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Leperflesh posted:I disagree: I think nucs are far more difficult for a beginning beekeeper than packages. When I took a beekeeping class, they recommended starting with a package, too. Maybe it's a regional thing or bad luck or something, but I've seen/dealt with queens that didn't lay and hives get overrun with hive beetles a lot with packages. But yeah, I didn't take into account not everyone is going to have a lot of extra frames/boxes ready to go which is dumb of me.
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Jan 6, 2016 20:30
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Yeah, we had a package where the queen died or left or something, poo poo can happen with them, too. It's just, with a total beginner, I think the slower growth of a package is easier to deal with than the rapid explosive growth you usually get with a nuc.
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Jan 7, 2016 00:05
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:I love that video! As I don't think you got varroa mites in Australia, you shouldn't have to worry about at least have one big hassle we get around here (I've somehow managed to dodge it so far, but I really monitor mine). Thanks, I thought you bee nerds would like it.  That'd be neat if we don't have varroa down here, one less thing to worry about. One day!
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Jan 7, 2016 15:13
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Here4DaGangBang posted:Thanks, I thought you bee nerds would like it. We don't, WA especially (we have stupidly over the top bee-related restrictions, can't import bees, honey, all sorts of stuff).
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Jan 7, 2016 20:02
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Here4DaGangBang posted:Thanks, I thought you bee nerds would like it. Unless you folks got it recently, Australia is the only area without it (unless you want to raise bees in Antarctica I guess). I'd still at least look for them during inspections since it's probably a matter of time given how easily they seem to spread (and I'm likely paranoid). Spookydonut posted:We don't, WA especially (we have stupidly over the top bee-related restrictions, can't import bees, honey, all sorts of stuff). I've had a case yet, but apparently in the late 80s-early 90s when it first hit, there were people that lost like 70%+ of their hives and I've seen it when I've visited other apiaries. I got some queens that were supposedly better at varroa grooming (though I'm only at one hive this winter unfortunately as I'm still not as mobile post-surgery as I'd like and my second hive didn't look good so I merged them). I am not sure how great the "trained" queens are, but folks around me swear by them and it does seem like the bees in general are getting better at dealing with them or the varroa mite wiped all the weak ones from the pool. The restrictions can be lame, but the alternatives are worse. Here if you register your apiaries, like you're required to, the state will at least reimburse you if you get American foulbrood since they have to torch all your stuff. So how much candy are you going with per hive in Washington? I did 8 here in Nashville, but I left the hole in the shim unplugged so I can always peek and make sure they haven't ate it all. Sinister_Beekeeper fucked around with this message at 05:49 on Jan 8, 2016 |
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Jan 8, 2016 05:40
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:So how much candy are you going with per hive in Washington? I did 8 here in Nashville, but I left the hole in the shim unplugged so I can always peek and make sure they haven't ate it all. WA in this case is Western Australia, not Washington.
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Jan 8, 2016 05:56
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Sorry about that. Though it makes the restrictions make a lot more sense.
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Jan 8, 2016 05:58
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:Maybe it's a regional thing or bad luck or something, but I've seen/dealt with queens that didn't lay and hives get overrun with hive beetles a lot with packages. Hey guys, as I have said before, I'll be starting with a package, so I will let you know how it goes. I live an hour from the bee supplier so replacement queens won't be a problem if I need to requeen. I'm going to play the odd card in the fact that I am not going to be placing my hive at my house, but at a friends about a half an hour out in the boonies. Within the 3 Mile radius of his house there are numerous reclaimed fields and wooded lots, a pair of orchards, and a LOT of blooming / flowering trees. The Downside is that there are also soy and corn fields in the area. The Immediate 1 3/4 mile or so radius is clear of them, and I have never seen the farmers spraying, so I am hoping that won't be an issue... The major perk of this lot is that it has its very own Bee tree! There is a hive in the trunk of one of their trees that is roughly 18" round by approximately 8' high and starts about 6' up the trunk. Observation over the last decade or so (my friends parents refuse to allow anyone to mess with this hive or the tree because "The bees live there!") shows that this hive swarms naturally once or twice a year, depending on the weather. The fact that this hive or hives has thrived there for so long naturally gives me a fair bit of optimism and will hopefully pass me a free swarm for a second hive this season. I will take pictures of this magical tree the next time I am over there. That said, I have the nagging sense that I am missing something.please fill me in if I am indeed missing something. I currently have: 1- 3lb package of Carniolan Honeybees (ordered) 1- Hobbyist smoker Protective gear (veil and gloves) 1- Hive tool 1- Screened Bottom Board 2- 9 5/8" Deep Boxes, 10 frame. 20- Frames assembled w/ foundation 1- quart bee feeder (which I don't intend to use, it just came with the kit.) 1- 3 Gallon hive top feeder 1- Inner cover 1- Telescoping outer cover To be added: 2- 9 5/8" Deep Boxes with frames and foundation Candy Board (for overwintering) *possibly this year* Second hive kit, Hive top feeder, and candy board Thoughts?
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Feb 2, 2016 06:33
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MrDesaude posted:
You need an entrance reducer right off the bat. Get a mouse guard too, but you won't need that until winter. A queen excluder is a good idea. Get a metal one; the plastic ones are junk. For the honey supers, think about using medium boxes. Mediums full of honey are heavy, and deeps even more so. There no real advantage either way except weight. A full medium is 60 pounds, and a full deep is 90 pounds. Make a hive stand out of 2x4s or 2x6s. You want the hive off the ground, and you can then strap the hive to the stand to protect it and the bees from it being knocked over (wind storms, falling branches). You can make your own candy board from luan/plywood and 1x3s. If finances allow, get the second hive now. Being able to compare one against the other is invaluable. A nuc box is nice, but you can wait. It's handy to have in case your hive is about to swarm. You can throw a few frames and the swarm cells into the nuc instead of losing the bees.
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Feb 2, 2016 15:58
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Looked in on my hive last night by opening up the mouse guard on the entrance. It's like the bee apocalypse in there, so many dead bees! I made sugar boards and thawed a pollen patty to put in there today, I just hope there is a core of healthy bees to make use of them.
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Feb 2, 2016 16:08
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I've signed up for my local beekeeping course, 8 theory lessons followed by a few weeks of practical instruction. I'm really looking forward to it now. Hopefully I'll be able to get some local bees who don't mind living here.
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Feb 2, 2016 16:13
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emanonii posted:You need an entrance reducer right off the bat. Get a mouse guard too, but you won't need that until winter. Entrance Reducer / mouse guard will happen, I've been hearing and reading different things about queen excluders though. Most of the people in the local bee club are shouting them down pretty hard... I'm going with deeps all around mainly because of interchangeability early on. I have to carry heavy objects regularly for work so 90 Lbs isn't that bad. I can also lighten the load into a locking tub on a cart if I need to. That will likely change in the coming seasons as I get lazier and more experienced, but I am an idiot who has to see why something doesn't work rather than accept it as canon. That, and being offsite, I hope the deeps will give me a little more time in preventing the hive from running out of space. Swarming, Honey bound etc. Hive Stands are going to happen, I'm thinking of putting them on a pallet... I am going to pick up the "To be added" stuff when I get the package. Might buy the second Hive kit also depending on finances at the time. We will see. Have you guys ever looked at "Don the fat bee man" on Youtube? Old timer has a bunch of videos and advice on how to do things on the cheap and without chemicals. Indolent Bastard posted:Looked in on my hive last night by opening up the mouse guard on the entrance. It's like the bee apocalypse in there, so many dead bees! Have you had a hard winter, or has it been variable like it has been in Ohio? Did you check the food supply? How much food did you leave on in the fall? What was the weather like yesterday? How humid is it in the box? You probably wont know other than by watching the food board until inspection time when the weather gets nicer. Bees die off, and they also don't leave the cluster for housekeeping if it's cold. Could be moisture, need of a cleansing flight, anything at this point...
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Feb 2, 2016 17:43
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MrDesaude posted:Entrance Reducer / mouse guard will happen, I've been hearing and reading different things about queen excluders though. Most of the people in the local bee club are shouting them down pretty hard... Variable to very mild winter. They were out flying on the weekend. I have not yet checked the food supply. I left a good amount of honey and supplemented with candy board. The weather yesterday was cool to mild. I have no clue how humid the box is. I insulated it and made a top entrance in an effort to stop condensation, but I don't actually know how they are doing. I'm not panicked, I know to expect die off and a lack of house cleaning, it was just a real pile of bees. I will feel better after I get in there today and (hopefully) see them doing well. I made the new candy just in case. I hope they have been living off the honey not the sugar, but who knows? I will update tonight/tomorrow.
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Feb 2, 2016 17:50
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MrDesaude posted:Entrance Reducer / mouse guard will happen, I've been hearing and reading different things about queen excluders though. Most of the people in the local bee club are shouting them down pretty hard... The bees will glue the boxes together with propolis. To remove a super, you'll have to break the wax using your hive tool and then lift the box off, but you want to do this gently to minimize the disturbance to the bees. The heavier your supers, the more difficult doing this will be. Add in that they'll likely build connecting comb that you also have to break... Mediums and deeps are actually interchangeable, too. You can use two deeps or three mediums for the brood chamber and main part of the hive, if you want. I've seen hives that are nothing but stacked mediums. But, having both deeps and mediums gives you maximum flexibility. The main benefit of the queen excluder is that you can be sure there's no queen in a super when you remove it. It sucks to take off a super, start pulling frames, and then realize there's brood at the bottom of the center frame and therefore maybe the queen is somewhere in with the four thousand bees you just dispersed as you cleaned out this super. Speaking of dispersing bees, a bee brush comes in handy. We used a big soft-bristled sweepy brush that wasn't specifically advertised as a bee brush. You can even use a handful of straw or grass. The bees don't recognize a brush or grass as an attack by a big evil animal, so it doesn't panic them the way sweeping bees off with your gloved hand can. One last thing: figure out a small point-and-shoot camera that you can operate while wearing your gloves, and that you don't mind getting propolis smeared on. This probably isn't your phone's camera. Being able to quickly take snapshots of frames is a fantastic way to keep a record of what's going on with your hive, what you're doing, show an expert a photo to ask questions, etc.
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Feb 2, 2016 18:50
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I actually run with all medium boxes because I had a rough surgery recovery and trying to work deeps with one good leg isn't fun. But yeah, you really want to think about the weight factor there and not overload yourself. I know a guy that uses turkey feathers for bee brushes. I got one from I think Betterbee I use, but yeah, I have to sweep a bit when I'm putting boxes back down or else I crush bees. You'd think they'd move out of the way if you move slowly enough. They don't. I use a cheap GoPro to get footage of the bees and I'll look for mites and how the wings look (and mutter "BEES" to myself while watching them work). Indolent Bastard posted:Variable to very mild winter. They were out flying on the weekend. Sounds like they're out of food. They will starve fast (like 3-5 days). And yeah, doing the candy sounds the way to go. Worst case, you're insuring they got enough to get through the winter. Are there dead bees face first in the cells? If it's warm enough, you can very, very lightly spray them with sugar water if they're out of food to get them going. What region are you in? Sinister_Beekeeper fucked around with this message at 17:45 on Feb 6, 2016 |
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Feb 6, 2016 17:40
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:I actually run with all medium boxes because I had a rough surgery recovery and trying to work deeps with one good leg isn't fun. But yeah, you really want to think about the weight factor there and not overload yourself. Probably a good call on the lack of food. Here is what they had left of the previous candy. Not all gone, but not much left.  I supplied them with new candy and a pollen patty, so I'm hopeful they will do ok. If the reaction of the guard bees is anything to go on, they aren't too weakened, but we will see.
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Feb 6, 2016 19:35
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I'm super-bummed. I finally made the plan to commit to keeping an apiary this year, but it looks like they are implicitly prohibited by my neighborhood CC&Rs. So, I can either try to find someone that will let me use their yard, or go guerilla and ask for forgiveness rather than permission. gently caress uptight suburbia forever.
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Mar 6, 2016 19:50
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It turns out that mostly different HOAs, cities, suburbs, etc. just copy each other's zoning laws and stuff without much consideration of the little details. E.g., my city requires beehives to be at least 25 feet from the property line not because the city council carefully considered bee safety or because someone lobbied for that rule... it's just because other cities have that rule. What that means is that you can sometimes get the rules changed just by doing a little bit of educational outreach. Especially these days with the worry about colony collapse, people are more aware of bees being a good thing. If you can also explain that bees always fly up to the height they need to be to clear all obstacles between their hive and their target flowers, which means if the hive is next to a fence the bees fly above the fenceline rather than swarming the yard next door, people get less worried about being stung. Another option would be to just talk to your immediate neighbors and if they're OK with it, do it anyway on the assumption they aren't going to report you and nobody else needs to know about it.
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Mar 6, 2016 19:54
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Save me jeebus posted:I'm super-bummed. I finally made the plan to commit to keeping an apiary this year, but it looks like they are implicitly prohibited by my neighborhood CC&Rs. So, I can either try to find someone that will let me use their yard, or go guerilla and ask for forgiveness rather than permission. Yeah, I totally agree with Leperflesh here. I'd just make sure the neighbors are cool with it. If they realize they aren't going to be mobbed by swarms of bees whenever they leave the house (OH MY GOD, THEY'VE GOTTEN PAST THE BARRICADES AND ARE NOW INSIDE), then they're likely to be fine with it. As I mentioned upthread I didn't have to do any of that, but did anyway because I didn't want to freak people out and it worked out nicely for me since I know everyone on my street and several of them have put in things for forage for my honeys. Seriously, I'd just ask the HOA since I think you'd have a good chance of getting a rule change, again like Leperflesh said, because of CCD concerns and all. On a side note, your neighbors will hit you up for honey.
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Mar 6, 2016 20:26
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Thanks for your posts. I am going to email the council that enforces the CC&Rs. It's not an actual HOA, it's a design review council. I'm trying to not be too discouraged, but I live in a super-uptight community (Colorado Springs exurb). Alternatively, I may be able to keep bees at the farm at work. Here's hoping!
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Mar 7, 2016 00:48
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Save me jeebus posted:Thanks for your posts. I am going to email the council that enforces the CC&Rs. It's not an actual HOA, it's a design review council. I'm trying to not be too discouraged, but I live in a super-uptight community (Colorado Springs exurb). Here's the response I got today: quote:Hi Save me jeebus, Guess I better get crackin'! I am going to contact my Beek Assoc. and see if they can also help me out.
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Mar 7, 2016 23:39
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Save me jeebus posted:Here's the response I got today: Neato! Be sure to let us know how it goes.
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Mar 8, 2016 00:25
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:Neato! Will do!
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Mar 8, 2016 00:26
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Save me jeebus posted:Here's the response I got today: I don't know how much contact you've had with the Board before, but you might consider approaching at least one member of the board ahead of the meeting. It should help you feel out how much you'll need to be prepared to educate the board ahead of time.
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Mar 8, 2016 01:40
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Does anyone have a good design for a smallish solar wax extractor? My dad has got a couple of hives and in the past has usually just thrown out the wax from capped cells, but i want to save it and use it for something. Im ok with building things, I'm just not too sure on what a good design involves.
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Mar 8, 2016 02:17
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Frogmanv2 posted:Does anyone have a good design for a smallish solar wax extractor? My dad has got a couple of hives and in the past has usually just thrown out the wax from capped cells, but i want to save it and use it for something. Im ok with building things, I'm just not too sure on what a good design involves. I'll ask around in a week and a half or so when I'm at the next meetup if no one chimes in, but I'm not mean enough to suggest you try some of the things I've done (I put a lot of effort into being lazy). Seriously though, take a look at the one on Betterbee's site for the basic idea. As long as you're not letting the wax get too hot, it's a pretty hard thing to screw up. Also, just accept you'll likely need to remelt it to get the inevitable gunk out that you somehow didn't strain out the first time.
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Mar 8, 2016 06:34
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:I'll ask around in a week and a half or so when I'm at the next meetup if no one chimes in, but I'm not mean enough to suggest you try some of the things I've done (I put a lot of effort into being lazy). How hot is too hot, and what happens if I do?
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Mar 8, 2016 09:09
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Frogmanv2 posted:How hot is too hot, and what happens if I do? Around 160F and it'll just turn into a darker yellow-brownish color and not be as pretty and loses a lot of it's scent. Might not matter for what you're doing, but figured I'd warn you. These plans look alright to me, but again, I'll ask around if I hit our local group meeting this next Sunday about it: http://beesource.com/build-it-yourself/solar-wax-melter/
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Mar 8, 2016 19:34
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:Around 160F and it'll just turn into a darker yellow-brownish color and not be as pretty and loses a lot of it's scent. Might not matter for what you're doing, but figured I'd warn you. cool, thanks heaps.
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Mar 9, 2016 01:35
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My bees didn't survive, yay!  The State inspector thinks it may have been viral so I'm not certain what I could have done. I think I'm going to skip this year and try again next spring.
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Mar 10, 2016 20:50
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Indolent Bastard posted:My bees didn't survive, yay! So what did they tell you to do to your gear?
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Mar 11, 2016 00:07
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Viral as in nosema/ the viruses that hitch along with it?
Free Cheese fucked around with this message at 13:01 on Mar 13, 2016 |
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Mar 13, 2016 12:58
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I did a novice course on the weekend with a group of friends, it was awesome. I want bees even more now, girlfriend still won't let me (she's allergic).
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Mar 14, 2016 03:38
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Got to a crazy warm 40 degrees (F) last week so stopped by to check on the two hives. No good news. Both hives are dead. We did our best to insulate them and make sure they had ventilation, but in the Langstroth hive, things were completely frozen and it looked like water had gotten in at some point and then frozen. Not a live bee to be found anywhere.  The top bar was a bit different. No water infiltration, but lots of "half-a-bees". I'm suspecting shrews or voles found a way in and decided bees make a handy source of protein in the winter. My guess is this hive is just too close to the ground and will need to be elevated this season. Sarah and I have ordered six packages for this summer. We'll actually have our own place to keep a couple of them, as we're moving into a new place in a couple of weeks that is on a couple of acres. The bees we ordered are from an apiary in south-central Alaska. They've hybridized a Russian bee with something else (perhaps Carniolan?) that has proven to be pretty winter hardy. They're a bit more aggressive from what I've read, but not horribly so. I've now got to build four more hives. Again, we're going to do an even split. Three top bars and three Langstroth. They were both fun to work with and each had their ups and downs.
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Mar 16, 2016 00:51
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Well thanks to you bee crazys I joined my regional bee keeping association (Pierce County Beekeepers wut wut) and am signed up to take some classes. I don't think I have quite enough time to get a hive together this year but come next year I'll be ready as can bee. Hopefully my chickens don't develop a thirst for bee blood.
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Mar 16, 2016 19:09
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Sinister_Beekeeper posted:So what did they tell you to do to your gear? Nothing. It should be fine since the virus has no living hosts. Free Cheese posted:Viral as in nosema/ the viruses that hitch along with it? Best guess, yes. But unless I wanted to pay $500 to find out it could only ever be guess work.
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Mar 17, 2016 02:24
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Miso Beno posted:Well thanks to you bee crazys I joined my regional bee keeping association (Pierce County Beekeepers wut wut) and am signed up to take some classes. I don't think I have quite enough time to get a hive together this year but come next year I'll be ready as can bee. Hopefully my chickens don't develop a thirst for bee blood. You're too far from me or I'd offer to try to do a split or something for you. As far as chickens, I knew folks with both and the chickens usually only do it once (unless they're really dumb). Indolent Bastard posted:Nothing. It should be fine since the virus has no living hosts. I'm not sure if you should re-use any comb from the hive as a precaution. I'd think re-using the frames would be fine, but I'd remove any foundation/comb in them just to be safe.
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Mar 19, 2016 16:47
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Indolent Bastard posted:
A good deal of beekeeping is educated guesswork, but nosema has some pretty glaring red flags. Was there a lot of bee poop on the outside of your hives, near the entrance? If so and your winter was warm/moist nosema at least played a part in your loss. Your frames should be ok to reuse, since the new bees you get will most likely already have nosema, however it's good to note that nosema is fungal and its spores will stick around in your comb. If you don't already freeze any frames you take off a hive for at least 24 hours I highly recommend you do so Beekeeping is unfortunately a task very closely tied to the ebbs and flows of the seasons. Some years you can do everything right and still lose hives, other years bees will thrive almost despite your efforts. Don't let it get you down- you're entering the field at probably the most difficult time in human history, but also the most important! Edit: for clarification nosema is a relatively naturally occurring problem for bees that is usually cleared up by adequate air flow and clean water nearby. Usually hives will pick it up during the fall/winter during clustering but will shake it off come spring. Nosema usually wont kill a hive on its own but it will certainly weaken them Free Cheese fucked around with this message at 20:54 on Mar 19, 2016 |
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Mar 19, 2016 20:40
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Yeah, I see wanting to re-use comb, but I just like to harvest wax from anything that problematic as it makes me worry less about having any future problems. Empty frames are easy to scrub and wired foundation is cheap if you don't want to leave it empty for the bees to fill. To elaborate on the clean water comment, you can try to "train" the bees to use the same water by putting a drop or two of something like lemongrass oil in it to get them to associate it with their stuff. I have two nice, shallow bird baths that I use that I did that with to try to keep them out of people's pools, hottubs, etc. Just keep in mind that they might not cooperate. Also, nosema is why you need to be really careful about feeding protein/pollen substitute during the winter season as too much protein encourages pooping which can lead to nosema like Free Cheese was mentioning. Don't know if I've mentioned it, or if anyone else has, but the scientificbeekeeping.com site has some neat stuff about feeding and just general records of what worked/didn't work for a beekeeper, despite having a color scheme that murders my eyes.
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Mar 21, 2016 18:58
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Only other major vector for viruses that I can think of is mites- did you treat your hives at all last year? Not trying to grill you just trying to help. : )
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Mar 21, 2016 20:51
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