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Posted: 7/27/2021 7:41:22 PM EDT
[#1]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By cuttingedge: They do not normally fit through a queen excluder. Some old timers I knew used to put an excluder in the bottom of a new colony to discourage absconding. The bees are a little more reluctant to hightail it out of there if they have zero chance of survival, I guess. 
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Posted: 7/27/2021 7:41:42 PM EDT
[#2]
2nd post for new page....
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Posted: 7/29/2021 2:32:48 PM EDT
[#3]
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Posted: 7/30/2021 10:36:04 AM EDT
[#4]
Interesting perspective.
I found that most man-made hives have seven times higher heat loss and eight times bigger entrance size than tree nests. This creates the lower humidity levels that favour the parasite. To save honey bees we need to design them new hives |
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Posted: 7/31/2021 11:43:28 PM EDT
[#5]
My small spring honey haul
About 15# total, ran out out clean bottles so had to get some more washed Disappointing but at least I got something this year. Will sell a couple bottles and keep several Hopefully the goldenrod and other fall flowers like knot weed do well. So far the goldenrod plants are doing well I made the clear labels with clear Avery stickers and my nkjet printer. Just came up with something quick using MS Paint  Attached File Attached FileTomorrow I may do some wax rendering and start getting it cleaned up from some old frames that had been sitting around. Got them mostly cleaned up. Have about 1-1/2 5 gal buckets full. So maybe a couple pounds |
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Posted: 8/2/2021 11:31:09 AM EDT
[Last Edit: JQ66]
[#6]
Well it looks like the out of place queen (white mark) that was in my orange hive either left or was killed. No sign of her, and no brood at all. So ordered two new queens.
The small hive right next to it that was a split, and had a fair amount of brood last month, also no sign of a queen and just a few remaining capped brood and no uncapped larvae. Still a decent number of bees in there. One other hive (that had issues with the laying workers) queen is not laying much now. I started feeding the smaller hives syrup two weeks ago, some of the smaller ones I can see it’s helping. A couple the workers are going to town drawing out new comb. Other hives, not as much. And put feed troughs inside the two biggest hives yesterday. It’s always something. Total honey I was just a little over 20#. Just maybe 8oz left to get out of the bucket, then let the bees clean it up. |
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Posted: 8/5/2021 7:24:34 PM EDT
[Last Edit: Kitties-with-Sigs]
[#7]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By JQ66: Neat little story https://beta.ctvnews.ca/local/edmonton/2021/7/22/1_5519797.html https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/319879/5A795E0D-8D8E-4810-BD0C-C08226A97A8F_jpe-2032054.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/319879/2C38E065-0131-476C-B0DE-A4BA83925A70_jpe-2032055.JPG Oh cute!  His little sleeves need to come down farther. I'm sort of surprised he hasn't been stung. But apparently it's working, so what do I know? ETA: You know, I bet a dog could learn to tell when a hive had no queen, or was diseased or otherwise in stress. Never even thought of that, but they would be able to smell that. A healthy hive smells very different than one which is not healthy, but the dog would know sooner. |
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Posted: 8/5/2021 7:27:16 PM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By JQ66: My small spring honey haul About 15# total, ran out out clean bottles so had to get some more washed Disappointing but at least I got something this year. Will sell a couple bottles and keep several Hopefully the goldenrod and other fall flowers like knot weed do well. So far the goldenrod plants are doing well I made the clear labels with clear Avery stickers and my nkjet printer. Just came up with something quick using MS Paint https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/319879/F192913C-0DDC-490B-985D-307E392E5B4C_jpe-2035418.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/319879/36B898AF-257B-4DED-838B-E02678E96CAC_jpe-2035419.JPG Tomorrow I may do some wax rendering and start getting it cleaned up from some old frames that had been sitting around. Got them mostly cleaned up. Have about 1-1/2 5 gal buckets full. So maybe a couple pounds Those are great labels! And very pretty honey! 
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Posted: 8/5/2021 10:32:14 PM EDT
[#9]
Tastes really good, for clover honey too.
Bummed I lost so much by waiting. Those boxes were so heavy in May, it was a workout to do inspection. Then July, half the weight, I was surprised, as there is a big field of milkweed just maybe a hundred yards away, But maybe milkweed doesn’t make much nectar? |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 12:26:38 AM EDT
[#10]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By JQ66: Tastes really good, for clover honey too. Bummed I lost so much by waiting. Those boxes were so heavy in May, it was a workout to do inspection. Then July, half the weight, I was surprised, as there is a big field of milkweed just maybe a hundred yards away, But maybe milkweed doesn’t make much nectar? Did you have a drought at all? Sometimes it doesn't matter what's blooming. If there is not enough water, there is no nectar. |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 10:55:23 AM EDT
[#11]
Exactly half of what we got off 2.5 supers. This is a really cool hobby minus the whole being allergic thing....
 Attached File |
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Posted: 8/6/2021 3:58:17 PM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: Did you have a drought at all? Sometimes it doesn't matter what's blooming. If there is not enough water, there is no nectar. I thought we had a fairly wet June and first week or so of July decent rain. Last year the drought was bad and the milkweed only lasted a few days before it’s dried up. And this year there’s been a decent amount of clover and I let some of the areas I mow go longer between mowings to keep it there. Maybe I had some issues with ventilation? Needing better? Maybe you get some weight loss as the honey cures? But what I saw seemed like more than that should account for |
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Posted: 8/8/2021 9:35:31 PM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By rcav8r: I'm moving away from plastic foundation though, since I'm getting more into horizontal hives (in addition to the layens), and I feel the bees need to make their own passages in those kind of setups, not just clipping corners like the plastic foundation. Drill a few holes. Personally I abhor wax and wired foundation compared to plastic. |
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Posted: 8/8/2021 9:38:02 PM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By cuttingedge: I hit a milestone in my beekeeping career last week. I was marking and clipping some queens and while I was positioning one between my thumb and index finger, she got me right on the tip of my finger. I handle thousands of queens each season and have never gotten stung by one before. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/294057/AECD967C-A62D-4FC1-98E3-920C3FD7DD57-2027672.jpg https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/294057/D94E6D43-ACCB-48A7-82C1-5C7219CD5336-2027670.jpg I got stung by a virgin queen last year. |
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Posted: 8/9/2021 12:45:01 PM EDT
[Last Edit: FrankSymptoms]
[#15]
ALL frames in the first box are full, or at least have wax on them. Saturday I placed the second box, and Sunday there was propolis on the frames and on the joint between boxes.
I've had 1:1 syrup in the feeder, but they aren't very interested in it; 2 cups lasts more than a week. |
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Posted: 8/11/2021 1:50:14 AM EDT
[#16]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By FrankSymptoms: ALL frames in the first box are full, or at least have wax on them. Saturday I placed the second box, and Sunday there was propolis on the frames and on the joint between boxes. I've had 1:1 syrup in the feeder, but they aren't very interested in it; 2 cups lasts more than a week. Frank, do you have eggs and brood? |
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Posted: 8/11/2021 1:03:29 PM EDT
[#17]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Kitties-with-Sigs: Frank, do you have eggs and brood? Gotta check tomorrow. Too damn hot today. But last week, there were only 2 frames without wax in the original box. |
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Posted: 8/12/2021 12:01:10 PM EDT
[Last Edit: JQ66]
[#18]
I was able to get out from work early yesterday to go to Penn State
They had a small booth there for beekeeping. But it was not well manned unfortunately and whoever was there was talking to other people about anything but bee stuff. So that part was disappointing But I also wanted to talk to the master gardener people about what flowers and trees I should be adding to help the bees. One lady there was very helpful. Ordered a new to me book by a Peter Lindtner “Garden Plants for Honey Bees” when I got home. She also mentioned several plants that will help the bees make it through the dearth here So next year I hope to have a better pollinator garden. This year I never got to planting. But I will sow the seeds I got this fall so the ones that need stratification will get it. Didn’t get to see much more since I wasn’t able to get there until maybe 2:30pm Then they announced on the PA system after I was done in the master Gardner section that a severe thunderstorm was moving up the valley. The gardener section was behind that greenhouse  Attached FileSquall just ahead and then it was like below fast, and then when it hit, that was some intense rain. Went into one of the display halls - metal farm building where they had stuff about the spotted lantern fly, tics, wild bird disease, etc. it was so loud from the rain  Attached FileThe PA announcer told everyone to go back to their vehicles. But once it passed by around 4pm, many of the reps all left already and were gone. Probably headed to happy valley and the many bars in state college for an early start. But wanted to get a 65gal poly tank for my SXS for water or maybe maple sap, but they all bailed out from that display. But did get a steak sandwich. There’s a decent amount of good food there. Didn’t get to see any of the sawmill displays just not enough time. It’s worth going to and you can’t beat central Pa and happy valley. *today last day for this year Runs three days mid august. Didn’t have it last year because of chyna virus Few wearing masks. This is red country, even though it’s Blue and White territory |
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Posted: 8/24/2021 6:22:50 PM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By JQ66: I was able to get out from work early yesterday to go to Penn State At Progress days They had a small booth there for beekeeping. But it was not well manned unfortunately and whoever was there was talking to other people about anything but bee stuff. So that part was disappointing But I also wanted to talk to the master gardener people about what flowers and trees I should be adding to help the bees. One lady there was very helpful. Ordered a new to me book by a Peter Lindtner “Garden Plants for Honey Bees” when I got home. She also mentioned several plants that will help the bees make it through the dearth here So next year I hope to have a better pollinator garden. This year I never got to planting. But I will sow the seeds I got this fall so the ones that need stratification will get it. Didn’t get to see much more since I wasn’t able to get there until maybe 2:30pm Then they announced on the PA system after I was done in the master Gardner section that a severe thunderstorm was moving up the valley. The gardener section was behind that greenhouse https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/319879/542DC998-3AC0-424F-8722-E234DAB4DE1D_jpe-2049817.JPG Squall just ahead and then it was like below fast, and then when it hit, that was some intense rain. Went into one of the display halls - metal farm building where they had stuff about the spotted lantern fly, tics, wild bird disease, etc. it was so loud from the rain https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/319879/37806318-8E00-42E0-91AC-878429848A28_jpe-2049822.JPG The PA announcer told everyone to go back to their vehicles. But once it passed by around 4pm, many of the reps all left already and were gone. Probably headed to happy valley and the many bars in state college for an early start. But wanted to get a 65gal poly tank for my SXS for water or maybe maple sap, but they all bailed out from that display. But did get a steak sandwich. There’s a decent amount of good food there. Didn’t get to see any of the sawmill displays just not enough time. It’s worth going to and you can’t beat central Pa and happy valley. *today last day for this year Runs three days mid august. Didn’t have it last year because of chyna virus Few wearing masks. This is red country, even though it’s Blue and White territory Interesting. What is "at Progress" days? I mean, what is the focus? Is it ag related? Extension related? Penn State is recruiting me for a turfgrass program because I inquired about a couple of classes. I'm not gonna do it because I don't have time and/or money for that, but it's a pretty awesome school from what I can tell. |
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Posted: 8/29/2021 9:41:37 AM EDT
[#20]
Should have been AG (agriculture) progress days. But the people at apple know better than everyone else, I suppose.
It’s a pretty neat even, plus free parking and admission, plenty of food vendors, some pretty good too. Not your standard carnival or event fair either. Lots of demonstrations - sawmills, tractors, how not to roll your tractor on a hillside, Drones for ag use, horses... |
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Posted: 8/29/2021 10:51:13 AM EDT
[Last Edit: JQ66]
[#21]
And I got my book from amazon (Garden Plants for Honey Bees, Lindtner)
It’s a lot like those Petersen field guide books - photos and description of plants, trees, birds, etc) But the author included a rating for each plant as to its value for pollen and nectar production, also sorted by month they bloom. That is the real value of this book. So it looks like it is a very good resource if you want to make or improve a pollinator garden or meadow, especially for honey bees, not just bumble bees and butterflies |
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Posted: 8/29/2021 10:47:16 PM EDT
[#22]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By JQ66: Should have been AG (agriculture) progress days. But the people at apple know better than everyone else, I suppose. It’s a pretty neat even, plus free parking and admission, plenty of food vendors, some pretty good too. Not your standard carnival or event fair either. Lots of demonstrations - sawmills, tractors, how not to roll your tractor on a hillside, Drones for ag use, horses... That sounds like a great event! |
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Posted: 9/4/2021 9:03:31 PM EDT
[#23]
Didn't try again on bees this year do to the job I just left. Started a new job and got the ok to start an apiary on what used to be the family farm next year. Have almost everything for my planned 4 hives. Only lacking the bees, beetle buster bottoms and two shallow bodies with frames. Should be able to get everything ready before its time again for the bees. Hopefully I'll be able to make some club meetings between here and there to make some good contacts.
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Posted: 9/6/2021 1:22:32 AM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By runs_with_scissors: Didn't try again on bees this year do to the job I just left. Started a new job and got the ok to start an apiary on what used to be the family farm next year. Have almost everything for my planned 4 hives. Only lacking the bees, beetle buster bottoms and two shallow bodies with frames. Should be able to get everything ready before its time again for the bees. Hopefully I'll be able to make some club meetings between here and there to make some good contacts. A year or so off does not matter much. Welcome back to beekeeping.  Oh and "OMG I need to get this other thing"... That's how we roll, right? |
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PA, USA
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Posted: 9/21/2021 9:28:57 PM EDT
[#25]
So far the bees are not producing much honey. At least not in the supers, just about nothing there
Really disappointed as there’s tons of goldenrod blooming now. Was hoping to collect some nice dark Fall honey, but looks like no luck this year. Crazy year for queens, Found another hive that replaced their queen, and that one was only from this spring, if that. But at least the new queen’s laying lots of eggs. I need to make a couple more hive body boxes, For a nuc box I’ve been trying to keep going. Got ripped off on a couple queens (no sponge or cotton ball for water in the shipping box, so one was in poor shape) and it didn’t look like either were fertilized. Not a single egg/larvae in 3 weeks. The one nuc with the weak queen just died off, and the other I got rid of. Found a nice queen cell on a frame of open and capped brood, I think in the box with the new queen, so into the other nuc box it went, after the old queen was lost. I think it fell off the frame as I was checking it out, into the grass. No sign of her or any new brood in the next week or two any ways. and a couple more winter feeder frames, as well as a couple more Vivaldi frames. |
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Posted: 9/25/2021 1:21:07 PM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By FrankSymptoms: ALL frames in the first box are full, or at least have wax on them. Saturday I placed the second box, and Sunday there was propolis on the frames and on the joint between boxes. I've had 1:1 syrup in the feeder, but they aren't very interested in it; 2 cups lasts more than a week. I inspected my hive yesterday. The second box has NO wax in it at all, it was stuck to the brood box with propolis; also the empty frames were stuck with propolis. The brood box is full with lots of honey and brood. I put some Apivar strips in it (did it late because Walmart held my order for nearly a month and finally told me they couldn't ship). Late as hell. The bees are still bringing in pollen but very slowly. The heat wave decimated most of the pollen- and nectar-bearing plants, but my wife says that they still visit her garden. So here's my plan: Since we're heading into a cold winter, I want to put the shorter box (6 3/8) on top with lots of insulation in it, and some patties and syrup. With a little convincing I might make an even shorter box, say, 3 or 4 inches. My plan to insulate it involves putting some insulation on the sides, plus in the top, according to this thread. Anyone have any better ideas? Winter's coming soon to Idaho, and the old timers say it'll be a cold one, with lots of snow. |
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Posted: 9/25/2021 3:59:35 PM EDT
[#27]
Insulate the bottom box, put a feeder shim (box about 3" tall, with 1/2" hardware cloth on bottom), a quilt box about 4" tall on top of that (box has a breathable fabric on bottom, I used landscape fabric).
The quilt box has wood shavings (NOT sawdust) in it to absorb moisture. It should have screened holes on the side so it can dry out as needed. The feeder shim you put your winter feed in, sugar blocks, or fondant. The insulation can be simple tar paper, or sheet foam, or refletix insulation, or whatever you can come up with. |
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Posted: 9/25/2021 5:51:40 PM EDT
[#28]
Just a wrap of tar paper? I'd think that would be too thin.
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Posted: 9/25/2021 6:00:45 PM EDT
[#29]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By FrankSymptoms: Just a wrap of tar paper? I'd think that would be too thin. Surprisingly effective. Absorbs heat being black. If your hives are out in the open with no wind breaks, and really cold in the winters, you might consider something else. |
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PA, USA
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Posted: 9/26/2021 2:07:22 PM EDT
[#30]
Lost one of my hives over the last week
My orange one, two years old. Had some weird things happen with the original and last surviving queen from the packages earlier this summer Requeened it, and seemed to be doing OK. No great, not terrible Inspection last Sunday it looked OK Today I go up to feed and check on things, and no bees, other than like robbers. There was maybe a couple hundred dead bees on the bottom board/screen. Robbers cleaned out every oz of honey in there. Most of the other hives look to be doing nicely. One swarm hanging in there. Queen needs to lay more eggs though. Will give them part of a pollen patty later to help The small nuc box I tried to get going on a late split had the queen hatch from her cell, I think. But didn’t see her. Obviously too soon to see any eggs, as she’d likely just be starting to Go out on mating flights. No honey in the supers despite a great goldenrod season so far, and plenty of rain. They are storing a decent amount of honey and pollen in the deep boxes. So more than a bit of a bummer today. |
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PA, USA
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Posted: 9/26/2021 2:22:49 PM EDT
[Last Edit: JQ66]
[#31]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By rcav8r: Surprisingly effective. Absorbs heat being black. If your hives are out in the open with no wind breaks, and really cold in the winters, you might consider something else. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By rcav8r: Originally Posted By FrankSymptoms: Just a wrap of tar paper? I'd think that would be too thin. Surprisingly effective. Absorbs heat being black. If your hives are out in the open with no wind breaks, and really cold in the winters, you might consider something else. Past couple winters I have been putting sheets of 2” foam insulation around the boxes, Just held on with bungee straps. Also last winter I set up a “curtain”’of tarps around the hives for a windbreak. My dad had put up bales of straw or Hay, but that’s not so easy to find in the rectangular bales anymore around here. I also did the Vivaldi board on top with burlap. And below that sugar feeder boards with just plain sugar. It also helps absorb moisture. Together, That all worked well I think. I did buy some coroplast (black color) sheets last year to make wraps, but never got around to doing that. Coroplast is the corogated plastic sheets used for political signs and such. Comes in 4x8 sheets. It’s not hard to find, but most of the distributors will not sell to you if you’re not a sign maker. So hard to actually buy. |
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Posted: 9/26/2021 9:31:39 PM EDT
[#32]
Maybe a crazy question.... but I'll ask anyway.
I'd like to have bees on my place but I simply don't have time to tend to them. I'm already stretched. Work is always a 50-60 hr a week proposition, then there is all the other stuff like bush hogging, family, small men's groups, .... Planning on putting in a 8 acre Monarch field next spring, plus 26 acres in little blue stem, another 5 in clover.... 3 in sun flowers. Is it possible to invite a bee-keeper to place some hives on my place and keep them for our mutual benefit? actually, just asking for a friend. 
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Posted: 9/26/2021 9:36:42 PM EDT
[Last Edit: rcav8r]
[#33]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Deuskid: Maybe a crazy question.... but I'll ask anyway. I'd like to have bees on my place but I simply don't have time to tend to them. I'm already stretched. Work is always a 50-60 hr a week proposition, then there is all the other stuff like bush hogging, family, small men's groups, .... Planning on putting in a 8 acre Monarch field next spring, plus 26 acres in little blue stem, another 5 in clover.... 3 in sun flowers. Is it possible to invite a bee-keeper to place some hives on my place and keep them for our mutual benefit? actually, just asking for a friend. Actually, yes. I'm allowed to have 2 in my backyard, but I asked on a local FB group for someplace out of town where I could put in hives. I got a response from a 10 acre day camp, zoned agriculture, of all places. It's actually surrounded on 3 sides by city limits, the 4th is more farmland. |
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Posted: 9/26/2021 10:56:23 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Deuskid: Maybe a crazy question.... but I'll ask anyway. I'd like to have bees on my place but I simply don't have time to tend to them. I'm already stretched. Work is always a 50-60 hr a week proposition, then there is all the other stuff like bush hogging, family, small men's groups, .... Planning on putting in a 8 acre Monarch field next spring, plus 26 acres in little blue stem, another 5 in clover.... 3 in sun flowers. Is it possible to invite a bee-keeper to place some hives on my place and keep them for our mutual benefit? actually, just asking for a friend. Yes, beekeepers are always looking for good out-yards. We currently have hives at six different locations. |
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TX, USA
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:36:56 AM EDT
[#35]
We bought 2 hive kits at HOA Conference last weekend. Plan to assemble and paint them this winter and let them off gas. Do you all prefer to buy your bees local or use a mail order service?
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:01:52 PM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Downtheroad: We bought 2 hive kits at HOA Conference last weekend. Plan to assemble and paint them this winter and let them off gas. Do you all prefer to buy your bees local or use a mail order service? Round here, the local places order packages from down south for resale. A few raise local nucs, but cost a LOT more |
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Posted: 10/15/2021 9:45:19 PM EDT
[#37]
Took a beekeeping class the other day. My main takeaway is I still have a lot to learn! Interesting and discouraging to learn about how queens aren’t living as long as they used to and other things out there hurting the bee population. The last thing I need is another hobby, but I will try this beekeeping thing out within the next year or two.
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Posted: 10/16/2021 9:09:21 PM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Downtheroad: We bought 2 hive kits at HOA Conference last weekend. Plan to assemble and paint them this winter and let them off gas. Do you all prefer to buy your bees local or use a mail order service? Your best bet in my opinion is to shop local. I would also encourage you to ask around at your local bee club to see who is actually producing bees/ queens and not just reselling. |
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Posted: 10/17/2021 8:49:48 PM EDT
[#39]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Deuskid: Maybe a crazy question.... but I'll ask anyway. I'd like to have bees on my place but I simply don't have time to tend to them. I'm already stretched. Work is always a 50-60 hr a week proposition, then there is all the other stuff like bush hogging, family, small men's groups, .... Planning on putting in a 8 acre Monarch field next spring, plus 26 acres in little blue stem, another 5 in clover.... 3 in sun flowers. Is it possible to invite a bee-keeper to place some hives on my place and keep them for our mutual benefit? actually, just asking for a friend. @Deuskid Find out where your local bee club meets. There is one, and your county extension agent might know of it. If not, ask back here and there are other ways to find one, but YOU DO HAVE ONE. I recommend you attend a meeting. Or if you cannot do that given your work schedule, find out who is in charge of the club, reach out to that person, and offer your property. There may be some questions, and you need to figure out what you want out of the deal. Do you want two jars of honey? Or just pollination for your crops? (I suspect a jar of honey would be forthcoming anyway. It would be from me). You might want to get a sense, ahead of time, of the crops grown around your place, and that will help the potential beekeepers know of threats from adjacent insecticide applications. So they can plan accordingly. |
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Posted: 10/17/2021 9:01:12 PM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Milsurpninja: Took a beekeeping class the other day. My main takeaway is I still have a lot to learn! Interesting and discouraging to learn about how queens aren’t living as long as they used to and other things out there hurting the bee population. The last thing I need is another hobby, but I will try this beekeeping thing out within the next year or two. It is an incredibly rewarding hobby/pursuit. Good for the environment. Good for the breakfast table. Good for the soul. Should you decide it's not for you (you probably won't decide that) it's good for the young beekeeper who benefits by the donation of your equipment. Your main takeaway (still having a lot to learn) by the way, is the same takeaway we have after five or ten years doing this. So...welcome to beekeeping, and please share your journey with us!
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Posted: 10/17/2021 9:05:13 PM EDT
[#41]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By cuttingedge: Your best bet in my opinion is to shop local. I would also encourage you to ask around at your local bee club to see who is actually producing bees/ queens and not just reselling. Yes, this. And ATTEND that bee club meeting. The very small cost of joining will be worth your time. Hang around and make the meetings. You will need a mentor. You will likely find that mentor there at the meetings. You will also learn who is producing QUALITY queens. Not all packages/nukes/queens are equal. Not all advice is equal either. So read, attend, study. Go to bee schools (you will have some in your region and they will be cheap to attend also) and learn. Listen to all advice, learn to parse it so you recognize the good from the....less good. All of this comes from hanging around other beekeepers. |
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PA, USA
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Posted: 10/20/2021 8:34:17 AM EDT
[#42]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Milsurpninja: Took a beekeeping class the other day. My main takeaway is I still have a lot to learn! Interesting and discouraging to learn about how queens aren’t living as long as they used to and other things out there hurting the bee population. The last thing I need is another hobby, but I will try this beekeeping thing out within the next year or two. So what are some of the reasons for queens not lasting as long? Can you recall some of what you heard? I think I had every hive of mine that started from new packages this year get requeened at least once, and my three surviving hives all got new queens - none of the 2020 queens survive. Some made their own new queen, others I bought. |
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Posted: 10/20/2021 9:32:52 AM EDT
[#43]
I know of some in my club who requeen all packages, or requeen every year and use the brood breaks for mite control.
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Posted: 10/20/2021 7:41:47 PM EDT
[#44]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By JQ66: So what are some of the reasons for queens not lasting as long? Can you recall some of what you heard? I think I had every hive of mine that started from new packages this year get requeened at least once, and my three surviving hives all got new queens - none of the 2020 queens survive. Some made their own new queen, others I bought. The instructor mentioned infertility...I did some googling and found that they think temperature fluctuations during shipping could be causing it (getting too hot). |
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Posted: 10/20/2021 8:22:08 PM EDT
[#45]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By FrankSymptoms: HobbitWife had the final vote. I'm starting a beehive this year! Got a Walmart special. The price seemed to be nice; this one includes frames and foundation. I'm going with Langstroth hives this time, rather than the top bar style. I'll have plenty of questions when I get started. Like: How long should I wait to introduce the bees to the hive after I paint it? @FrankSymptoms Are you satisfied with your walmart special? I was going to go with this one from Rossman but it's over $100 more. Get what you pay for or overpriced? |
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Posted: 10/20/2021 9:01:50 PM EDT
[Last Edit: FrankSymptoms]
[#46]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Milsurpninja: @FrankSymptoms Are you satisfied with your walmart special? I was going to go with this one from Rossman but it's over $100 more. Get what you pay for or overpriced? I'm happy with what I got. I think I'd rather have had wax than plastic foundation, but the bees are happy with it. The wood seemed to be a bit knotty but not terribly so; they seemed to avoid making joints with substantial knots with them. The corners were a tight fit, I needed to use a soft mallet to fit them- which is just fine with me. I also used a speed square to make sure the angles were square. I got 2 deep boxes and one shallow; yours bests mine by one shallow box and a Boardman feeder ETA and the frames for one box. |
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PA, USA
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Posted: 10/26/2021 11:23:58 PM EDT
[Last Edit: JQ66]
[#47]
I think I will combine a couple weak/low number hives. Two have queens that have been very poor egg layers. I don’t think I saw any new brood and very little capped brood a few days ago. I know they drastically slow down this time of year, and there’s not much other than some little weeds blossoming now. Their populations never grew much during the summer. I would occasionally give them boosts with some frames of brood from other hives,
So I’m guessing I need to kill the queen of one of the hives that gets combined? I will be putting some paper between the two deep boxes. I don’t think there’s enough bees in four of my hives to make it through the winter on their own. So maybe combining is the best thing to do now? I have two other hives that remain strong with good numbers and lots of stored honey and pollen. The year did not finish out so great. Started out good. Went down hill in the summer. All treated with either apivar or mite away (on the bigger hives I thought would make some honey in the fall). As it was, none of them put any honey in the supers. Had a couple abscond this year (I believe that’s what happened), late in the summer or early fall, trouble keeping queens in a couple hives. |
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Posted: 10/27/2021 12:48:36 PM EDT
[#48]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By JQ66: I think I will combine a couple weak/low number hives. Two have queens that have been very poor egg layers. I don’t think I saw any new brood and very little capped brood a few days ago. I know they drastically slow down this time of year, and there’s not much other than some little weeds blossoming now. Their populations never grew much during the summer. I would occasionally give them boosts with some frames of brood from other hives, So I’m guessing I need to kill the queen of one of the hives that gets combined? I will be putting some paper between the two deep boxes. I don’t think there’s enough bees in four of my hives to make it through the winter on their own. So maybe combining is the best thing to do now? I have two other hives that remain strong with good numbers and lots of stored honey and pollen. The year did not finish out so great. Started out good. Went down hill in the summer. All treated with either apivar or mite away (on the bigger hives I thought would make some honey in the fall). As it was, none of them put any honey in the supers. Had a couple abscond this year (I believe that’s what happened), late in the summer or early fall, trouble keeping queens in a couple hives. Yep, pinch the queen you don't want. Put some knife slits in the paper you put between the boxes so the smells can get through. |
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Posted: 10/28/2021 6:31:00 PM EDT
[#49]
I winterized my hive today. They didn't build anything in the upper box so I removed it and replaced it with a 1x4 quilt box. I put a paper towel with a couple of cups of sugar (hadn't done fondant yet), some 1/2 x 1/2 hardware cloth, then a layer of straw and a layer of sawdust. Also put two 1/2" holes for vapor drainage. Tomorrow I'll put some insulation on the outside.
I didn't pull any frames to inspect them, but the girls provided a pretty spirited response to their hive being raided! I smoked them a bit* and went to work. I also removed the syrup feeder and reduced the entrance board to 1" wide. *horse apple fuel |
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Posted: 10/29/2021 11:22:15 PM EDT
[#50]
To all..
Do you think I should unpin this? I didn't pin it to begin with (I'm guessing that was Feral, though I don't know for certain.) It is still set to not archive, but if I unpin it, will it be less available to those who come here often? I'm just thinking that traffic has slowed. It's still a valuable thread, and is where our beekeepers gather, but I don't want to keep it pinned if it doesn't make sense. What do y'all think? ~Kitties |
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