Bees

[TexasFreedom]

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

I 100% agree. That's again why I think Darwin was only 1/2 correct with one of his theories. He said "Survival of the fittest". That's not quite right, but close. I think it should be the "dying of the dumbest". These dumb bees exactly fit that criteria. People who try to rob a gun store qualify as well.

 

[user 7704]

Texas Freedom. I opened the hive that had the swarm on June 14th and I found a queen. ALL BY MYSELF. I did not find any egg cells though.

I guessing that making and hatching a queen from scratch, it may still be early for her to start laying.

Any comments? Man, it is hot under that clothing. I made a headband out of an old sock and it worked great. No sweat in my eyes. That was a great idea.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin,
That's not surprising. Let's look at a calendar. It's been 24 days since June 14. Let's say the colony started with an egg laid on 6/14. It could be sooner, but this is the only date we have. 16 days from egg to emerged queen. That's 6/30. 1-2 weeks to mate 10-20 times. Another possible week to figure out how to lay eggs. So up to 3 weeks after 7/1, which is 7/20.

So it may be another 2 weeks before she starts laying.

The colony may be aggressive, this is normal. Three big things keep them calm and happy. 1) Queen with correct pheromones. 2) Pheromones from brood (larvae). 3) Food. Yes, there are other things like overcrowding, attacks, weather, etc. But these are things inside the hive. Make sure they haven't backfilled all their brood area with honey/nectar. If she doesn't have room to put eggs, she won't!

As I say, close the hive and step away! You've done a good job: you identified that they've made a new queen and she's emerged. Great. Now let them do their thing. If they're short on food, you can give them 1:1 sugarwater. If they're overcrowded, add a super (but they won't be if they've been queenless for 3 weeks). Otherwise, sit back and celebrate your good bee husbandry work.

You hadn't mentioned that they swarmed. Did you see them, did you get your own swarm?

 

[user 7704]

Robin,
That's not surprising. Let's look at a calendar. It's been 24 days since June 14. Let's say the colony started with an egg laid on 6/14. It could be sooner, but this is the only date we have. 16 days from egg to emerged queen. That's 6/30. 1-2 weeks to mate 10-20 times. Another possible week to figure out how to lay eggs. So up to 3 weeks after 7/1, which is 7/20.

So it may be another 2 weeks before she starts laying.

The colony may be aggressive, this is normal. Three big things keep them calm and happy. 1) Queen with correct pheromones. 2) Pheromones from brood (larvae). 3) Food. Yes, there are other things like overcrowding, attacks, weather, etc. But these are things inside the hive. Make sure they haven't backfilled all their brood area with honey/nectar. If she doesn't have room to put eggs, she won't!

As I say, close the hive and step away! You've done a good job: you identified that they've made a new queen and she's emerged. Great. Now let them do their thing. If they're short on food, you can give them 1:1 sugarwater. If they're overcrowded, add a super (but they won't be if they've been queenless for 3 weeks). Otherwise, sit back and celebrate your good bee husbandry work.

You hadn't mentioned that they swarmed. Did you see them, did you get your own swarm?

Thanks. The swarm was about 30 ft up so I couldn't do anything about it. I was so happy I found a queen on my own. I'm a big girl.

 

[TexasFreedom]

Robin,

Look into a method called 'tanging'. Basically, if you see a swarm on the move, use a mirror & flash them repeated with the sun's reflection. It will confuse them and they will land, hopefully within reach. I'm sorry you lost your own swarm. It will significantly reduce honey production when a colony swarms.

 

[user 7704]

Texas Freedom, do you treat your bees for mites in August.

My mentor showed us how he uses the electric thingy and puts a cake of something on it and let's it some for a few minutes. Can't remember what it is.

The club lets you borrow the metal, electrical thingy, but I'm clueless. Going to try to hire one of them to do it for me.

I'm buying the new hive on Monday. It looks like really good quality wood and she painted it for me. It's new.

 

[user 7704]

Texas Freedom, do you treat your bees for mites in August.

My mentor showed us how he uses the electric thingy and puts a cake of something on it and let's it some for a few minutes. Can't remember what it is.

The club lets you borrow the metal, electrical thingy, but I'm clueless. Going to try to hire one of them to do it for me.

I'm buying the new hive on Monday. It looks like really good quality wood and she painted it for me. It's new.

 

[TexasFreedom]

well dang it. I just had a few paragraphs typed & it all disappeared.

Short answer: no, I never treat with chemicals. These nasty chemicals will end up both in your wax and in your honey, every unbiased study shows this. And these are the nastiest of chemicals you can ever imagine and it does affect your bee's health including the queen.

I trade my bees being aggressive for the benefit of them being extremely hearty. I have never lost a hive to varroa or SHB. Never, not one.

BUT, if you have gentler bees, you are likely suspect to varroa infestations and your bees cannot handle it. IF you are going to treat for mites, let me present another option.

Consider this product:
https://www.beehivethermalindustries.com/

It basically is a heater that gets your hive to 106F for a few hours. That temperature will kill the vast majority of your varroa mites both on bees and in brood cells. Yes, it is $300. No, I get no commission from these guys. But it is a one-time buy. And if you lose a colony, this unit would have paid for itself with just that one saved colony. And maybe you can get some money back by 'renting' it to your local fellow beekeepers. $5 per hive, or $20 per day isn't unreasonable to charge.

Note I haven't used it, but if I had varroa problems then this is the #1 solution I would get.

 

[user 7704]

Thanks Tex. Some in our club used powdered sugar but we are told by the experienced that this doesn't work.

 

[Squirtgunsquirter]

I love bee news.

 

[TexasFreedom]

I'm no expert on diagnosing varroa levels. There is the bottom board pad, powdered sugar, rubbing alcohol, visual inspections, etc.

To say one method doesn't work isn't completely true. Each has their advantages and disadvantages. Powdered sugar is good because it doesn't kill the bees you test (compared to alcohol). Now you don't want to 'feed' your bees powdered sugar in any real quantity due to other chemicals in the powdered sugar, but this test isn't that big a deal as there isn't that much of it used. But no single method is best.

Well, that's not quite true. I think my method is vastly superior. My bees don't have this issue so my test takes 0 seconds with zero chemicals and zero error rates! (ok, yes I am bragging, but I only do this to encourage others to get hardy bees too!). I can't tell you how many people I talk with who had bees and lost their colonies because 1) BK mistakes and 2) Pests (varroa/SHB).

 

[Mountain trapper]

Last week we opened up the top box and everything looks good. But outside the hives I noticed hundreds of dead bees. None of the dead looked like fresh killed. Maybe they've been cleaning house and I just never noticed them before. I did see one bee fighting with a yellow jacket. The YJ won the battle. This summer we have more yellow jackets than I've ever seen before. Usually they aren't this bad or aggressive until just before first frost in September.

 

[user 7704]

Last week we opened up the top box and everything looks good. But outside the hives I noticed hundreds of dead bees. None of the dead looked like fresh killed. Maybe they've been cleaning house and I just never noticed them before. I did see one bee fighting with a yellow jacket. The YJ won the battle. This summer we have more yellow jackets than I've ever seen before. Usually they aren't this bad or aggressive until just before first frost in September.

Last week we opened up the top box and everything looks good. But outside the hives I noticed hundreds of dead bees. None of the dead looked like fresh killed. Maybe they've been cleaning house and I just never noticed them before. I did see one bee fighting with a yellow jacket. The YJ won the battle. This summer we have more yellow jackets than I've ever seen before. Usually they aren't this bad or aggressive until just before first frost in September.

I don't know about that. I do know that yellow jackets are carnivores and the bees are not.

 

[TexasFreedom]

AD,

Let me give you the key question you should always ask yourself. If you are asking any other question, your approach is wrong. It is:

How do I HELP the bees _____?

Fill in the blank. Never ask "how do I get the bees to ____?", or "How do I stop the bees from ____?". These are the wrong questions and do not lead to a solution.

So, think about this AD, what is the question you are asking? (stop, really, stop reading, and think about this before you read the next post... and same for everyone else... yes, you too Robin!)

 

[TexasFreedom]

OK, now to give the question you should ask.

How do I help the bees defend themselves?

It's really that simple. I assume the bees aren't deformed (fungus/illness/varroa...). Just dead.

This implies a few things. The colony is getting weak and cannot defend itself well nor can the bees clean house because there is disarray. The question is about defense from attacks, wasps based on your comment.

Well, the answer? Easy. They need a smaller entrance that they can defend. The full width 16" entrance is too much to concentrate guards and fend off the wasps. But you want the air flow over that area. So, what to do? Simple. Take about 14-15" of 1/8" hardware cloth, maybe 3" wide and bent like angle iron. Staple this blocking the entrance from one end, so the only entrance is at one far end. 1-2" wide. The guard bees can concentrate there and team up against the wasps. And they still have the opening area for air flow.

Another answer, IF you have a stronger hive, is to steal a frame of capped brood from the second colony to boost bee numbers in this hive. And if they are light on reserves (honey), you can do an in-hive frame feeder with a gallon of sugarwater.

Also, go on the offensive. Get some wasp spray and go find wasp nests. Take them out at their homes and stop further wasps from emerging. You might even do a little research on how to hunt wasps in your area. (what variety, do they live in ground, etc.)

Can you see how important it is to ask the right question?

 

[DrHenley]

Problem with yellow jacket nests is they are usually well hidden and often underground.

The dad gum yellow jackets built a nest inside a cardboard box in my carport. It took me forever to figure out where they were coming from.

 

[Mountain trapper]

OK, now to give the question you should ask.

How do I help the bees defend themselves?

It's really that simple. I assume the bees aren't deformed (fungus/illness/varroa...). Just dead.

This implies a few things. The colony is getting weak and cannot defend itself well nor can the bees clean house because there is disarray. The question is about defense from attacks, wasps based on your comment.

Well, the answer? Easy. They need a smaller entrance that they can defend. The full width 16" entrance is too much to concentrate guards and fend off the wasps. But you want the air flow over that area. So, what to do? Simple. Take about 14-15" of 1/8" hardware cloth, maybe 3" wide and bent like angle iron. Staple this blocking the entrance from one end, so the only entrance is at one far end. 1-2" wide. The guard bees can concentrate there and team up against the wasps. And they still have the opening area for air flow.

Another answer, IF you have a stronger hive, is to steal a frame of capped brood from the second colony to boost bee numbers in this hive. And if they are light on reserves (honey), you can do an in-hive frame feeder with a gallon of sugarwater.

Also, go on the offensive. Get some wasp spray and go find wasp nests. Take them out at their homes and stop further wasps from emerging. You might even do a little research on how to hunt wasps in your area. (what variety, do they live in ground, etc.)

Can you see how important it is to ask the right question?

The openings on our hives are about 2" on one hive and 3 inches on the other hive. I keep cans of wasp spray around all of my buildings. But yellow jackets are a little harder to find their nests. I have used yellow jacket traps before with good success. They fill up so fast they need to be cleaned out every other day. I'll see if I can find some traps tomorrow and set up near the hives.
The dead bees I found were all old, nothing new.
Thanks for the help.

 

[tmttactical]

Okay, I have read all the Bee post to date, so hopefully i won't ask repeat questions. So if I got is correct, bee's don;t hear noise, so loud sounds will not set them off. The reason I ask is if the hives could be located on eh backside of a shooting range berm? I thing t constant noise and activity would keep predators (2 and 4 legged) away. Is my thinking correct?

 

[TexasFreedom]

AD,

Note that I've seen yellow jacket nests the size of a truck tool box. Yes, 6' across, 1.5' deep, 2' wide. Amazing. If you have this many, it might be quite a large nest. I've never tried baiting yellow jackets, but you can see if one exists. Watch them come & go from the trap and triangulate their nest and take it out.

UP, not quite true. Yes, bees are deaf, but vibration really aggravates them. Things like bullets hitting a target, vibrating across the ground. Bad idea. And the idea that shooting keeps predators away... yes and no. Night time you won't be shooting, and that's when skunks can come by. I just put my hives away from everything human/animal. They and I prefer it that way.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Tex. I found a yellow jacket nest in the barn earlier this summer. There was a gap between a couple 2×8's at the peak. This gap was about 24' long. When I climbed up there and sprayed it hundreds (thousands?) of dead and dying yellow jackets came pouring out and covered the floor. I need to climb up there and see if they're using it again. It's so dry here that the YJ's are swarming around any drop of water.

 

[TexasFreedom]

AD,

Yup, definitely check the same area. Just like one colony of bees will move into a vacated old empty hive, YJ could do the same.

And try just plain water as a bait. See which direction the YJ are coming/going to.

AND, if it's that dry, you should have a water source near your hives. In fact you might consider using a frame feeder, and just fill I with water instead. The issue being that an exterior water source would attract YJ, and near the hive that might attract YJ to attack the hive.

 

[user 7704]

Hey TF, my mentor said that since we are now having really dry weather that I may need to supplement the bees feeding with some Sugar water.

Question: I there is honey on each frame of the super and I can't remove any to make room for the jar feeder,,,,,,

1. Do I put an empty deep on top of the super and put the feed in it? Or

2. Do I use it as an external feeder since it is temporary? I'm worried about ants.

3. Is it possible to put the the feeder jar in it's little plastic external holder and just let it sit on top of hive for a few days?

Thanks.

 

[Mountain trapper]

We haven't had a single drop of rain for 2 months now, and none expected until probably September. Most all of the wild flowers are pretty much dried out around here now. The bees still seem to be coming back loaded with pollin though. Maybe they're getting it from the pine and fir trees? I'm wondering if we should start feeding them too.

 

[user 7704]

We haven't had a single drop of rain for 2 months now, and none expected until probably September. Most all of the wild flowers are pretty much dried out around here now. The bees still seem to be coming back loaded with pollin though. Maybe they're getting it from the pine and fir trees? I'm wondering if we should start feeding them too.

Arctic. My mentor says that the pollen doesn't have enough nectar in it and they are going hungry. I have lots of flowers too.

 

[user 7704]

I opened both hives. The hive that had the swarm has zero honey on the supers, but the deeps are heavy.

The other hive has a small about of honey on 4 frames. I pulled 3 frames from each and put in sugar water.

The bees were not as nice as usual. I may have had my smoke too warm or something. A bee got under my veil and stung me under my eye near my cheek. Tender meet. Then one stung me on my finger.

It's a good thing I don't have neighbors, because I was scantily clad by the time I stopped stripping off clothes.

My son got stung too. We are not bee virgins anymore.

 

[Proud Prepper]

I opened both hives. The hive that had the swarm has zero honey on the supers, but the deeps are heavy.

The other hive has a small about of honey on 4 frames. I pulled 3 frames from each and put in sugar water.

The bees were not as nice as usual. I may have had my smoke too warm or something. A bee got under my veil and stung me under my eye near my cheek. Tender meet. Then one stung me on my finger.

It's a good thing I don't have neighbors, because I was scantily clad by the time I stopped stripping off clothes.

My son got stung too. We are not bee virgins anymore.

The bee hive strip tease, lol

 

[user 7704]

Got stung 4 times and the side of my face is swollen and red. Not pretty

 

[Mountain trapper]

Got stung 4 times and the side of my face is swollen and red. Not pretty

My wife got stung twice today. First by a yellow jacket and then by some kind of angry orange wasp about 3 inches long. She wasn't too happy today.

 

[user 7704]

My wife got stung twice today. First by a yellow jacket and then by some kind of angry orange wasp about 3 inches long. She wasn't too happy today.

My eye is rather swollen. I could say my husband beat me.

I'm supposed to have a girls day out with my daughter tomorrow. I hope the swelling stops.

 

[DrHenley]

Those big red wasps are the ones that I really hate to get stung by. I always think I've been shot by BB gun when one of those things hits me. And the sting site always ulcerates.