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This is what we are looking for 9/15/2009
>> Barry's Bees Magic Elixir( Cures all ills of the flesh )
>> Could not have done it without your guidance Barry)
>> Thank You
Hi Folks,
This is what we are looking for, this was sent by a friend named Barry; he lives in VA and starting keeping bees approx a year and a half ago
Barry
Just a quick reminder it's almost trime to medic so.....be thinking of how you are going to approach this
Barry I have almost 60 lbs of decent honey this fall. Thanks for all the help. I try to pass it on to others I will be starting beekeeping classes in Feb with the intent of eventually becoming a master beekeeper. or a least someone who continues to care and support these great creatures. I have learned so much in the last 1.5 yrs, but become more amazed at them as the time go by, they are truly cool.
thanks and best wishes
Barry
Hope all is well in your family
Enjoy the classes you email.
Feeding Bees 09/02/2009
Good Morning,
Just a brief note of advice....if your colony/colonies are getting up to the medium stages or if they are past filling the first medium, I recommend you stop feeding them now....
We are still having swarms and I think it maybe it is do to the feeding...If you have caught a swarm recently , or have a colony that is still struggling to get full, (making the 2-deep brood chambers) by all means keep feeding them.
I must apologize for my lack of e-mails lately, my wife Dorothy and I are struggling to keep up with all the work here on our farm due to the constant rain (wet) weather conditions. We have been Blessed with beautiful potatoes, corn, peppers and such, but our tomatoes are a little on the ugly side...we are still picking some, not nearly what we would of liked too.
Have a Great Day In the Lord,
Barry
July 26, 2009 Central Western Pennsylvania Beekeepers Association
If you have time to attend and maybe join a group of bee keepers to ask some questions. I hope to make this one
Barry
for Directions click on "View Larger Map" below
Central Western Pennsylvania Beekeepers Association
August 3 2009. Monday Evening at 7:00 PM. Meet at The Robert A. Macoskey Center for Sustainable Systems education And Research at Slippery Rock university of PA. For a Tour of There Facility a bee truck demonstration, Smoker fuels to use and a look at Some colonies of bees kept there by Dave Schultze.
(bring a bee veil) Directions from I-79, take exit 105 (Slippery Rock) travel east on 108 to first light in Slippery Rock. Turn right onto Rt 173. South Main St turn left or east at 2nd light onto Keister road turn left at next for way intersection onto Harmony road. Go ¼ mile. Center is on right over hill and across road from SRU football stadium.
Central Western PA Beekeepers Assoc.
760 Chewton Wurtemburg Road
Wampum PA 16157
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View Larger Map
July 22 2009 - bee hive in trouble
hello barry.
until now all has been good with my hives.as of now one is still good. after i moved, i waited about a week and then added my second deep. after that, about 2-3 weeks, i havent had a chance to feed them. i have observed a decrease in popuulation of bees just flying around one hive recently. when i fed them yesterday, i have a serious problem in one hive. first of all, as soon as i opened the outer cover, ANTS big crunchy black ants. i have never seen ands in or around my hives before. but i dont think this is the main problem. since i expanded the hive, mth bees havent touched any of the 3 frames added to replace the feeder in the lower hive box nor have they touched the 3 frames in the upper box with the feeder in it. the population is very low and there is nothing in the comb. some with honey but only about 3 frames are active. very little poller, and no larvae. well a few maybe 6 or 8. but they look like they are dead.
im thinking that during either the move or the adding of the top box, i may have squashed the queen. or for some other reason she flew the coop.. bottom line is she is not there.
the million dollar question what the heck to i do now?
Barry> HI JIM, I WOULD PUNT THE BALL....JUST KIDDING. HOW ABOUT TAKING A FRAME OF BROOD FROM THE STRONGER OF THE TWO AND ADDING IT TO THE WEAKER..YES, I'M SURE YOU HAVE SOME HOW LOST YOUR QUEEN, MY BET WOULD BE THE MOVE, MAYBE GO BACK TO YOUR OLD HOUSE AND SEE IF THEY ARE AROUND...JUST A THOUGHT
so i requeen and hope they pick up before the snow flies? (a friend just ordered a queen and got it through the mail last week. $11 + $6 shipping. to his door)
Barry> YOU MAY WANT TO REQUEEN BUT YOU STILL NEED SOME BEES TO KEEP THE COLONY AFLOAT WHILE YOU ARE WAITING FOR THE QUEEN...I THINK IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO KEEP FEEDING THEM TOO..THEY WILL NEED ALL THE HELP THEY CAN GET BEFORE WINTER
do i pack that hive away and get a new package in the spring. at least they would start out with drawn out comb. do i integrate active frames in with the healthy hive? do mix some frames from the good hive and try to give it a boost?
Barry> THIS IS WHAT I WOULD TRY
if i do that do i hope they make a new queen or do i give them another one?
Barry> IF YOU CAN GET SOME YOUNG FRESH EGGS LESS THAN 72 HOURS OLD THEY MAY MAKE YOU A NEW QUEEN
if i take frames from the good hive will i be decreasing its cahnces of winter survival? my buddy has a nuc with 2 or 3 frames and a queen in it. should i try to get that and mix it in with the dying colony?
Barry> THAT WOULD WORK REALLY WELL AND GIVE IT A FRAME OF BROOD FROM YOUR STRONG COLONY...IT WILL REALLY TAKE OFF
good lord thats a lot of questions NOT REALLY YOU CAME UP WITH A SOLUTION ON YOUR OWN......GOOD JOB
i guess its kinda like you said. in bee keeping the key word is usually.
" you never know what your gonna get." we can all learn something from forrest gump
Barry> REMEMBER KEEP FEEDING
July 22 2009 - Super problem
Hi Barry
Here is a question for you. I have a hive that has the upper
hive body full, all but half a frame on each end. But the bees will not go up
into the super. I do not have a queen excluder on. The super has been on since the middle of May.
Do you have any suggestions?
Maybe they don't like the super that is on there, I could put a different super on. I just checked it today. I don't have this problem with my other hives. Thanks for any help you can
give me.
Barry> IS THE EQUIPMENT OLD? THEY MAY NOT USE IT DO TO THE SMELL OF SOMETHING IN IT ARE THE FOUNDATIOS PLASTIC?
*THEY MAY NOT WANT TO BUILD ON PLASTIC FRAMES OR FOUDATIONS
*IS THE SUPER MADE OF PINE, WE HAD A GENTLMAN HERE TODAY
THAT TOLD US HE WAS USING CEDAR IN HIS SUPERS AND THE BEES REFUSED TO WORK IT.
CEDAR CONTAINS A CHEMICAL IN IT SELF THAT IS NOT BUG FRIENDLY....AND YES, YOUR
BEES ARE A BUG....SORRY
* IF YOU ANWER NO TO ALL OF THIS, DO YOU HAVE A CAT OR
DOG? IF THEY ARE AROUND YOUR EQUIPMENT, ESPECIALLY A CAT, THE BEES WILL NOT USE
IT, SCRUBBING IT WITH BLEACH WATER AND LETTING IT AIR OUT FOR A MONTH USUALLY
HELPS.
* MAYBE SPRAY THE FOUNDATIONS WITH SOME SUGAR WATER AND
TRY TO ATTRACT THEM TO THE FRAMES
GOOD LUCK AND GOD BLESS
Barry
July 22 2009 - Some answers to some questions from another bee keeper
Hi Barry,
Hope your summer is going well. Our bee colony seems to continue to thrive.
They're still taking a quart of syrup every day from our front feeder. We did a
sugar roll a couple of weeks ago and found no mites.
Barry> WOW THIS IS A GOOD SIGN
When
we opened the hive this weekend, we found drawn comb on all the frames in the
2nd hive body and all the frames were crawling with bees, so we added a super.
Barry> GOOD THAT GIVES THEM MORE ROOM TO EXPAND
We weren't sure whether we should put
the queen excluder between the 2nd deep and the super or not, but we did put it
there anyway. Is this right?
Barry> I RECOMMEND THAT YOU LET THEM DRAWAL OUT THE MEDIUM
SUPER WITH OUT THE QUEEN EXCLUDER IN PLACE....SOME TIMES THE QUEEN EXCLUDER
MAKES THEM FEEL CLOSED IN AND THEY MAY WANT TO SWARM
What are our options when
the super fills up?
Barry> WELL, YOU CAN ADD ANOTHER SUPER, HOPEFULLY THEY WILL NOT
SWARM LATE...SURVIVAL IS NOT LIKELY IN THE WINTER, OR LATE FALL
We're thinking
that will happen late this season, and we'll leave it "bee" for the winter.
Barry> IT'S
GOOD TO LEAVE THEM EXTRA HONEY FOR THE WINTER...ONE THING YOU MAY WANT TO
COSIDER IS GIVING SOME ONE STARTING OUT THE EXTRA BEES FRO THESE SUPERS IF THEY
FAIR WELL. ALL THEY WOULD NEED IS A QUEEN AND THEY COULD START A MED. SUPER
COLONY. THEY COULD JUST PAY YOU FOR THE FRAMES , SUPERS ETC...SOME THING TO
PONDER
But next summer, isn't it likely that our colony will outgrow this hive?
Barry> YES, I HOPE THIS HAPPENS
Is it necessary for us to add a 2nd hive, or is it OK
just to let them swarm into the woods (hopefully not into our neighbors'
property). --Just trying to think ahead...
Barry> IT'S OK TO LET THEM SWARM, BUT WHO
KNOWS WHERE THEY WILL END UP ....SOMEBODY MAY SEE THEM AS A PROBLEM AND KILL
THEM
We also removed a large hunk of honeycomb that was attached and hanging
from the inner cover. It had been there since before we added the 2nd deep, but
we didn't have the heart to remove it when there were eggs and larvae in it. But
it was difficult to open the hive to check it without damaging that hanging
comb, and now that it seemed to be a honey storehouse, it was quite heavy. So we
removed it. There is still not room for the last frame in the deep where this
comb had been taking up space, because there is more honeycomb attached to the
sides of the hive. We realize now that we probably should have removed it when
we first saw it early this spring, but we didn't want to destroy so much of
their work at that time. It doesn't seem to hurt anything. Will they just keep
using and reusing the same comb?
Barry> OH YES THEY WILL USE IT AND BUILD ON IT.
REMEMBER IF THEY NEED SPACE TO LAY EGGS THEY WILL FIND IT EVEN IF THAT MEANS
LEAVING
Another question about something odd we saw this weekend: Our hive is in
the far corner of our back yard where we can see it and get to it easily, but
it's out of the way. We looked down and saw about a million (OK, maybe not a
million, but a LOT) of bees flying around the hive - lots, lots more than we've
ever seen at one time before, even at the busiest times or when we open the hive
and stir them up. After about 15 minutes, things seemed to have returned to
normal. What do you think was going on?
Barry> MANY THINGS ARE POSSIBLE, BUT ONE THING
I CAN THINK OF IS THEY REPLACED YOUR OLD QUEEN WITH A NEW ONE AND SHE WAS OUT
GETTING BRED
This was before we had opened the hive and removed the honeycomb
mentioned above or added the super, so we don't think our activity had anything
to do with this phenomenon. They were not congregated on the front of the hive
like they were that time the temperature went up and so many came out to fan.
Our hive thermometer said the temperature inside was 97 degrees - high side of
normal, but not hot enough to drive them out, right?
Barry> NOT NORMALLY
When we were
down there later in the day we noticed several bees that looked like giant
honeybees. They weren't the type of hornet or wasp or bumblebee we usually see.
They looked just like our honeybees but they were at least twice the
size. Not just longer bodies (like a queen or drone) but longer, fatter,
altogether larger. None of the giants seemed to be flying around, just crawling.
We wonder if they weren't raiders, and our honeybee swarm was their attempt to
drive them off, and these "crawlers" were injured invaders. We didn't see any of
the giants inside the hive when we removed the hanging honeycomb & added the
super. What do you think?
Barry> I HAVE SOME OF THESE GIANTS TOO, THEY ARE DRONES AND I
DO NOT KNOW WHY THEY ARE SO LARGE,BUT I'M GLAD THEY DO NOT HAVE A STINGER
BTW, they finally finished off that pollen patty we won at the seminar this
spring.
Is there anything we should do or order in preparation for fall? Barry> YOU WILL
NEED TO USE SOME TERRAMYCIN OR TERRA PRO FOR THE FALL, THIS HELPS WITH AMERICAN
FOUL BROOD
Should we continue to feed all winter?
Barry> WHEN THE BEES HAVE THE SUPER
WAX DRAWN OUT YOU CAN STOP FEEDING, THEY SHOULD BE GOOD FOR THE WINTER
When
temperatures drop to freezing, we figure we won't be able to use the front
feeder anymore.
Barry> IN NOVEMBER I PUT A POLLEN PATTY ON FOR THEM AND ONE IN FEBRUARY
I GIVE THEM A QUICK CHECK AND IF THEY NEED IT I ADD ANOTHER
Thanks, as always,
for your advice, opinions, mentoring, and friendship!
Barry> I HOPE THIS HELPS
ALL
Barry>GOD BLESS,
Barry> Barry
Week #9 July 8th 2009
Good Morning,
Wow!!... this has been a very busy week here at the
farm, so this e-mail will be short.
* Keep up the feeding
* Keep the air moving...screened bottom boards
open, shim inner cover up in the back to open up ventilation
* Keep the grass and weeds down in the front and
side of your colonies
* Watch for predators...skunks, opossums, raccoons,
they are raising their young ones and our colonies are an easy target. How do I
know if I have a problem? Good question....lay a piece of cardboard on the
ground painted a dark color, blue, black will do best. Shake some flour, yes
flour in front of the card board, the predator steps in the flour with wet feet
from the dew and steps on the card board...now you know. We use box traps here
to catch the critters and we do eliminate them, do not take them some place else
to get some one else's bees or trash. A large tub of water works best to get rid
of them....
* If you have an questions or photos, please send
them along
Have a Great Day
God Bless,
Barry<><
Week #8 June 30th 2009
Good Morning,
Attached you will find a frame of brood.This is a
really nice photo ....it was take by one of the beginning bee keepers from our
seminar and this is from one of his packages
What should I be doing now?
* Make sure your have is still being
feed
* Make sure your hive has plenty of air
circulation...open bottom board, shim up inner cover, keep weeds/grass from in
front of the hive (that is my biggest problem now weeds and grass)
* Do the sugar roll, it's a must
* Keep an eye on your colonies to make sure they
are growing at the same pace (only can do this if you have more than one)...if
one is falling behind, transfer a frame of brood from the stronger to the slower
hive
* Every thing must be going pretty well, I'm not
receiving a lot of questions, that's a good thing
* Keep reading books
* One question I am getting is ...."Am I ready
for a super, or my second deep is almost full what should I do?"......Yes, it is
time for a super if your second deep is full. Just build and add the super the
same way you added the second deep, except you must remove your feeder from
the second deep, replace it with frames and use either a top feeder or
Boardman feeder. You will not use or need a queen excluder yet, let them drawl
out the frames first on the super..
See week #7 for more info or send me an
e-mail
** One thing I must mention is this, during a rain
storm and for 3 days after the bees have a hard time retrieving nectar (food)
during any kind of wet weather. This is why you must continue to feed...if it is
raining , they will use up their stored food, thus making them short for the
winter. Please keep the girls fed and remember, they are drawling comb, sugar
water is the basic comb material.
Keep you the good work,
God Bless,
Barry <><
WEEK#7 ants in hive June 21 2009
Hi To All,
I've received some good questions over the past
several weeks about problems with different colonies, Below you will find a few
of them sent to us by a relatively new bee keeper, who by the way is doing
really well with a package purchased just 7 weeks ago.
Hi
Barry,
Our bees seem to be doing well. They're still consuming about a quart of
syrup/day (equal parts water & sugar - is the the right concentration?). YES
THIS IS THE RIGHT MIX They've drawn comb on about 2/3 of the frames in the 2nd
deep, with capped cells on several of them.YOU MAY WANT TO PREPARE A MED. SUPER
SOON, THEY MAY NEED IT
Our concern is the big black "carpenter" type ants in the top. They're
inside the top cover but outside the inner cover. Ant eggs, too. Each time we
open it, we brush them all away and kill as many as we can, but they keep coming
back. They don't seem to be down inside the inner cover and we haven't seen any
of the bees attacking them (so we're guessing the bees don't mind them being
there; so we reason that the ants must not be doing any harm). We do see the
ants carrying bee carcasses away from the hive on the ground (we have the hive
bodies sitting up on cement blocks), but we kinda thought that "helping" get rid
of the dead bees removed by the "undertaker" workers was a good thing. We
suspect the ants are attracted not only by the bees' honey, but also by the
pollen patty. AND THE SWEET SUGAR SYRUP We're still on that one pollen patty we
won at the seminar. We put about 1/3 of it on top of the inner cover when we
first put our package in the hive, and as it has gotten eaten, we put another
1/3 patty, and then the last 1/3. But there's still a good bit left - the bees
certainly aren't consuming it anywhere near as fast as syrup!
Should we get rid of the pollen patty and should we do anything about
the ants - and if so, what?YES, TAKE THE POLLEN PATTY OUT AND THROW IT ON THE
GROUND AWAY FROM THE HIVE SEVERAL YARDS....DUE TO THE HEAVY RAIN THE ANTS CAN
NOT FIND A FOOD SOURCE AND THE COLONY IS A DRY SPOT TO RAISE THEIR YOUNG. I
WOULD USE A LITTLE GREASE TO GET RID OF THE ANTS, NOT AUTOMOTIVE, BUT CRISCO OR
BACON GREASE IN A SMALL AMOUNT TO GET THEM OUT AND KEEP THEM OUT, PUT IT ON THE
TOP EDGE OF THE INNER COVER NEAR THE CENTER HOLE TO CREATE A SMALL MESS FOR THEM
TO CRAWL THROUGH. IF YOU ARE USING CEMENT BLOCKS TO HOLD UP YOUR COLONIES; DUMP
HOT WATER DOWN INSIDE TO GET RID OF THE ANTS COMING UP THROUGH THEM AND PUT SOME
GREASE INSIDE TOO. IF YOU HAVE TO COAT THE OUTSIDE OF THE CEMENT BLOCKS WITHA
LITTLE GREASE TO DRIVE THEM BACK AWAY FROM YOUR COLONY THEN DO THAT.
MANY ARE EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH ANTS, MICE, SNAKES, BEETLES
ETC. MOST IS DUE TO THE RAIN AND NO PLACE TO KEEP DRY. YOUR BEE HIVE IS WARM,
DRY AND HAS A GOOD FOOD SOURCE...BABY BEES, SUGAR SYRUP, WAX ETC...SO KEEP A
CLOSE CHECK ON YOUR COLONY/COLONIES AND MAKE SURE YOU KEEP THE BUGS
OUT.
* NOW SOME TIPS FOR WEEK # 7
* Most of you are experincing rapid growth of your colony, (That's
Great) my advise is if you have only a few frames to drawal out with comb....you
had better make the descion to put on a medium super.
* Your next step should be to remove the inner
feeder (If that is what you are using) and put the final deep frames in place (1
or 2 depending on your feeder size).
* If you are using a top feeder , you need not do any of this, your
frames are already in place. If you are using a inner feeder you must switch to
a top or a Boardman feeder ( I recommend a Boardman).
* If you need to put on a medium super, we recommend the 6-5/8" one
for your first one....
* You WILL NOT need a queen excluder....Why not?....You will want
the bees to go straight up in to the med. super with out having to go through
the queen excluder for right now....it makes them build up the med.
faster
**** PLEASE USE CAUTION AND MAKE SURE YOU NEED TO ADD THIS MED.
SUPER TO YOUR COLONY, DO NOT DO IT JUST TO KEEP UP WITH EVERYONE ELSE...I HAVE
ONE PACKAGE HERE THAT WILL NEVER MAKE A MED. SUPER THIS YEAR ...SO DO NOT HURRY
IT NOW.....PROMISE ME THAT.
* I must add just a few more notes then I will go....All of you are
very intelligent people and most are way smareter than I is...so keep reading
your books on bee keeping as often as you can...I'm proud of your efforts and
you are all doing a fine job.
* Do your roll test for mites ASAP
* Keep feeding
And one final note ...if we have a seminar in January for
beginnerrs what would you like to see us teach, or how can we improve over
yours? If we do a second year one ....what would you like to learn...How to
split and when etc. requeening, catching a swarm. If we do a bee yard
experience on a Sunday afternoon would you guys be willing to come here? or to
this area?
God Bless and Thanks for Letting me Yak at You
Barry
Week # 6 June 14 2009
Hi To All,
Well here we are on week six...so far this spring
everyone seems to be doing real well. For those of you who order more equipment
it should be on it's way. We have had some really good questions over the past
few days, so I thought I would share them with my best answers
* Should I open the bottom board all the way?? IF
THE FIRST DEEP BROOD CHAMBER IS FULL OR CLOSE TO IT OPEN IT UP ALL THE WAY AND
EITHER REMOVE THE ENTRANCE REDUCER (which I do not do because of mice and
predators) OR TURN IT TO THE LARGER OPENING.
* My bees are not using as much syrup as they have
in the past .....why? WELL, THERE ARE A COUPLE OF REASONS---#1 THERE IS A
NATURAL NECTAR FLOW GOING ON NOW AND IT'S SORT OF LIKE EATING A GOOD SWEET PLUM
OR PRUNE....(which would you like). #2 IT'S HOT AND THE HIVES ARE OVER HEATING,
MORE BEES ARE TRYING TO KEEP THE THE COLONY COOL AND LESS ARE BUILDING. REMEMBER
BEES LIKE IT BETWEEN 75-85 DEGREES, IF IT GETS TOO HOT IN THE COLONY, THEY WILL
STOP LAYING AND START WORKING TO KEEP IT COOL. ONE NEW BEE KEEPER THIS YEAR SENT
ME AN E-MAIL THAT STATED THAT THEY PUT A THERMOMETER IN THE TOP OF THERE COLONY;
THE TEMPERATURE REACHED 100+ DEGREES. IF YOU FEEL YOUR HIVE IS OVER HEATING PUT
A 3/4"X 3/4" SHIM ON TOP OF THE FRAMES IN THE BACK OF THE COLONY,(on top of the
frames) THIS WILL LIFT UP THE INNER COVER (under the inner cover) AND ALLOW MORE
AIR TO CIRCULATE EVEN IF YOU HAVE THE OUTER (telescoping cover) ON. I KEEP THESE
IN ALL YEAR LONG IT HELPS WITH CONDENSATION PROBLEMS IN THE WINTER
* Should I take the entrance reducer out for the
summer? WELL, SOME DO AND SOME DO NOT......I MUST CONFESS I CAN ONLY ANSWER THIS
WAY.......I USUALLY DO NOT.....I JUST OPEN IT TO THE LARGE OPENING BUT, IF I DO
REMOVE IT I USE A PIECE OF 1/4" X 1/2" OR 3/8" X 3/8" HARDWARE CLOTHE THE WIDTH
OF THE HIVE BY ABOUT 4" TALL (stapled on in about 4 spots with a 3/8" staple
from a T-50 stapler) OR I USE A MOUSE GUARD WHICH COST AROUND $6.00 THAT WE HAVE
IN STOCK
* Should I be using the inner cover now? YES, IT'S
TIME TO USE THE INNER COVER...WE WENT OUT TO 2 COLONIES AND I HAD A HARD TIME
GETTING THE OUTER COVER OFF....STRONG GLUE THEY USE, SO USE THE OUTER
COVER
* My one colony is way ahead of the other what can
I do to get the slow one caught up? I SUGGEST THAT IF ONE IS WAY AHEAD OF THE
OTHER GIVE THE WEAKER OR SLOWER ONE A FRAME OF BROOD FROM THE OTHER COLONY
(preferably one with new eggs, they may use the new eggs to form a new queen and
replace the old one that you have, move the entire frame with the nurse bees to,
it will cause a little confusion for a short time but, that will settle down)
REMEMBER IT'S YOUR GOAL TO GET 2-DEEP BROOD CHAMBERS BY WINTER, SO YOU CAN OVER
WINTER YOUR COLONY.
* Lawn Care....can we use chemicals to treat our
lawn for weeds and Dandelions? CHEMICALS THAT KILL BROAD LEAF PLANTS
(dandelions, clovers, etc., contain Amine 2-4-D, this is deadly to bees with in
the first 6-12 hours, I only use it if we really have to and only as a spot
spray here on the farm....Most lawn chemicals, weed and feed have this some
where in them as a dry slow release agent, PLEASE be careful if you must use
this or if you use a lawn chemical. Sevin in your garden is deadly to bees too,
use all natural Dawn dish washing soap it's safe for the bees and you too....You
must use Dawn after every rain for it to be effective
Remember keep feeding, keep them cool, CHECK FOR
DISEASE AND MITES NOW...Do the sugar roll
Attached you will find a picture of a fawn that I
found on the farm the other day while mowing....it's great to see nature at it's
best
Take Care and God Bless,
Barry <><
Week # 5 June 9 2009
Good Morning,
Attached I have an article provided from Edible Allegheny Food Magazine....hope it builds some knowledge....if you can read it
Just a few reminders
* Keep Feeding, they still need it
* You should be close to putting on deep #2 by now
* If your 1st brood chamber is full, do the sugar roll to check for mites....it's in your folder.
If you have mastered the art of bee keeping.....and would like to add another colony..... I know some one who has a lot of swarms for sale I will send phone number if interested
Well that is it
Keep on going.....
you are doing well
Take Care and God Bless,
Barry
Week #4 June 1 2009
Hi To All,
Just a few reminders:
* Keep feeding even though there is a lot of nectar and pollen, we must keep feeding to help the colonies build frames (Drawn comb) and strength
* You should be very close to installing your second deep, we have one colony here that has close to seven frames drawn out and we were at least a week behind some of you, so get ready to put on the second deep. If you are confused on how to do it here is a real short lesson....put the feeder in the second deep, along with a frame from the first deep that has some brood in it. Fill in the the first deep with at least 2-3 frames to replace the feeder and the frame you moved up...BE CAREFUL NOT TO SMASH THE QUEEN, during the moving of frames. Place the second deep on top of the first, fill the feeder and put the inner and outer cover on now.
* If it gets hot and you have the first deep pretty well drawn out with comb, filled with bees, larva, eggs etc. you can open the screened bottom board if it gets Hot...say 80 plus and you can turn the entrance reducer around to the larger hole slot..
* KEEP FEEDING
* Once your bottom brood chamber is completely full you may want to do the sugar roll and check for mites. If you attended our seminar in January you should have a copy in your folder....If you did not attend our seminar.....ah ....send $229.95 and I will send you a copy of how to do the sugar roll.....Just Kidding, let me know and I will scan one and send it out.
I have attached some photos of a nice swarm that we caught on Saturday morning....I caught one on Friday and one on Saturday. I found this one on a small honey suckle branch, not far from my hives, I guess we had some swarms too.
You can see that it bent the branch to the ground.... I had to cut the branch and put some of the bees in a deep; I caught the rest by using a shallow super and a deep to get the rest of them off the ground
One more thing I have received several articles on bee keeping that Dorothy found interesting, they come from a group that we belong too call PASA....I will scan them one at a time and send them to you over the next several days.
In one article it tells us not to eat bananas before working bees....(I think that's what Dorothy told me, I haven't read it yet), the bananas release an odor that they do not like...and I always thought it was my after shave...
***REMEMBER.....KEEP FEEDING****
God Bless and take care
Barry <><
Week 3 May 25th
Good Morning,
Are we having fun yet?
Well most of you have been relatively successful so far...we have run in to a few queen problems this package season....for this I am truly sorry. Remember, they are animals and like people we are all different.
If you think your queen is not performing well, I suggest that you purchase a new one from Simpson's Bee Supply 740-599-7914, or 740-393-2111. If you are unsure if you need a new queen or not, maybe the following list of goals will help. Most of the time Simpson's has queens for around $20.00, this is better than loosing your package. I was told that the queens are running around $30.00 this time, it is more economical than a new package and you are well on your way already.
* You should be working some where around frame #5-7...your first deep should be filling up nicely.
* You may want to prepare to place the second deep on soon, if you are using the 2 frame feeder and have around 6 frames drawn out, I suggest that you move the feeder to the second deep, fill in the empty spaces and put a few frames up in the second deep for them to drawl on. We do not want to give them too much room to soon or they will drawl the frames out unevenly
* You should be seeing several stages of eggs, brood, capped brood , honey and pollen production in your frames....If you are not then it maybe time for a change in the queen department
* You should be able to find the queen by now......according to one of the bee keeping books, page #12 states "In order to be a successful bee keeper you should be able to find the queen." I will tell you this if you find eggs, larva brood, capped brood and can not find the queen, that's OK you colony is doing well and you are being successful.
* I suggest that you keep the entrance reducer in and the bottom board closed for a while yet....give them a chance to totally fill out the first deep brood chamber
* Yes, you must keep feeding them sugar water....5 pounds of sugar to 1 gallon of water, or 25 pounds of sugar to 5 gallons of water
* When you have a totally full deep brood chamber...that is when you will want to do the sugar roll test for mites
"SWARMS"
* Many of you are calling about catching swarms in your area....you will have to treat them just like a nuke, or a beginning package....yes you will have to feed them
* Yes, you will have to purchase more equipment, they can only live in a cardboard box, or a 5 gallon bucket for a few days....If you catch them in a plastic 5 gallon bucket with no ventilation in it and leave it in the back of your pickup for a few hours....save your money you not need the equipment.
***I just received an pallet of equipment, we have plenty of feeders (several styles), bottom boards, frames, deeps, supers, etc. in stock. I called Mann Lake-Ltd to pass on a complaint about the wedged frame shims at the top, they tell me this is the best way to build the frame so the top does not twist....I do understand their thinking
***I have a person who has caught a lot of swarms and she is willing to sell a few....e-mail me for her phone number if you want to increase your apiary size.
I Hope that you all have a great Memorial day weekend and remember those who served us so bravely with their lives and our loved ones who have passed
Take Care and God Bless,
Barry
Week 2 May 18th
Good Morning,
Jack Frost has come to the Leicher Farm again....so
while I was out filling pumps with fuel, I thought about you guys and decided to
try to give you a little up-date on where your colonies should-BEE.
* They should be consuming around a quart of syrup
a day by now. If you are using the 10 pounds of sugar to 1 gallon mix, you can
drop it down to 5 pound sugar to 1 gallon.
* It's cold so leave the bottom board in for a
while yet
* They should have at least 3 frames drawn. I have
some folks reporting back they have 5-6 frames, they should be preparing for the
next deep super to be placed on top.
* I checked my hives last evening, they were placed
out about 4-5 days later then most of yours.....we have eggs in 3 out of 5 and I
was able to see the queen in the Russian colony. The queens grow quickly once
out side the queen cage and they become fairly easy to spot. The other 2
colonies were queen-less, it could be that the queens were not up to standards
of the colony, picked off by a predator while trying to breed, injured during
transit or breeding, or they were not accepted by the colony. One of the
colonies must of had a queen release, it has 6-8 queens cells with new larva in
them, this is great I will use the queen cells to do my splits when I get the
opportunity...soon we hope. I took one of the queen cells and re-queened the
other package. You should be seeing at least eggs in your colony
by now, most of you should have larva and capped brood.....if not check to see
if you have a queen....this is a must for the colony to survive. You may have
queen cells, they appear on the sides of a frame and look like a half of a
shelled peanut. If you haven't had the chance yet look at Bill's web site I sent
you last week, it has some really good photos...
* I'm not getting a whole lot of e-mail feed back
from out in the bee world so I'm assuming you all are having great success....if
you call me I will try to get back to you by e-mail...it's really busy here so
e-mail is the best way to communicate.
* If you think your hive is queen-less and you are
not finding anything....send us an e-mail or call and order a new queen at
Simpson's Bee Supply 740-599-7914, or 740-393-2111, tell Carlton or Anthony that
you need an Italian queen to replace the one in your package.....it will
probably cost you around $20.00, but it is better than loosing the whole
package
Well, it's almost time for breakfast....I'm going
to get a little cat nap, talk to you all soon.
God Bless and take care,
Barry
May 16th
Good Morning,
This gentleman has become a new bee keeper this seasom, the same as many of you...
He has taken the time and quality eefort to share many things and set up a web page with
photos...
He is moving rught along, this is a GOOD READ and many good photos
See what you think...
Thanks Bill,
I removed your phone number etc.. OK
Thanks
God Bless,
Barry
> Barry,
> I just inspected the hive, while I did not find the queen today I did find 3 frames with
> larva and a section on the center frame with larva and capped cells.
> I was surprised to see the capped cells this quickly as I hived the bees on may 4th.
> I have a few good close up shots and will post them out on the web site latter today
> Bill > > www.BillysBees.com
Week 1, May 11, 2009
Good Morning,
Due to the rain and no frost I only had to wake up 3 times last night to check the temp..When I finally did fall to sleep, my loving wife let me sleep in till now, wow so this is what 8:00 am looks like.
Some quick references this am for your colonies:
* The Queen should be out by now if you installed the packages by Wednesday of last week, take the queen cage out and put it your scrap book as a job well done
* They should have at least one frame drawn out with comb or at least one side drawn....some folks have mailed us they have 2-3 full frames of comb, that is great, remove the packing box the package came in and you should have between 7-10 frames in your brood chamber depending on what type of feeder you are using.
* Your bees should be using around a quart or so of syrup a day....this will increase as the colony grows in number.
* DO NOT let your feeders run dry ....they will use it for a brood box, then when you do fill it you will drown the queen and new brood. You should fill your feeder at least every three days and more as they grow in number, I know most books state to stay out of the colony for at least a week...Just fill the feeder do not tear the frames apart.
* Keep entrance reducer on the small sized opening if you are using a wooden one....bees like small openings and it helps keep the heat in.
* If you are using a screened bottom board keep the cover on until the package grows to about 7-8 frames, this is when you will add the second deep brood chamber and move the feeder up to the next level. Remember, they need to keep the brood warm and if you give them more space than they can cover that will cause you problems.
* If you came to our beginning bee course in January, you should of received a folder with some info enclosed. When you have a totally full bottom brood chamber, and you are moving well into the second brood chamber...say...3-4 frames in the second brood chamber, make your self a jar for the sugar roll check...see if you have a large number of mites. If you do I recommend that you medicate for 10-14 days this will help your bees tremendously and if you have a screened bottom board open it all the way during medication so the mites will fall out.
* Most of you are ahead of me, we just set our packages this weekend....Friday and Saturday, so I will have to do some praying over mine to catch up. I pray that we all enjoy success and have some fun with our bees.
* Let me know if you have any questions, I will try to bulk e-mail at least once a week.
**SOME THINGS WORTH MAKING MENTION OF FROM FELLOW BEE KEEPERS WHO BOUGHT A PACKAGE OR TWO THIS SEASON.....***
* Use your gloves, yes your package will sting you in your hands....at least twenty to thirty times...use smoke and gloves till you get the hang of it. Benadryl is nice to have in the medicine cabinet.
* I was not kidding you do have to remove the cork from the queen cage.....they can not chew through it...honest
****THIS ONE IS AMAZING TO ME***
* One of our package purchasers installed his two packages on Monday about 8'-0" apart, when he returned to check on them, he discovered that the first one released the queen, had a good full frame of drawn comb and was well on it's way....just like the book and everyone told him it would be.
Now, hive two was a little different, to his amazement and mine he had 10 full frames of drawn comb, no syrup left and the colony was bursting full....What the heck happened?? Well folks I think a swarm came in and mixed with his package,
as of Friday evening this colony has consumed around 30 pounds of sugar....Lucky Guy, First year and he double or tripled his colony. Need less to say that colony is not the norm..
More News to Follow
Take Care and God Bless,
Thanks for all the cards and letters we really appreciate all of you
Barry and Dorothy
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