I am getting my first bees tonight. Forum members gave me the contact info to the clubs around here and I found a helpful individual through there that lives close to me. I am giving $200 for a three medium hive and will eventually give the guy his boxes back but keep the frames. It is late in the year but hopefully I can get by without having to feed to much though I will if needed or to keep them going a little later in fall. We went through his hives and the bees were not aggressive though he did get stung. The biggest worry is we might not live 3 full miles apart. I will probly leave them alone for 3 or 4 weeks. I will add a super of foundationless over his foundation frames. Note to self "move one frame up for bridge." I don't think the third medium is built out yet though it does have some honey in it.
Wish me the best.
gww
I wish you the best, but if you put 9 foundationless frames in the box and not look at them for 3 weeks, I'm thinking you will receive the worst.
Iddee has a good point. I would check on them once a week to make sure that they are drawing the combs straight. It won't disturb them much if you just pop the top to take a peek.
Id and C
I ment to say I won't be going into the brood boxes. I did know I would have to keep an eye on the top box but thank you very much for reminding me.
gww
Good luck GWW. Let us know how it works out.
Jim
Jim
Thank you, They are now in my back yard and I will let you know next spring if I have to clean out a dead out or can make a split.
Thanks
gww
Good Luck and enjoy gww. You will be making multiple splits. Watch those combs, but once they start em right, they usually do a pretty good job at keeping them right from my experience. I love foundationless. G
biggr...
Thanks. Hoping to get splits next spring so I can get enough going that I never have to pay for bees again. Time will tell. I have read and watched the forums and hope to keep up with strait comb. I like foundationless cause I can build it all and don't have to buy anything.
Fingers crossed that all goes well.
Thanks
gww
>The biggest worry is we might not live 3 full miles apart.
When foragers were caught, marked and taken various distances away all of them found their way back at 1 1/2 miles. Some found their way back at 2 miles, but not most. Hardly any find their way back when further.
Use google maps and figure out how far you are...
Michael
Not good. I just put the road names in map quest and it was 1.54 miles for walking directions.
I could have took them to dads for a couple of days. I mentioned it but the guy with the bees thought it would be ok. Will the nurse bees leave?
I tried google maps but didn't know how to use them and for some reason they where not coming up on my computer.
I guess it is too late now?
Thanks
gww
All of your nurse bees will orient to their new location. If they had a good flow near their hives, less than a mile and a half, then they will bee OK. It becomes a problem when they are on their way home and they cross an old track that they are familiar with and then take an old route home.
Jim
Jim
I don't know about the flow. My 3.5 acre feild has lots of flowers now. The guy I bought them from was worried cause it had rained so much that the bees were going through thier own stores. He did think that since I have no other hive here that it might turn into a bonanze compared to his with the amount of hive he has together.
He was a bit worried of selling to me but then the sun finaly came out.
Thanks for clueing me in on the nurse bees. I am glad there is still hope.
gww
Quote from: sawdstmakr on June 23, 2015, 05:04:24 PM
All of your nurse bees will orient to their new location. If they had a good flow near their hives, less than a mile and a half, then they will bee OK. It becomes a problem when they are on their way home and they cross an old track that they are familiar with and then take an old route home.
Jim
Jim, what is the memory span of a bee? If they crossed an old path far enough back in time, would that make a difference?
what part of mo?
Rober
I am in rosebud mo. I believe I talked to you on the phone about nucs earlier this year. How did that work out for you? I hope it worked out ok.
gww
Quote from: Dallasbeek on June 23, 2015, 05:55:16 PM
Quote from: sawdstmakr on June 23, 2015, 05:04:24 PM
All of your nurse bees will orient to their new location. If they had a good flow near their hives, less than a mile and a half, then they will bee OK. It becomes a problem when they are on their way home and they cross an old track that they are familiar with and then take an old route home.
Jim
Jim, what is the memory span of a bee? If they crossed an old path far enough back in time, would that make a difference?
Dallas,
The real question is how long do field bees live. They live about 3 weeks.
I have moved hives about 5 feet after dark. The next day they re orient to the new location but they still return to the old location. It takes a little bit for them to figure out where the hive is. Then after that, they still return to the old location and make a S pattern return to the new location. It is very funny to see. After a week or so, half of you bees are making the S pattern and half are flying straight to the hive. After about 3 weeks there are very few bees flying to the old location. The new bees fly straight to the hives, the old bees return to the old location that they originally oriented to and then fly to the hive. Even when you move the hive across the yard they do the same.
Jim
>Will the nurse bees leave?
No.
Hell even a few inches matters....I swapped bottom boards and the original entrance reducer which had the entrance on the right wouldn't fit between the hive body and the new bottom board....had to use one with the entrance offset to the left....all of the foragers continued to return to the right side of the landing board for at least 2 weeks before they figured out the opening was on the other side and started landing in front of it.
Update
Being a newby I am trying to make as many newby mistakes as posible and kill my new bees. I have had my bees for about 20 days or so. It has rained every other day and I got a little worried and so I put a quart chicken waterer with 1/1 sugar water about 20 feet away from my new hive. I did this maby 5 days ago. I had caned some peaches and had leftover sugar water so decided to use it. It took them a day to find and really hit it and I noticed that lots of bees where not coming from my hive. I then put a extra medium on and put a jar feeder on the top cover. I had taken the intrance reducer off 3 days after getting the hive. It had small steady come and go trafic till 2 days ago. The last two days it has been getting robbed like crazy.
When I got the hive there was eggs and larva. When me and the guy I bought it from looked at it today there is still only eggs and larva but no capped brood. The brood is in the second medium mostly.
We cut down the entrance and I am supposed to feed heavy. Probly have lost quite a few bees. There are flowers everywhere but the bees are doing so much defending that they may not be taking as much advantage as they should of whatever blooms are still out there. As an added bonus I have wax moth.
Oh well, look again in a week and see where I am.
gww
I had a similar problem with robbing this year so I put feeders 100 yards away from my hive and stopped all feeding at the hive. Now my bees (and the wild ones) fly away from my hive to get their free juice. Im feeding a lot of wild bees but no more robbing.
Hitech
I think I have it under control now. I have about a 1/2 inch or less entrance open now. I shouldn't have to feed cause I saw a couple of the bees leggs just loaded with some orange pollen. I just got scared and also canned peaches and had almost 2 quarts of 1/1 suger water I didn't want to go to waste. The hive is lite though and I don't know how much of that is due to robbing. I also don't understand the no capped brood thing. I have never had bees but believe due to all the rain there is no derth. I see lots of yard clover and some dandilions and my field had all kinds of blooming things.
I have started feeding and so guess I will keep it going for awhile. They took less then a half pint today and I don't know if it is a bad feeder or they have better pickings elswhere. I guess the robbing was going on due to the rain cause the bees where definatly trying to kill each other.
I think it is going to work out or at least have my fingers crossed.
Thank you for your responce.
gww
Can ya find the source (hive) of robbers ? ? ?
Mikey
I don't think so. I thought I knew which direction they were flying and mentioned it to the guy that helped me go through the hive and he seen some flying about 30 degrees from what I thought I was seeing. I have a terrible time trying to track bees in flight. Would it help if I did find the robbers?
Thanks
gww
I put some powdered sugar in a flour sifter, and dusted the bees that were robbing my nucs. The robbing flight pattern was faster and closer than what bees do when they are orienting, but it was still hard to tell. After dusting them I went back and waited at the strong hives and sure enough, it was just one hive causing the problems. Little ghost bees sneaking back in there. Screens helped.
Maggies...
I only have one hive so the bees are from somewhere else that I don't know about. I have been in my woods cutting logs and now that I have bees I really try and watch in case I someday find a bee tree. I didn't put a screen but have the entrance really cut small. My mentor wants it a bit bigger. I have been watching the entrance a few times a day and this morning things seem back to normal. Normal has been an average of two to four bees flying in and out constantly with no real hanging around. I was worried about heat as it is going to get to 98 degrees today but the guy helping me said there are not enough bees in the hive to over heat. The bees are not backing up at the entrance so I will leave it really small for a bit. I also think the robbing pressure might be relieved a bit as this is the second day since a spell of hard rain and it is the first time I have seen a bee working a bloom that I know they like. So the pollen and nectar that was washed off by the rain must be returning. The bees look loaded that are coming and going. They didn't use much sugar water yesterday at all. I am thinking there is better pickings now. I am new enough that all this thinking might be fantasy. It is my best though.
Cheers
gww
Bee careful closing up a hive with too small of a hole. Last winter I decided to reduce the entrance to my observation hive to try to keep the roaches out when the bee numbers drop during winter. The first warm day they tried to exit so fast, hundreds clogged the tube and died. I had to take it apart to clean the tube and remove the reducer.
Jim
gww, I've experimented a couple of times with robbers and smaller hives. I moved the hive being robbed and put an empty super in it's place. I'm thinking it makes the robbers think the hive is robbed out. The homeboys (girls) will either find their hive or stay in the empty. Just dump them around their home hive. I can't really say if it worked or not.
saw and gsf
Thanks for the comments, I really think things have calmed down, I am hoping my feeder is working correctly cause they have ate zero sugar water today. I was more worried about the heat with the entrance so small but I think things are going well. The bees are gathering food but tommorrow I think I am going to take the binoculers down with me cause my eyes apparently could be better. When I was really close while screwing the reducer I seen bright orange pollen. Today is the first bees I have seen on plants in three days. I am pretty sure the jar feeder is ok and they just like the natural food better.
Thanks
gww
GWW,
When your bees no longer take the sugar water that is a good thing. That is if it didn't go sour. It means there is a good flow on.
Jim
saw......
QuoteWhen your bees no longer. Take the sugar water that is a good thing
I believe that is what is going on, I hope that is what is going on, I am scared I did the suger water feeder wrong and they can't get it. I drilled a bunch of holes in the lid and turned it upside down and it leaked for a bit and then quit and I set it over the hole on the top cover and put a medium box around it. I am hoping there is nothing keeping the bees from being able to get the sugar water out. It was freshly made yesterday so should not be bad. I believe them not taking it is good news. I do know they are forageing. I am a bit timid that I am doing something wrong yet.
gww
Excuse the extra punctuation that my new Pad added for me. :angry:
I doubt that there is a problem with your feeder. When ever the flow starts, bees prefer nectar over sugar water and even honey. I once took a part a feral hive, in a truck box, in the middle of my apiary which had a dozen hives. Had honey every where. The bees could care less. If I had done that during a dearth, it would have been disastrous.
Jim
saw....
I believe you are probly correct. I also did not quote to show puntuation, I knew what you were saying and even if I didn't, I am a high school drop out. Every one would spend more time correcting then reading if they look at my post very closely.
Thanks for your thoughts, they do help me contorl my fears.
gww
Went through the hive today. Still no capped brood. The guy that sold them to me took them back to his house. His belief is that I got a new queen cause we can see larva. The bees grew too old during the making of the new queen and even though she is laying eggs there is no nurse bees to nurse them and the larva are not getting caped and are dieing. He is going to put on a hive with a queen excluder and let the nurse bees move up to my brood chamber and take care of my brood till they hatch.
Thoughts any one?
gww
ps I still have wax moth.
Once the hive is strong, I have found they are pretty adept at keeping wax moths at bay. Nice of the guy to boost the hive. Sounds like a good plan. Is he just going to let a bunch of nurses move up, tend your brood, and then you are taking the hive home? Wish you luck. G
biggr.....
On taking the hive home or not? The guy is a bit all over the board. He said he would just make me a nuc next spring and said he might be able to bring them back in a month. My veiw is it would be a pretty expencive nuc but also it would be much better then a dead hive. I think mostly everyone is just going to play it by ear and see how it goes. I would like bees cause I have made the equiptment. I was hoping to be able to split next year if they lived through the winter so I would have the resources to use the hives to pull each other out of emergencys like he is now going to do.
I don't want to spend a bunch of money and end up with nothing but like I told him, I appretiate any help he gives me but am not asking for a refund cause I knew I was taking a chance when I bought them the same as you do with any livestock.
I am thankfull the guy is trying to help get me started. I to this day don't understand why I have always had plenty of eggs and larva but have never had capped brood. This guy is bigg on the bee club and is running around and helping the new people with their hives and doesn't always remember what was said by who. I commend him for all the work he is doing but don't count on him remembering what we talked about. I am not saying this badly, just saying it keeps me a little confused on what advice to follow. He is going above and beyond his responcibility by taking the bees back and using his resources to keep them alive and I am thankfull.
Thanks for your imput
gww
Ps Part of the problim on communication could be that I don't understand bees well enough that when he says something, I may not be able to put into context what he is really trying to say.
A lot of eggs and no brood may bee an indication that she mainly mated with her sons. Glag he took the hive back. Sounds like he will do his best to take care of you. I had something similar with my first hive. The replacement hive made 150 # of honey.
Jim
Jim
Thanks for the reply. I am hoping to eventually have bees and have enough hives to help each other out with. I live on 20 acres and am retired and on a fixed income. I built a sawmill and have wood to build the hives. I tried trapping but had no success. I figure as long as bees don't become a big money pit that I really think they would fit with my liking to stay at home and having things that I can use, sorta like gardining and chickens. I really believe if I can learn how to take care of them and get enough hives to trade resources with each other that it will be a really interesting hobby and one that gives back as much as it takes. I am a bit intimidated right now with these first few mistakes and I am happy that I have this guy willing to help.
I hope it all works out and maby I get a bit better at it also.
I eat waffles every morning cause you can make big batches of them and they use a lot of eggs. I don't have any sugar maples to tap so the next best thing would be honey. Heck, If I can get it right, I may never have to leave the house. It does look like my being to cheep to buy packages in the spring, being over confidant on my trapping ability and all most killing my first hive is going to set me back another year. I still have high hopes though. I may owe this guy more then the $200 I paid for the bees if he saves them in time for winter.
I did not want to buy from an out of state guy for this very reason that I thought I might need help.
Thanks for your thoughts
gww
Someone that's willing to help and is good on his word is worth a million dollars. Especially putting his life on hold and helping new folks.
GWW,
Since you are making your own equipment, beekeeping doesn't have to be a money pit. I don't buy bees. The best bees to get are local feral bees. I'm 2 years from retirement and I also have a 42 acre farm. We also have chickens as well as cows.
I have been trying to buy a sawmill. Just missed getting a really good woodmizer for $4000.
I just built a new barn and I am building a large workshop in one wing of it.
Jim
gsf
I agree. I haven't known the guy long but believe he is dedicated to the bee club of which I am not a member. He lives 1.5 mile from me and has been here three times so he is a better man then me.
jim
I believe you will love retirement. I thought about a milk cow but have decided not now. I made the saw mill and one time tried to post pictures on this site but it is too hard. Keep watching craigs list and just generally keep your eyes open and you will end up with your mill. I have no building skills and got mine built for around $500. It is rickity but cuts good boards. I used an old weight set for the frame and cables and pullys for the up and down.
Tires for the band to ride on. The tires cost me $135 or so.
The bees have already cost $200 for only one hive. It is fine to get ferral hives but I had lemon grass oil in 13 traps and my three hives that were setting where I wanted to keep bees. No hits. I saw your vidio so you apparrently do better then me.
Thanks
gww
GWW,
I cannot wait to retire, again. First time was from the Navy.
We do not milk our cows. About the only thing we would get from them is black and blue marks or broken bones.
They are beef cows. My steer goes to the butcher at the end of summer. He is still growing.
Try moving your swarm traps to new locations. Some of my boxes hardly get touched others work over and over. I have been watching a lot of bees checking out the same trap that is on my pay phone, and it has already caught 2 swarms already this year. I have 3 other traps in trees no more that 100 feet away that have not caught any swarms this year but all have had swarms in previous years.
Jim
saw
I figure the trapping season is over here. I had them spred out along creeks and such on 200 acres and here 9 miles away on 20 acres. I put sugar water out before the flow this spring so know bees are around. There is always next year.
gww
Good luck next year. See if there are any places that the migrant beeks place their hives in your area. Not the best bees to get but some of them might work, especially if the beek does not treat.
Around here, you can catch swarms at any time of the year, depending on the weather.
Jim
saw
As of now, I know of no polination places. Thanks for your comments.
gww