Hot Hot Hot

I did check the thermometer on the terrace at 16:40 this afternoon which showed 32.9°C in the shade. The entire area being paved, it naturally heats up well but it was so warm that I very nearly overcame my "innere Schweinehund" - inner Pig Dog or perhaps better - inner instincts - and take a plunge in the pool. But the thermometer only showed the water at 23°C. At 25°C I might bathe my big toe, 27°C let the water reach my knees but only at 30°C do I properly take the waters.

I was interested to know the temperature as I had been checking up on daughter Kate and family in Co, Cavan, Ireland with Storm Ali raging. Not far away in Galway, a Swiss woman had been killed when her caravan was blown over a cliff.  Kate sent me lots of photos of tree damage from her garden but reported all persons and animals were safe. I sent her a photo of our digital thermometer and she responded immediately with the identical photo of her identical thermometer showing the identical time but only 12°C! Identical time is due to her buying it in Germany and despite having tried all the instructions on how to adjust the time zone, it keeps going back to mainland Europe time - crafty those Germans.
Had spent all morning in the horse stables trying to rearrange the large round hay bales that are each on pallets but had been randomly spread around to let as much air dry them out. This week we are due to get two very large rectangular straw bales and so we need to find room. We also have the problem that the metal roof "sweats" in autumn/winter/spring when we have frost at night and warm or sunny days. The drops that occur in the morning compete with the best rain forest. And naturally, the hay starts to go mouldy. So we need to cover them yet leave lots of room for them to breathe and also, they are the cats favourite sleeping places, each one has his/her own.

Lots of maneouvering the 200-250kg bales which are standing up rather than on their sides where they can be rolled.  Luckily the pallets and a very long pallet trolley make it possible for one pair of hands. But naturally, there were lots of other things in the way including lots of beehive boxes full of frames that need to be melted down. Another one for the To-Do list.

Lunch and a snooze and then late afternoon, nearly 19:00, I did at least manage to tick off one of the outstanding To-Dos. Remove any remnants of  sugar fondant from the bees and go ahead with the second round of formic (ant) acid treatment against the varroa mites. Warm dry weather is needed to get the acid to evaporate and thus cover the entire hive airspaces with its awful pungent smell. Poor girls. With a lot of luck, I might be able to remove the pads tomorrow, latest on Friday. After that, the weather forecast plummets to Ireland-like temperatures for the weekend before heading back up to the 20's.

Normally I would not have bothered with smoke or a veil but I didn't want to chance anything or for it to take long. The bees are very calm at the moment but you never know when you start stealing their food.

All went well. In the photo the only double-decker hive this winter. The other three I have all reduced to one box in the hope they come through better - fewer bees, less food needed and hopefully more compact brood that they have to keep warm. The other hives still have an empty box on top where I have been feeding them the sugar. I will do another feeding at the weekend.

Lying on the frames in the box are the two yellow kitchen washing up pads, each given 20ml of acid via the orange injection filled from the bottle. The other hives got 2 pads each with 10ml. The general rule is 20ml per box.

A note to any beekeepers passing by - yes my smoker is "different"! In the summer I replaced the material on the torn and useless bellows. To do this, removed the bellows and retreated to the cool of the house where I did the repair. Only when I put it back together did I realise the glued hinge side was at the top instead of the bottom! I have now bought a new smoker as it cost little more than just new bellows but haven't yet fired it up.