Oxalic treatment

The cold spell of the last few weeks is about to break, so this is probably the last chance this year to carry out the oxalic acid treatment on the hives.  I measure out the acid using a jewelers scales.  The recipe for this is clearly stated on the back of the pack of crystals and should be adhered to, absolutely.

The crystals are mixed into a 1:1 sugar syrup solution, 5ml per seam of bees is the recognized dosage, so I use 5ml syringes, ten of them are filled before taking the top off the hive.

One 5ml syringe full is drizzled along each seam of bees.  As each seam is completed I leave the empty syringe at the end of the row of bees, so I know which have been treated.

The whole operation should only take a few seconds, the crownboard and roof back on as soon as possible.

The empty syringes are refilled, and the routine moves on to the next hive, hopefully the bees have minimal harm and they will be carrying a lot less passengers.

Winter has arrived

Well after the very mild weather just before Christmas, I guess it was going to happen sooner or later.  It is freezing -6 C last couple of nights.

However it does mean that I can get on with building some of the kit for next season without feeling guilty about all the jobs I have to do outside,  I am working on the second batch of hives, so far, three floors, three broods, two supers, two roofs and a shedload of frames.  The first batch of four are complete, all have deposits on them are stored away in the dry and will be ready for collection mid - late May 2013, with colonies installed.  From the amount of interest I don't think this second batch will be available for long.

I am glad I did not rush to trickle oxalic acid on my colonies before the new year, another week of this weather, and that looks likely, will be the ideal time to carry out the treatment.