A surprising occurence

Over the past two days I have been checking the hives for honey supplies and doing a sugar-roll mite count.  So far I have done #2 & 3.  Each had 6-7 frames of capped honey in the top box.  Various sources recommend different amounts of needed honey stores but I think for this area 8 frames in the top box is what is needed.  So I will continue to feed for a while.

"Ghost bees" returning to the hive after sugar-roll count

The mite count:  #3, 8 mites = 2.67%;  #2, 5 mites = 1.67%.  Randy Oliver treats if the count is over 2%.  I had counted #3 first and I figured I would see what the average for all 3 hives was before deciding to treat now with Apiguard (thymol).  However, here comes the surprise.
As I was preparing to check hive #1, I saw a swarm around the hives in front of #1&2.  It was relatively small and eventually settled on Marilyn Monroe. 

Small swarm cluster

I fetched one of my nuc boxes to capture the swarm and had to scrounge up five deep frames for it.  I had one unused frame with foundation, one foundationless frame but the rest were only mediums.  Then I found one black plastic frame and even though I do not like this kind, any port in a storm.  Then I came across the frame for queen grafting that I received at the class at Davis.  I pried off the rack holders, inserted a sheet of foundation and voila!, a fourth frame.  For the fifth I used a drone frame.
Next, I had to provide for a way to feed the bees.  I wanted to use the entrance feeder, but the entrance opening was too small.

The entrance feeder width compared to the entrance width

The solution was to take the bottom board off the box and re-cut the opening.  (I made it about 1/8th inch too wide and closed the gap with a wedge of wood.)  I closed both openings with duct tape.
Now that the entrance was blocked by the feeder, I needed to make another entrance using a hole saw.
Next I needed to prepare a spot to put the box and protect it from ants.  I used a couple of bricks in a Styrofoam lid and a moat of motor oil.

Now all was ready to capture the swarm.  I had earlier placed the nuc box beneath the cluster and put a couple of drops of lemongrass oil in the box.

Box in position and ready for bees

Now that all was in order, I grabbed the branch and shook and SHOOK.  Then I banged the branch with the drone frame.  The bees tumbled into the box and many took to the air.

I waited a few minutes and then looked at the branch.  There were just a few bees there and they were not clustering as they would if the queen was still there.
Feeling confidant that the queen was in the box, I carefully put in the five frames, put the top on and carried the box to the potting table, its new location.  There I removed the duct tape and placed the entrance feeder.

Hmm, one problem.  The full feeder was so heavy that it was tipping a bit and even prying the box slightly apart.  I could foresee disaster!   The solution: a piece of PVC pipe in a bath of oil in a cap from a lemonade bottle.

I took another look at the branch where the cluster had been,

and later on, there were no bees left.
Needless to say, the mite count and honey check was not done on #1.  I suspect that it was #1 that swarmed because there seems to be a lot more bees and activity at #2's entrance.  If I am correct (at least 50% chance), then I need to leave #1 undisturbed for a couple of weeks to give the new queen time to hatch, mate and start laying.  I did fill its feeder.
I do not really expect the swarm to survive; it is just too small, probably under a pound.  I am more concerned about the mother hive.  Is it too late in the year for her to successfully mate?  I only see a few drones in the hives, nothing like the numbers in late spring.  As with most things in life, time will tell.

Olea's hive seems to be doing well

It was time to remove the Apivar strips from Olea's hive a couple of days ago and I took the opportunity to look through the combs.
The bees have been eating the hard sugar patties I made.  It takes them several days to finish off a patty, unlike their cousins in hives #1-3 who go through a half-gallon of syrup in a day.
There was honey in bars 11-16.  Some were almost filled with capped honey and the rest had all or mostly uncapped honey cells.  There was brood on bars 4-10;  I did not see the queen.
I have no more patties and I filled the other hives feeders today.  I will not feed them again for a few days (we will be out of town) and will check how they are doing towards the end of the week.  They just might have enough honey stores to get them through until the eucalyptus bloom.

Hot weather and they are thirsty

It has been very hot here so the bees have needed a lot of water.  They have started visiting the water station I provided for them.  I need to refill it every couple of days.

Today I went into #3 in order to remove the Apivar strips I put in 6 weeks ago.  Of course, I looked around the rest of the hive as well.
In the top box there was some capped and unripe honey.  I suspect that it is made mainly from the sugar syrup they have been fed.  There was some brood, and, surprisingly to me, some areas of drone cells.  

Drone cells in the center and capped honey around

Perhaps it is the unusual weather.  I did not see the queen, but I believe she is doing well because I saw very young (2-3 day old) larvae. 
Surprisingly because this is when drone production should have stopped.
There was also good pollen stores.

Conclusions:  #3 is doing well and I need to continue feeding.

They were hungry

 I looked into the hives today to see how the bees were doing with their sugar discs.  Olea's bees had not only eaten all the sugar, they were also eating the plate.  

The white crumbly stuff is chewed up paper.  There is no more sugar.

 The bees in #1 had finished all their sugar, so I put a disc in the Vivaldi box and they immediately started eating.

#2&3 had yet finished their first serving. 

Sugar candy for the bees

I thought I should feed Olea's hive as well.  It seemed that the way to do so was to use sugar candy.  An online search gave me several recipes for bee candy, all of which involved boiling sugar in water until it was a certain degree.  I could not decide whether to make a fondant (234 degrees) or hard (250 degrees), so I aimed for in between.
First step: a trip to Costco for sugar.

Then I prepared a bunch of paper plates with a thin coat of canola oil.

I put a couple of cups of water in a pot and added lots of sugar.  I did not measure it but I believe it was over five pounds.  It takes a long time for the temperature to reach 240 degrees.

I ladled the hot syrup into the plates and waited for it to cool.

When it had cooled, it was the consistency of sticky jello.  It was then that I read that one has to beat the hot syrup in order to make fondant.  Ah well, it does pay to read instructions.
I decided to experiment with the the sugar gel and yesterday put one in Olea's hive and one into #1.

The plate of gel in #1

A second plate in the top bar hive

Then last night, I scraped all the gel back into a pot and boiled until a bit over 250 degrees and ladled the syrup into oiled plates.  It cooled hard and I was able to remove the discs and stack them in a plastic bag.
I went back today to check on things.  #1 had not done so well, but Olea's had gone to town.

Three bees dead and stuck in the partially granulated gel

Most of the sugar was gone.  They were still at work on the granulated sugar.  There were several bees that were stuck in the sugar and dead or dying

I put some of the hard candy by the opening in #1 but the bees paid it no attention, so I put it on top of the frames beneath the Vivaldi box.

You can also see the Apivar strips held up by nails

About 5 minutes after closing the hive

Since #2 and 3 had been going through the hole to get into the top feeder (remember #1 had an entrance feeder), I put the candy partially over the hole.

A couple of minutes later

I took a look in the window of Olea's and saw many bees running around with pieces of candy in their mandibles.
I think the hard candy is a success.

No honey for the bees, either

This past week I took a look into hives #2 and 3.  There was a good brood pattern, but no honey!  I recall that there had been a few frames with capped honey in the deep boxes but the bees must have eaten it all.
It has been a poor summer for honey production because of the drought.  I heard a report from the Beekeepers Guild that no one is getting honey this fall.  I thought the girls would do okay if I took only the honey in the supers, but I guess I was mistaken.  So the poor bees must be hungry.
I made up some 1:1 sugar syrup and put the top feeders into 2&3.  Since I only have 2 top feeders, I put the entrance feeder in #1.  The bees emptied both top feeders, a half-gallon, in less than one day and I have been filling them daily for the past 3 days and the entrance feeder twice a day.  Today, it looks like they may have slowed down a bit. 
I also put the entrance reducers in to help control robbing.  In the next days I will make a sugar cake to feed the top bar hive, assuming that it too has a honey shortage even though I did not take any from it.  Time to go to Costco for a 50-pound sack of sugar.
The bees are going regularly to the dish I have for water supply.  I put sand in it over the rocks and pebbles.  I have to keep an eye on it and keep it moist.

No honey harvest from Olea's hive... yet

A few days ago I looked into Olea's top bar hive hoping to get some more honey.  Most of the two gallons we got from the other hives is going into wedding favors.  I started from the end away from the entrance.  My books say any honey after bar 12 can be harvested, but there was little or no ripe honey.  I did see a few brood cells on bar 14.  I was surprised to see brood extending so far into the box.  Then I saw the queen on bar 13.  I wondered if all the honey was in the front of the box and just how many bars had brood.  I took out the first two bars.  Bar 1 was only about half-length.  Both 1 and 2 had capped honey and I saw some brood on one side of 3 but did not take it out.  So the area of brood has not yet contracted.  It is possible that in the fall there will be some honey to harvest, but I am not counting on it.
I took a look into the nuc and it is stable.  There still is not comb drawn on two of the frames.
I put Apivar strips into hives #1,2 & 3.  They will stay in for 6-8 weeks.  I am investigating how to use the Apivar in the top bar.  Since there is a heavy mite infestation in the other hives, I am assuming that the top bar should be treated as well.
Sorry, no photos today.