Bees

[user 7704]

OK, those are cheap prices. And $2 eggs? Yikes, $4-5/dozen around me for yard eggs. I'm not sure the $2/dozen covers the feed costs?

Keep in mind, you don't make money on day one... things take time to ramp up. Remember that you want to sell the 'local, chemical-free' 100% honey part of your product. 3/4th of honey sold in 'stores' are fake honey and legally can't be called honey. There is a saying, "if you don't know the beekeeper, how do you know it's real honey?" Sell that aspect.

My customer and I were discussing store honey yesterday. Corn syrup. Or they call it "honey flavored" syrup. People dont read the ingredients at all.

 

[user 7704]

I had to suit up this morning. I have never sweat so much in my life.

Daughter said I should start a weight loss program called "Hot Bees" and get rich.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin,
It's a GREAT weight loss method. I've dropped 10 lbs in one morning suiting up. And that's after drinking 1/2 - 1 gallon of water. Unfortunately after a day or two the 10 lbs is back... but it is much cheaper than getting a sauna!

 

[user 7704]

Robin,
It's a GREAT weight loss method. I've dropped 10 lbs in one morning suiting up. And that's after drinking 1/2 - 1 gallon of water. Unfortunately after a day or two the 10 lbs is back... but it is much cheaper than getting a sauna!

My daughter took a "cat yoga " class and "goat massages" are a real thing. So hey, why not.

 

[DrHenley]

My daughter took a "cat yoga " class and "goat massages" are a real thing. So hey, why not.

 

[Mountain trapper]

The wife wants to get 2 more hives next year for a total of 4 hives. Last year the yellow jackets killed off both hives. Since then we've learned a couple things that might have prevented the yellow jackets from doing so much damage.
We're going to put the hives in a different location and build a roof over the top to keep the snow from burying them. Right now the ground is way too hard to dig a hole for the posts. Maybe we'll get some rain this Fall before the ground freezes solid.

 

[user 7704]

The wife wants to get 2 more hives next year for a total of 4 hives. Last year the yellow jackets killed off both hives. Since then we've learned a couple things that might have prevented the yellow jackets from doing so much damage.
We're going to put the hives in a different location and build a roof over the top to keep the snow from burying them. Right now the ground is way too hard to dig a hole for the posts. Maybe we'll get some rain this Fall before the ground freezes solid.

Happy wife, happy life. Well, not in my case, but I'm sure it works for you

 

[user 7704]

Dang, one of my hives is empty. There were bees there 10 days ago and now empty.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin,
Welcome to (attempted) beekeeping. Colonies fail, it happens.

One thing to do is to diagnose the cause. Some options (and things to check):
1. Starvation. Either no honey left, or in extreme cold, honey a couple of frames away & it was too cold for them (unlikely).
2. Varroa. (most likely). You will see some varroa on bees (small red dots) or on the bottom of the hive. You will see them on any larvae still in cells. You may see large white globs in cells (varroa poo). Deformed wing disease.
3. Queen failure. Is queen in middle of dead bees or on bottom? No eggs/larvae/capped cells.
4. Abscond. How many bees are left? Only a handful? Queen absent? Could be driven away by varroa/WM/SHB?
5. Wax Moth / Small Hive beetle. These are evidence of colonies that were already weak & they were the last arrow. Freeze your frames for a few days to kill them & save the frames for next year.
6. Pests. Skunks for example. Scratch marks at entrance to hive. Piles of dead squished bees around hive on ground.
7. Moisture. Water condenses on inner cover & drips down on bees (cold water). Dead bees concentrated in middle area on bottom. Condensation evidence. Did you have a top vent to let moisture escape?

Those are my initial thoughts. There are more possibilities, but this'll cover 98% of them. Do an autopsy because other hives could fail for the same reason if not addressed. Don't get depressed, 40%+ of hives nationwide fail each year. Use this as a learning lesson. Let us know what you find.

 

[user 7704]

My mentor said it was probably a queen situation. I sent him pictures of the frames and there didn't seem to be a mite or moth problem.

My mentor just said, "yep, it happens". He did make a sale for my new nuc in the Spring though.

THE CHICKEN CHICK lost a hive and put the frames out for the hens to clean. They weren't interested. My mentor said the new nuc will clean the mess in the Spring and for me not to do anything but clean propylis from wood frame.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Just make sure to protect the hive so wax moths don't get into it. They leave a real mess.

 

[Mountain trapper]

My wife is going to order 4 new hives for spring.
I think the problem that we had last year with the yellow jackets killing our hives was that we had the entrance to big. Even though we had closed it down some it was still open too much. We got some ideas from a local bee keeper that should help.
I'm going to to put the hives in a different location too, hopefully where the yellow jackets aren't as bad. I'll build a roof over the hives to keep them from being buried by snow.

 

[TexasFreedom]

AD,

A few thoughts. First, see if you can buy local 'feral' bees. They are better adapted than mass-produced packages. Reduced entrances definitely help. Look up "Michael Bush top entrance", he has a good/cheap/effective method to deal with deep snow. Also, look up yellow jacket traps on youtube, there are traps that catch gallons and gallons of them... a way to even up the odds (and not trap bees).

 

[user 7704]

Just make sure to protect the hive so wax moths don't get into it. They leave a real mess.

I dismantled and stored in air tight containers.

 

[user 7704]

Lost another hive. This one did not abscond. There were many dead ones. I saw a few beetles, but no mites or disease. They were first years so there is about 15 frames if honey. That's the good part if this.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Was it a wet pile of bees? Could be moisture problems. Let me explain. The colony keeps their cluster at 95F, nice and warm. That causes heat to rise, and they are expelling moisture which rises with the heat. If the top is not insulated or there is not a vent for the warm humid air to go out, then the moisture condenses and cold water rains down on the bees. It doesn't take long from them to all drop dead from this. You might check with your mentor to see if your hive is setup for this.

 

[user 7704]

Was it a wet pile of bees? Could be moisture problems. Let me explain. The colony keeps their cluster at 95F, nice and warm. That causes heat to rise, and they are expelling moisture which rises with the heat. If the top is not insulated or there is not a vent for the warm humid air to go out, then the moisture condenses and cold water rains down on the bees. It doesn't take long from them to all drop dead from this. You might check with your mentor to see if your hive is setup for this.

We have had lots of rain. That sounds very plausible. I was sorting through them looking for a queen and they were moist. Plus, I had wrapped that hive in roofing material. I probably killed them.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin, did you not have any sort of a top vent? It does not need to be big, and if it's too big, they will reduce it with propolis. But cool air comes in the bottom entrance, moist warm air leave the top vent. Some people put a notch in their inner cover, the same size as the smallest reduced entrance on one side. You can push the telescoping cover against it to seal it, or leave it open. It doesn't take a bunch, but a little opening goes a long way to let moisture escape. Size/location varies with region, talk with your mentor. If you have more hives, you might need to do something to save them.

 

[user 7704]

Texas, I do have a small opening near the top. I learned that with my chickens.

Question....... In the Fall, we leave the frames outside for the bees to clean. Since it's Winter and the bees are hunkered down, what is the preferred method to remove the leftover honey?

I broke down and scraped the frames but there is a substantial about left. I have them dripping in a sealed plastic tub. I asked a neighbor if he would like to mess with them and make some mead. He makes various types of alcoholic beverages.

 

[TexasFreedom]

I wouldn't open hives to feed partial frames. If you can, leave them in the freezer and give them as open-feeding on a warm day when they are flying (60F+). If the tub is sealed, it may sit in the house (just make sure bugs don't get to it. It's probably not enough honey to mess with for mead.

By 'small opening', how big is that? You might run it by your mentor for your region. If the other hives had this, it clearly wasn't enough.

 

[user 7704]

I just stuck a rock inside to prop up the lid a little and there is a hole in the ....... Um... forgot what it's called. Its the inside lid with the oblong hole in it that I sit the bee feed on. Since I left the honey in that hive this year, I got about 10 different sized jars of dark amber. My husband says it's better than the light I got from the other hives in the Fall. I'll have do save this since I wont be harvesting much if any this coming Fall.
There doesnt seem to be much noise in the last hive. I'm keeping a close watch. They are barely eating the sugar water so I'm guessing they have spare honey. I left them 6 heavy frames. Maybe more.

 

[user 7704]

I got a message from the chapter President today. They are doing a hive loss check. I asked if many are losing hives, but haven't heard back.

 

[TexasFreedom]

I just stuck a rock inside to prop up the lid a little and there is a hole in the ....... Um... forgot what it's called. Its the inside lid with the oblong hole in it that I sit the bee feed on. Since I left the honey in that hive this year, I got about 10 different sized jars of dark amber. My husband says it's better than the light I got from the other hives in the Fall. I'll have do save this since I wont be harvesting much if any this coming Fall.
There doesnt seem to be much noise in the last hive. I'm keeping a close watch. They are barely eating the sugar water so I'm guessing they have spare honey. I left them 6 heavy frames. Maybe more.

It's called the inner cover. The rock is a bad idea. Take it out, put a nickel in 2 adjacent corners on top of the inner cover. When you put the telescoping cover over it, the nickels will create a 1/16th inch gap all around, that will help the vapor moisture to escape. 6 frames is nothing. A colony going into winter should have a full 10 frame deep and at least a 10 frame medium, all full of honey. They can eat a full frame every week in winter. When it's below the 50's, it is very hard for them to take sugar water. Fondant might be a better choice. Top priority is to make sure they don't starve. And I can't say this enough: talk to your local mentor.

 

[user 7704]

It's called the inner cover. The rock is a bad idea. Take it out, put a nickel in 2 adjacent corners on top of the inner cover. When you put the telescoping cover over it, the nickels will create a 1/16th inch gap all around, that will help the vapor moisture to escape. 6 frames is nothing. A colony going into winter should have a full 10 frame deep and at least a 10 frame medium, all full of honey. They can eat a full frame every week in winter. When it's below the 50's, it is very hard for them to take sugar water. Fondant might be a better choice. Top priority is to make sure they don't starve. And I can't say this enough: talk to your local mentor.

These aren't the small supers. I had the large deep frames. Some of the lower biz had honey too. Before getting to the lower brood chamber. At least 60 lbs. They didn't come any where near eating it all last year. I'll do the Nicolas. We are expecting bad storms with lots if rain and storms. Up to 3 inches. So more moisture coming.

 

[user 7704]

These bees definitely weren't going to starve. I've got a counter full of jars of honey. I've changed clothes so many times this week. My kitchen is one sticky mess. I'll save most of these since next Fall will only have one hive to harvest. I don't even eat honey. I've preordered 2 nucs from my mentor. NOTE. Chickens do not eat dead bees. "You ever been bit by a dead bee"?. Name that movie.

 

[TexasFreedom]

You don't eat honey? What is wrong with you!!!! (and you know it doesn't affect diabetics like processed sugar?) Ain't nutin' better than sweet honey!

 

[user 7704]

Remember, I lost my sense of smell and taste 15 years ago so I dont know what I'm missing. I put it in hot tea sometimes for the medicinal properties, but that's it.

Maybe now that I'm getting some taste and smell back, I'll be learning that I like many new foods.

 

[user 7704]

Some type critter clawed at 2 of my entrances and completely removed them.

I may put a cage out to see what I catch.

I'll have to wait till chickens are on the roost.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin, it's a skunk. Take some tack strips (what they put under a carpet to hold it in place, it looks like a bunch of tacks through a thin piece of wood) and nail it to your entrance area, with the nails toward the hive. Skunks don't like it. They can eat 1000+ bees in a night. Or spend the night with your 22 rifle watching.

 

[DrHenley]

Robin, it's a skunk.
...Or spend the night with your 22 rifle watching.

And make sure you make a head shot, LOL