jackets) build underground nests/hives.. which most people don't know about until they run the mower over the entrance, at which point the entire tribe come boiling out of the ground & attack everything within 100ft. The little fuckers release a hormone when they sting to let the rest of them know to join the party & it turns into a total shitshow within a few seconds. People & pets die.

Wasps in the UK will build a nest in a hole too. My brother, aged about 7, put his foot in one, and was chased by a very large number of very angry wasps. He was covered in literally hundreds of them but got away with only 3 stings.

He hates wasps too!

[Count Steer]

Spent the afternoon in the garden. There's a hole that looks like the badger was excavating a new sett but I think it was actually excavating a bees nest. The hole is pretty big and it has spread earth all over the place.

Fortunately it's in one of the areas that gets minimal attention....ie it was left for the wildlife...ie bees.

Harrumph.

[Skub]

Spent the afternoon in the garden. There's a hole that looks like the badger was excavating a new sett but I think it was actually excavating a bees nest. The hole is pretty big and it has spread earth all over the place.

Fortunately it's in one of the areas that gets minimal attention....ie it was left for the wildlife...ie bees.

Harrumph.

Maybe a wassup nest. Badgers do like the wasp larvae.

[Count Steer]

Spent the afternoon in the garden. There's a hole that looks like the badger was excavating a new sett but I think it was actually excavating a bees nest. The hole is pretty big and it has spread earth all over the place.

Fortunately it's in one of the areas that gets minimal attention....ie it was left for the wildlife...ie bees.

Harrumph.

Maybe a wassup nest. Badgers do like the wasp larvae.

The missus had seen bees though.

Haven't actually seen many wasps this year, but it's early doors yet I suppose.

Seen the occasional hornet too. Only ever seen them in recent years. I remember the shock when I saw my first one.

Noticed a hornet's nest in a tree stump (not in my garden!) a couple of years ago. Then, a few days later, just the remains of a hornet's nest after Brock found it. Well 'ard them badgers!

[Dodgy69]

Had the bikes out of the garage today, bees everywhere and i can happily report NO incidents.

They're behind the wooden shelving and the nests are growing, god knows what it's like behind. I sweep the floor taking care not to disturb anything and all is well.

I'm guessing I've got these now until autumn and hopefully then, I can have a clean up. @Taff , is my thinking correct.?

[Wossname]

[quote="Cousin Jack" post_id=365813 time=1748767725 user_id=

Wasps in the UK will build a nest in a hole too. My brother, aged about 7, put his foot in one, and was chased by a very large number of very angry wasps. He was covered in literally hundreds of them but got away with only 3 stings.

He hates wasps too!
[/quote]


I’d rather have a wasp sting than a cleg bite any day.

[Taff]

Had the bikes out of the garage today, bees everywhere and i can happily report NO incidents.

They're behind the wooden shelving and the nests are growing, god knows what it's like behind. I sweep the floor taking care not to disturb anything and all is well.

I'm guessing I've got these now until autumn and hopefully then, I can have a clean up. @Taff , is my thinking correct.?

Yeah, as long as you're not bothering each other it's all good

[Taff]

Honey harvesting time is here, and so a quick dit on how we get honey from the honeycomb.

Bees really help us by having the instinct to store honey above the brood nest, so all we have to do is put a queen excluder - a wire mesh that the queen can't fit through- above the brood and then put smaller boxes on top.
The nearest hive in this photo had got 5 supers (honey boxes).



These boxes have got hundreds, maybe thousands of bees in them and I need them out before I take the boxes home for extracting, so I move the supers into a stack a little away from the hives and put a bee escape on the top and bottom and leave them for 24 hours.

By the time I go back the bees have (hopefully) come out of the escapes and flown back to their hives.

[Taipan]

Question for you knowledgeable types,is manuka honey really that special, and what is it about it that makes it so, if it is?

[MrLongbeard]

Sod that, get some mad honey

[Taipan]

Sod that, get some mad honey

Save me googling, what is that?

[Taff]

Question for you knowledgeable types,is manuka honey really that special, and what is it about it that makes it so, if it is?

This is only my opinion based on some of the stuff that I've read on forums.

There are some genuine factors that are unique to Manuka that makes it 'more' antibacterial than other types of honey. So if you've got reasonable expectations and you get the genuine thing then it might be worth an extra bit of money.

However.

The marketing machine is strong and the claims may be just a tad exaggerated, inflated, blown out of all proportions and with those claims the price does the same thing.
And what happens when people are willing to pay an inflated price for something? fraudsters step in knowing full well that the general public can't test the honey, and some of the lab test results can be spoofed by overheating any old honey. There has been claims that there's more Manuka honey bottled that the world could possibly make - remembering that any honey claiming to be single source must have come from an area where something like 90% of the flora is that type. i.e. heather honey can only have come from heather.

at the end of the day, if you like it and are content that it has come from a genuine supplier then it's good for you

I guarantee that my honey tastes better though

[Taff]

Sod that, get some mad honey

I'd never heard of that either.

it sounds like fun...

AI Overview
Mad honey is honey that contains grayanotoxins, which are naturally occurring toxins found in the nectar and pollen of certain plants, primarily rhododendrons. It's known for its mildly intoxicating and narcotic effects and is produced in regions like Nepal, Turkey, and rarely in the eastern United States.
Here's a more detailed explanation:
Grayanotoxins:
These are the active compounds in mad honey that cause its effects.
Rhododendron Nectar:
The toxins are present in the nectar and pollen of rhododendron plants, particularly those in the genus Rhododendron.
Production:
Mad honey is produced in areas where these toxin-containing rhododendrons grow, such as the Himalayas and Turkey.
Effects:
Grayanotoxins can cause a range of effects, including dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and a general feeling of intoxication.
Traditional Use:
In some regions, mad honey is used as a traditional medicine or recreational drug.

[MrLongbeard]

That's the stuff, although I suppose I should actually get around to trying regular old plain honey before going and tripping off my tits on the exotic stuff

[gremlin]

Grayanotoxins can cause a range of effects, including dizziness, nausea, vomiting,

Don't sound like fun to me...

I'll stick to the grape juice.

[Dodgy69]

@Taff ... its all gone quiet in the garage, looks like bees have moved on. Can I move shelving and have a tidy up. ? What am I likely to find.?

[Ian]

What am I likely to find.?

Giant killer hornets snoozing after eating the bees.

[Dodgy69]

I'll give it a bit longer, seen a couple loitering about.

[Taff]

@Taff ... its all gone quiet in the garage, looks like bees have moved on. Can I move shelving and have a tidy up. ? What am I likely to find.?

As soon as there's no more bees coming and going it'll be fine to clear out the nest. Please take some photos