Jobs for June

Jobs to carry out this month:

• Continue weekly inspections and undertake swarm control if required. Maintain your records - memories aren’t what they could be.

• During ‘June gap’ if food stores are low, feed 1:1 syrup in a contact or rapid feeder. Reduce the hive entrance to avoid robbing taking place.

• Ensure water is available – foraging and making honey is thirsty work.

• Add another super when the current one is almost full of bees, not honey.

• Check for queen cells and mark any new queens with the years designated colour.

• Continue to replace any dirty / damaged frames as required or scheduled.

• Monitor for varroa: an average daily mite fall of 10 or more could mean the colony has a problem and needs treating if that’s a regime you use. MAQS can be used with honey supers on (but check the packaging for the correct use).

• Visit local nurseries every month and see which plants are attracting honey bees - see this month’s tip for ideas for plants to cover the ‘June gap’. 

• Continue monitoring for Asian hornets in your apiary. Baits can now be protein-based or sweet liquid based and offered in an open dish to avoid bycatch - keep away from your hives.

 

Frequency of apiary visits – weekly

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