Bees

[Mountain trapper]

Nice job AD.

A couple of notes. you might run 24 or 36" chicken wire around the bottom. If you have skunks, they can decimate a hive.

And why is one hive shorter than the other? Both have 2 deeps, good. One has a migratory top & the other a telescoping. You might want to put a brick on top of each hive (wind will knock them over).

And are they facing opposite directions? That will make working the hives more difficult, you want to work from behind the hive and one will always be aiming at you. This is a region thing, I know up north people cluster hives in winter to conserve some heat, so maybe that arrangement works up there. I like a few feet between my hives, then I don't accidently bump one hive when working another. But then my girls have serious anger issues... seriously serious.

I'm not criticizing, I'm just offering a few little details.

Robin, a few dead bees outside the entrance is no big deal. The workers drag out the dead. Usually they drop them off the ledge, but sometimes they're lazy & let the wind finish the job. If you see dozens and dozens, that's a problem.

That's for the input Tex. I bought the hives from two different places. One hive has a different base and one has the telescoping top. I plan to change both to the telescoping top, when I can find one. May have to order it. The one with the flat top doesn't actually fit flat, it has a small gap.
Since I took that photo I've added rocks to the tops. The hives are in a protected spot but can still get strong winds.
Both enterences face to the south. So I'm set up to work the hives from the back, north.
All of the hives that I've seen around here are set up 4 to a pallet. The bee keeper uses a forklift to move their hives around.
The guy I bought the bees from suggested that I put straw bales around the hives for winter, or some other type of insulation.
We don't have skunks at our location, but we do have badgers. Skunks seem to stay down in the valley and closer to water.
Someone I was talking to suggested putting strips of tinfoil smeared with peanut butter on the electric wire. It gives the bear a good jolt when he bites down on the foil.

 

[Mountain trapper]

.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Sounds good AD. Remember that beekeeping is a local activity, always listen to local guys over far-away guys like me.

 

[user 7704]

I've only found on dead bee and it was one I smashed with the lid. I may have gotten one or two yesterday because the frames were really full.

I didn't pull all the frames, just until I found the queens. I didn't want to disturb. I saw some egg cells and capped brood and the queens, so I stopped. I added the new deep.

 

[TexasFreedom]

OK, Robin, you've found the queen. You're seeing eggs. Good.

Now for the hard part. Stop. You don't need to go into the hive every day, every couple of days, every week. You can check once a week on top & you can remove the outer/inner covers and see how many frames are full, drawn, or empty. You'll see plenty of bees. Good. That's all you need. Close it back up, add a super if needed. No need to regularly (weekly) go into the brood area. If you have varroa or SHB sensitivity, ok check that every few weeks. But the more often you go in deep into the hive, the more likely you are to injure/kill the queen.

 

[user 7704]

That's what I did. Looked until I saw the queens them closed up.

I've had them 1 month and inspected twice. First time at the one week mark and yesterday because I needed to see if it was time for the deep. It was.

Now that I'm not giving sugar water, I don't even need to open the top.

 

[user 7704]

Went to bee field day today and saw how to split hives and how to treat for mites in August.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Yesterday we added the second brood box to our hives. Everything looked good when we opened them up.
We're starting to see bees around the garden and orchard now too.

 

[user 7704]

Other than right around the hives, I don' see my bees out very much. I have flowers and clover but never see them out. I know they eat somewhere.

 

[Mountain trapper]

The wife decided that we should have 8 hives now. And that "we" should build a bee barn just for them. The bee barn may not bee a bad idea because of the amount of snow we get here. Plus it will protect the hives from bears. I'll start on it right after I build the new chicken coop for the 25 meat chickens that will be arriving around the first of June.

 

[user 7704]

Found out one of my chicks is a rooster. Pitiful first attempt at crowing. I'll try to post it. He's trying again this morning.

 

[TexasFreedom]

The wife decided that we should have 8 hives now. And that "we" should build a bee barn just for them. The bee barn may not bee a bad idea because of the amount of snow we get here. Plus it will protect the hives from bears. I'll start on it right after I build the new chicken coop for the 25 meat chickens that will be arriving around the first of June.

(cough)
8 hives? Why not 6, or 10, or 9? Welcome to the addiction, the water is just fine so come on in!

Regarding a 'bee barn', definitely talk to local BK's. And not just one. Find out what they recommend in your area. By me, I would definitely recommend against it. Direct sun does a lot of good for a hive preventing many health issues. Yes, I know snow is a concern. But if you are growing your apiary, consider using top entrance hives. That will resolve any snow issues (which are real). Look up "Michael Bush". Actually here it is: http://www.bushfarms.com/beestopentrance.htm

I cut my own top/bottom covers and save about $50 per hive making top-entrance boxes. I don't have snow issues, but it avoids skunk problems (they eat bees) and a few others. I cut about a 3" hole in the bottom and put #8 screening over it. On top do exactly what Michael shows with long shims. You'll want to put insulation over the top cover when it gets cold to avoid condensation (you'll want to insulate the whole thing come winter, but again talk to local BKs).

I would recommend a year with a couple of hives before expanding too much. Make your mistakes when it only kills a couple of hives, not 8.

 

[user 7704]

Texas, I see whay you mean about the sun since bees literally use it to navigate. Inside of a structure, it would be near impossible to differentiate East from West, etc.

Thanks for bringing that point into the conversation.

Initially, in as thinking how cool that would be in a snowy, cloudy area.

But, I'm also considering that since they don't fly during such days, would a portable type greenhouse that can be easily removed after bad weather be an option?

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin, actually you're view is mistake. Right idea, wrong reasons.

When the bees give directions to a nectar/pollen source, that's inside the hive and no view of the sun. When they first come out, having direct view of the sun is not a factor, they can interpret it just by looking around.

Rather, the important thing is the heat generated by the sun. Warming up the hive weather summer or winter is really bad for many problems affecting the hive. Excess humidity is driven away with sun-heat. That reduces mold/mildew issues. That reduces many fungus issues. Varroa are slaughtered by heating a hive, same with SHB. And many other things. Sunlight does your hives good.

 

[user 7704]

Robin, actually you're view is mistake. Right idea, wrong reasons.

When the bees give directions to a nectar/pollen source, that's inside the hive and no view of the sun. When they first come out, having direct view of the sun is not a factor, they can interpret it just by looking around.

Rather, the important thing is the heat generated by the sun. Warming up the hive weather summer or winter is really bad for many problems affecting the hive. Excess humidity is driven away with sun-heat. That reduces mold/mildew issues. That reduces many fungus issues. Varroa are slaughtered by heating a hive, same with SHB. And many other things. Sunlight does your hives good.

Thanks Texas. I value you knowledge and experience

 

[user 7704]

I just saw a story where a flash flood completely washed away a guys apiary.

That's a huge $$$ loss

 

[TexasFreedom]

I just saw a story where a flash flood completely washed away a guys apiary.
That's a huge $$$ loss

It happens. When Harvey hit TX, lots and lots of BK lost their entire apiaries. Across TX there have been efforts the entire past year trying to help them restart their apiaries. When Katrina hit N.O., same thing. I'm sure the one that went up FL caused the same.

And other examples. A fellow by me had his apiary stolen, maybe 10 hives taken one night. A fellow I know well lost a handful of hives here in a local 'flood' a couple of years ago. They all just floated away never to be seen again.

And yes, these are expensive. A full colony is $200+ in equipment and the colony are worth $800 (with honey). So call it $1000 per colony. Lose 10 colonies, there goes $10,000. And for many guys, their full apiary is the equivalent of their retirement account. 100 hives, $100k.

 

[user 7704]

I just read the article about the big rig carrying 15/30 million bees overturning in Paris, TX on Monday.

Probably lots of swarms that will have to be caught.

 

[user 7704]

Opened my hives and it looked like a lot of
bees to me.

It was so humid, I has sweat in my eyes so I didn't spend as much time as I should.

The bees I heard in the tree is gone, so I'm clueless if they were mine.

One of the frames was so heavy, a huge hunk fell off. The honey was mighty fine. I tried to put in back on frame.

My mentor said to wait 2 weeks then reopen to check for eggs and swarm cells.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Another secret. Wear a headband. Down lower, so it touches your eyebrows. That will wick away your sweat & keep you from going blind when it gets in your eyes.

"A hunk fell off"??? How big? Brood? Honey? What foundation do you use? Was it in the frame, or added outside the frame? A frame of honey (or sugar water) will be heavy. Maybe 8 lbs for a deep, 5 lbs for a medium.

 

[user 7704]

Another secret. Wear a headband. Down lower, so it touches your eyebrows. That will wick away your sweat & keep you from going blind when it gets in your eyes.

"A hunk fell off"??? How big? Brood? Honey? What foundation do you use? Was it in the frame, or added outside the frame? A frame of honey (or sugar water) will be heavy. Maybe 8 lbs for a deep, 5 lbs for a medium.

Great idea on the headband.

Two framed had fused together and when I pulled them apart a large portion that was stuck pulled away from the frame. It was about 4 inches wide and close to 2 inches thick. It had lots of honey in it. Everyone says yummy honey. Lol

I kept the honey that leaked out and tried to place the hunk back onto the frame when I was replacing the frames.

I still have a large amount of bees left in the hive.

I am definitely going to find a sweatband. Can't believe I had not thought of that. Thanks.

 

[TexasFreedom]

When honey falls out, don't bother putting it back. It's messy and you'll honey-drown as many bees as you would help. That is assuming they have other honey.

It helps to make sure the frames are pushed together. Minimize bee space between frames minimizes cross comb. Just make sure you have even spacing on both ends, if frames are pushed to one side they'll cross-comb to the body.

Yes, sweat band. That is what I am here for, to help with the really hard problems! But you will be amazed at how many hundreds of simple things like this happen. For example, have you practiced drinking through your bee suit? Yup, simple problem. But you do need to learn how to do this. Either at the side or below is softer fabric, hold the bottle there to your lips. Yes, you spill some, so only drink water. And have a covered bottle to minimize bees in the container. AND, stir it up every time before you open to drink... if a bee got into it before, let them go down into the water rather than be on top & stink you with your first sip (yes, that really happens all the time). When working bees, many of the most simple things you teach a 2 year old need to get relearned! And that's what I'm here for...

 

[user 7704]

When honey falls out, don't bother putting it back. It's messy and you'll honey-drown as many bees as you would help. That is assuming they have other honey.

It helps to make sure the frames are pushed together. Minimize bee space between frames minimizes cross comb. Just make sure you have even spacing on both ends, if frames are pushed to one side they'll cross-comb to the body.

Yes, sweat band. That is what I am here for, to help with the really hard problems! But you will be amazed at how many hundreds of simple things like this happen. For example, have you practiced drinking through your bee suit? Yup, simple problem. But you do need to learn how to do this. Either at the side or below is softer fabric, hold the bottle there to your lips. Yes, you spill some, so only drink water. And have a covered bottle to minimize bees in the container. AND, stir it up every time before you open to drink... if a bee got into it before, let them go down into the water rather than be on top & stink you with your first sip (yes, that really happens all the time). When working bees, many of the most simple things you teach a 2 year old need to get relearned! And that's what I'm here for...

I had a bee get under my veil yesterday. I gently coaxed it out. I did not get stung. I push my frames together so that the tops are touching, but one of the wires from the wax had dislodged and the decided to build on it causicausing the frames to attach. I tried to separate with my tool as best as I could, but grew impatient.

I saw lots of bees with their heads in cells, so they were busy doing something.

I need to do a better job of looking for eggs. I didn't find a queen in either hive. Yes, I am that bad. I can find drones .

 

[TexasFreedom]

In general, when they get inside your suit, either ignore or release if possible. Exception are for bees like mine where that means a face sting. The minus of killing a bee inside your headgear means their scent will attract other bees wanting to get you.

Loose wires... one more reason I don't like wax foundation. And it's not like the bees need any reason to go off the reservation for wacky comb.

I assume you smoked your bees. The 'heads in comb' means they were eating honey. They do that because they're afraid of forest fires, and are loading up in case they have to evacuate and start a new colony somewhere else. That's a good thing... first it keeps the bees busy rather than attacking you. And second, a bee full of honey can't bend their belly to get their stinger into you.

Don't worry about looking for eggs. If you can see larvae (which are much larger than eggs), you're good. I used to be able to see eggs, but haven't been able to for a couple of years. Even got new glasses, still can't see them. I tried black plastic foundation and could see a little better but not for long. Old eye don't work like they used to. Oh well, not the end of the world.

And sitting there hunting for the queen or eggs is no help to the colony. If you see capped brood and larvae, call it good & close it up. Minimize heat loss and chaos.

 

[user 7704]

In general, when they get inside your suit, either ignore or release if possible. Exception are for bees like mine where that means a face sting. The minus of killing a bee inside your headgear means their scent will attract other bees wanting to get you.

Loose wires... one more reason I don't like wax foundation. And it's not like the bees need any reason to go off the reservation for wacky comb.

I assume you smoked your bees. The 'heads in comb' means they were eating honey. They do that because they're afraid of forest fires, and are loading up in case they have to evacuate and start a new colony somewhere else. That's a good thing... first it keeps the bees busy rather than attacking you. And second, a bee full of honey can't bend their belly to get their stinger into you.

Don't worry about looking for eggs. If you can see larvae (which are much larger than eggs), you're good. I used to be able to see eggs, but haven't been able to for a couple of years. Even got new glasses, still can't see them. I tried black plastic foundation and could see a little better but not for long. Old eye don't work like they used to. Oh well, not the end of the world.

And sitting there hunting for the queen or eggs is no help to the colony. If you see capped brood and larvae, call it good & close it up. Minimize heat loss and chaos.

Thanks Texas. My bees are pretty gentle, but then didn't like me poking around a lot.

Man, some of those I individual frames are heavy. I removed 5 frames and lifted off the top deep and it was still pretty heavy. That's a good problem to have.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Even gentle bees won't take too much harassment. If you lift a single hive body and it feels too heavy, remember this video example (this video is badly titled, 'honey bees attack', it should be called 'stupid beekeeper gets stupid award')... but it is really funny to watch
:


Great example of how to aggravate even the most gentle bees.... And yes, frames are 'heavy'. One more reason I don't want deeps any more... you'll figure out why over time.

 

[Proud Prepper]

Was that his first time? He was extremely unsure of himself...

 

[user 7704]

No matter how hard I try, I always smash a few bees when putting the deeps back together. I smoke, brush, and move slowly, but some bees always get crushed.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin, you can smoke around the edges and drive the bees down a little. Then put the top box on at an angle & twist it into place. Yes, likely still kill a few. No worries, you have 20000 spares.

 

[user 7704]

Robin, you can smoke around the edges and drive the bees down a little. Then put the top box on at an angle & twist it into place. Yes, likely still kill a few. No worries, you have 20000 spares.

I tried that too. If they are too dumb to move, they deserve to be squished.