Hello Everyone,
I am sure this has been asked before but I am unable to find a thread on it... and please excuse me for joining and immediately asking a question. I'm excited and want to be prepared for when my first package of bees arrives.
This will be my first season with my own hive. I haven;t seen the inside of a beehive since I was a teenager and my neighbor would have us help harvest his honey at the end of a season. Anyways, I purchased one of those 10 frame Hoover Hives and just have a quick question regarding the set up. I also bought a 'Beekeeping for Dummies' book and have been reading up for the last few months, taking notes.
The Hoover Hive came with the two larger boxes - according to the book they are the brood chamber and the food chamber, a nursery and pantry. When I was reading about how to hive your colony, it only mentions/shows using the lower box, or one of the two larger boxes, and then putting the hive top feeder on top of that, then the outer cover.
My question is, when do I use, or add in, that second larger box, the pantry, according to the drawing in the book?
Thank you for taking the time to read this, and hopefully answer! Happy beekeeping everyone!
Hi there, Apostle. Welcome to Beemaster and to beekeeping! Your package of bees will not be large enough to inhabit two boxes right away. Packages are small and remain vulnerable for a while until they get built up to full size, so you will house them in only one box to start. Once they have the frames in that first box about 75% drawn, you can add the second box, and hopefully more boxes from there.
Welcome :happy:
The time frame where you will need to add the second box will be around a month more or less after installing your package.
Thank you for having me here! And for replying so quickly. These are exactly the answer(s) I was looking for. I don't want to call it stress but rather nervous excitement. I want to make sure that the bases I can have covered beforehand are covered. I appreciate it!
So let them build up for about a month with the one lower box and feeder and see how it's going. This is going to be fun!
Quote from: TheApostle on January 26, 2021, 04:11:38 PM
Thank you for having me here! And for replying so quickly. These are exactly the answer(s) I was looking for. I don't want to call it stress but rather nervous excitement. I want to make sure that the bases I can have covered beforehand are covered. I appreciate it!
So let them build up for about a month with the one lower box and feeder and see how it's going. This is going to be fun!
You're welcome, and we love helping each other out, so feel free to ask any questions you have. It's a steep learning curve your first year, so try and be a sponge and absorb as much as you can, but go easy on yourself if things don't go as planned. Working with bees is like nothing else. There's always something new to discover. It's not always easy, but it's always fascinating. :happy:
Welcome to the forum and to beekeeping.
Apostle, I second Bobs statement; Welcome! I joined here reading and studying. I actually began posting almost a year later, just before my first hive and haven't stopped asking questions since lol... These folks are mighty helpful, always eager to answer our questions and giving suggestions. A good forum and place to bee.
Welcome to Beemaster.
Jim Altmiller
Wow. Everyone is so friendly here! I belong to only one other forum and it is cutthroat. The difference is night and day. I appreciate the willingness to help and I?m sure I?ll have a ton more questions.
I am going to build a hive stand soon, hopefully this weekend. Then I think it will be a torturous wait until the bees get here from Georgia.
Great to see you here Welcome
Welcome Mr. Apostle. Question: are small hive beetle prevalent in Washington? Statement: varroa destructor is prevalent so be prepared.
Health to your bees. Glad you stepped up to BeeMaster.
Blessings
You've definitely come to a great place - welcome Mr.
Apostle.
There are very kind and helpful people here. They have helped me immensely. Ask your questions - you will have many. Enjoy!
Installing packages:
http://bushfarms.com/beespackages.htm
Always put them in the minimum amount of space they fit in. It is much less stressful for them to be in one box than in two when there aren't enough bees to fill two.
Aloha and welcome to Beemaster, Apostle.
Since so many people have welcomed me to this forum, I thought I'd keep the thread updated.
I am sure I will have many, many more questions as the season passes, so get ready to help the new guy everyone. As far as mites go, I don't know if they are prevalent here in western Washington or not. I read about them in the book I bought and kind of figured I would use the book as a guide for determining pest or health issues.
And, I just finished building a hive stand from the above mentioned book. I've got one coat of exterior weatherproofing on it, and plan to do at least a couple more. Come on March/April and the bees!
Thanks again everybody!
(https://i.ibb.co/PQx4LhR/IMG-0362.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Qd9ngNZ)
(https://i.ibb.co/3MQSLQQ/IMG-0361.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ZY7ck77)
Quote from: TheApostle on February 02, 2021, 08:16:45 PM
Since so many people have welcomed me to this forum, I thought I'd keep the thread updated.
I am sure I will have many, many more questions as the season passes, so get ready to help the new guy everyone. As far as mites go, I don't know if they are prevalent here in western Washington or not. I read about them in the book I bought and kind of figured I would use the book as a guide for determining pest or health issues.
And, I just finished building a hive stand from the above mentioned book. I've got one coat of exterior weatherproofing on it, and plan to do at least a couple more. Come on March/April and the bees!
Thanks again everybody!
There is a lot of information here on the forum. If you can't find what you are looking for, start a new topic on the subject of your interest and let her rip. lol
QuoteAs far as mites go, I don't know if they are prevalent here in western Washington or not.
I presume that you are close to Pullman. I am about 4 hours south of you in the Snake River Valley. You will have mites sooner or later. So, keep a watch for them in any way you want. Then, deal with them however you want. But, be sure that you do deal with them!
jimmy
Quote from: jimineycricket on February 03, 2021, 11:06:42 AM
QuoteAs far as mites go, I don't know if they are prevalent here in western Washington or not.
I presume that you are close to Pullman. I am about 4 hours south of you in the Snake River Valley. You will have mites sooner or later. So, keep a watch for them in any way you want. Then, deal with them however you want. But, be sure that you do deal with them!
jimmy
x2. Don't make the mistake of assuming that you don't have mites, it's unrealistic. Have a plan in place to sample for them so you can keep an eye on your mite numbers, and start thinking about what strategy you would like to take to handle them. For the overwhelming majority of beekeepers in this era, being a beekeeper means being a mite keeper.
That is a great looking hive stand, by the way. I just use cinder blocks. :happy:
Quote from: The15thMember on February 03, 2021, 11:55:17 AM
Quote from: jimineycricket on February 03, 2021, 11:06:42 AM
QuoteAs far as mites go, I don't know if they are prevalent here in western Washington or not.
I presume that you are close to Pullman. I am about 4 hours south of you in the Snake River Valley. You will have mites sooner or later. So, keep a watch for them in any way you want. Then, deal with them however you want. But, be sure that you do deal with them!
jimmy
x2. Don't make the mistake of assuming that you don't have mites, it's unrealistic. Have a plan in place to sample for them so you can keep an eye on your mite numbers, and start thinking about what strategy you would like to take to handle them. For the overwhelming majority of beekeepers in this era, being a beekeeper means being a mite keeper.
That is a great looking hive stand, by the way. I just use cinder blocks. :happy:
Same here plus 4x4s for multiple hives.
Quote from: The15thMember on February 03, 2021, 11:55:17 AM
Quote from: jimineycricket on February 03, 2021, 11:06:42 AM
QuoteAs far as mites go, I don't know if they are prevalent here in western Washington or not.
I presume that you are close to Pullman. I am about 4 hours south of you in the Snake River Valley. You will have mites sooner or later. So, keep a watch for them in any way you want. Then, deal with them however you want. But, be sure that you do deal with them!
jimmy
Quotex2. Don't make the mistake of assuming that you don't have mites, it's unrealistic. Have a plan in place to sample for them so you can keep an eye on your mite numbers, and start thinking about what strategy you would like to take to handle them. For the overwhelming majority of beekeepers in this era, being a beekeeper means being a mite keeper.
Yikes. I better do more research and have options if it happens. I checked out a thread yesterday about them, it was titled 'is this a mite?" or something like that. Well with my sweet eyes ha ha, I couldn't see a thing. A poster then added a pic with the mites circled and then still I could barely see the differences.
Yeah, I am about 6 hours west of Pullman, on the Kitsap Peninsula, right in between the Olympic Mountains and the Cascades. There is an enormous difference between those climates (meaning Pullman and me, the Snake River Valley might be similar since you are coming off the Rockies), almost a rain forest where I'm at. I am hoping the weather and wetness here helps me out in that way. But yes, it seems like I need to do some more reading on stuff that could come up.
Since you are new to beekeeping and not yet informed of mites and problems associated with them. I will ask Mr HP or Member to display the wonderful talk that HoneyPump did here for Member a couple years ago regarding mites. Outstanding paper. Also there is a video by Dr Samuel Ramsey that discusses mites in particular that you will gain much needed information. I will try and find that for you.
Quote from: Ben Framed on February 03, 2021, 01:08:51 PM
Since you are new to beekeeping and not yet informed of mites and problems associated with them. I will ask Mr HP or Member to display the wonderful talk that HoneyPump did here for Member a couple years ago regarding mites. Outstanding paper. Also there is a video by Dr Samuel Ramsey that discusses mites in particular that you will gain much needed information. I will try and find that for you.
Here you go..
https://youtu.be/DK2Xi0ST4rA
Quote from: Ben Framed on February 03, 2021, 01:08:51 PM
Since you are new to beekeeping and not yet informed of mites and problems associated with them. I will ask Mr HP or Member to display the wonderful talk that HoneyPump did here for Member a couple years ago regarding mites. Outstanding paper. Also there is a video by Dr Samuel Ramsey that discusses mites in particular that you will gain much needed information. I will try and find that for you.
Good idea, Phillip. I'll see if I can figure out how to post that.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NvP-olm7vwMxPVH-Oi1CNHH70Wq913ym/view?usp=sharing
Someone let me know if the link is not working.
Quote from: TheApostle on February 03, 2021, 12:38:01 PM
Yeah, I am about 6 hours west of Pullman, on the Kitsap Peninsula, right in between the Olympic Mountains and the Cascades. There is an enormous difference between those climates (meaning Pullman and me, the Snake River Valley might be similar since you are coming off the Rockies), almost a rain forest where I'm at. I am hoping the weather and wetness here helps me out in that way. But yes, it seems like I need to do some more reading on stuff that could come up.
We were having a sort of hypothetical conversation on another thread about moisture and its effect on pests in conjunction with ventilation, but I don't think any real link between them has been demonstrated. My climate is similar to yours, a temperate rainforest. I think the technical term is "mold city". :cheesy: I have the same mite problems as anyone, as the slideshow demonstrates.
Good Job Member! The link came up when I went to it. This is a classic. Mr HoneyPump did and outstanding job on this. I am going to re-study as a refresher course. Thanks to both of you.
Thank you for the article. Makes me realize how little I know. I don't even know what I'm looking at/for in some of the pictures.
And I will have to watch the video later when I have some spare time.
Quote from: The15thMember on February 03, 2021, 02:08:02 PM
We were having a sort of hypothetical conversation on another thread about moisture and its effect on pests in conjunction with ventilation, but I don't think any real link between them has been demonstrated. My climate is similar to yours, a temperate rainforest. I think the technical term is "mold city". :cheesy: I have the same mite problems as anyone, as the slideshow demonstrates.
Ha Ha I think you are referring to the Topic I started about Pest and cold weather effects? If so,. After the good comments here on the forum and added information, I wrote that theory off to bunkum. :shocked: lol :cheesy: :wink:
I was thinking Eastern Washington. My bad!
check out https://www.honeybeesuite.com/ when you get some time. Rusty is in Western Washington.
Quote from: Ben Framed on February 03, 2021, 06:07:53 PM
Ha Ha I think you are referring to the Topic I started about Pest and cold weather effects? If so,. After the good comments here on the forum and added information, I wrote that theory off to bunkum. :shocked: lol :cheesy: :wink:
:happy: Hey, I'm all for speculation. Nobody discovers anything by just accepting what the books say as good enough. Just probably not a good frame of mind to be in your first year. :wink: But heck, Phillip, you've done so much in your 3 years with that mentality, who am I to question it. :smile:
Quote from: TheApostle on February 03, 2021, 05:12:34 PM
Thank you for the article. Makes me realize how little I know. I don't even know what I'm looking at/for in some of the pictures.
Please don't take this the wrong way, Apostle, but I'm glad to hear you say that. The moment a beekeeper thinks they know it all is the point at which they become a bad beekeeper. With your frame of mind, you'll be good to go. The people who succeed at this are those who are ready to learn and never stop, even if it's sometimes learning the hard way. :happy:
Quote from: jimineycricket on February 03, 2021, 06:29:05 PM
I was thinking Eastern Washington. My bad!
check out https://www.honeybeesuite.com/ when you get some time. Rusty is in Western Washington.
Yes, yes, yes! Basically everything I learned about beekeeping I learned either from Rusty or from here. Honey Bee Suite is my favorite bee website, other than Beemaster of course. :beemaster:
Quote from: The15thMember on February 03, 2021, 07:18:31 PM
Quote from: Ben Framed on February 03, 2021, 06:07:53 PM
Ha Ha I think you are referring to the Topic I started about Pest and cold weather effects? If so,. After the good comments here on the forum and added information, I wrote that theory off to bunkum. :shocked: lol :cheesy: :wink:
:happy: Hey, I'm all for speculation. Nobody discovers anything by just accepting what the books say as good enough. Just probably not a good frame of mind to be in your first year. :wink: But heck, Phillip, you've done so much in your 3 years with that mentality, who am I to question it. :smile:
Thanks Member, One thing you and I have in common beside asking questions, we also think out of the box. :cheesy: lol. I have really enjoyed my adventures here at beemaster along with all the people who have helped in my (schooling). Let the adventures continue!
Mr. Apostle: pic for you of bottom board with dead mites.
[attachment=0][/attachment]
For size, the photo is about 2.5 inches square, mites are about 1/16 inch.
Study the pic. The white stuff is diatomaceous earth on a plastic screened bottom board. The lil red dead creatures, kinda elliptic, are varroa destructor, hundreds I might add. This non hygenic typical Italian honeybee hive was treated and the results are pictured. Note the mites.
[attachment=0][/attachment]
Honey bee killer, European hornet.
Note the size of the stinger of the European hornet compared to a honey bee. Hopefully your area does not have the Hornets, just ask locals.
Cheers
Quote from: van from Arkansas on February 04, 2021, 08:46:12 PM
[attachment=0][/attachment]
Honey bee killer, European hornet.
Note the size of the stinger of the European hornet compared to a honey bee. Hopefully your area does not have the Hornets, just ask locals.
Cheers
That is such an impressive photo, Van.
Just to get on the front end of a potential question, this is not a "murder hornet". European hornets are a nuisance, but they don't decimate healthy hives like Asian Giant Hornets can. Although they aren't the threat to people the press makes them out to be, the Asian Giant Hornet issue in the Pacific Northwest may be something for you to keep an eye on, Apostle.
https://beemaster.com/forum/index.php?topic=53589.0
I would not want to be stung by one of those Mr Van!! :shocked: :shocked: :grin:
Holy cow! Nice terrifying me with the graphic pictures! I was picturing a humming, thriving colony of happy bees, pollinating flowers, making honey. Not battling mites or hornets with syringe size stingers. As I was reading through, I decided that rather than overloading myself with information, I would break it up into sections - getting set up, which is where I'm at now, then say hiving the colony which I now see presents conflicting accounts on how to actually do it (i.e. leave frames out vs. don't leave frames out, hang the queen vs. don't hang the queen), and then I was going to progress into checking the state of your hive like activity and health. I guess I better get into the health section sooner than later.
Thank you everyone for all of the help and replies. Sorry that I haven't been on in a week or two, with what is going on in the world we've been working crazy schedules. I'll be reading up on the health stuff during my commutes this week!
Quote from: TheApostle on February 13, 2021, 05:49:44 PM
Holy cow! Nice terrifying me with the graphic pictures! I was picturing a humming, thriving colony of happy bees, pollinating flowers, making honey. Not battling mites or hornets with syringe size stingers.
It's only fair we let you know what you are REALLY in for. Being a beekeeper isn't at all like those Flow Hive commercials. :wink:
Quote from: TheApostle on February 13, 2021, 05:49:44 PM
As I was reading through, I decided that rather than overloading myself with information, I would break it up into sections - getting set up, which is where I'm at now, then say hiving the colony which I now see presents conflicting accounts on how to actually do it (i.e. leave frames out vs. don't leave frames out, hang the queen vs. don't hang the queen), and then I was going to progress into checking the state of your hive like activity and health. I guess I better get into the health section sooner than later.
I had a piano teacher who used to say "Slow it down and break it down". I think that applies to a lot of things, and beekeeping is one of them. The best piece of advice I ever got during the research phase was to really focus on learning about bees, and not so much about beekeeping. Everyone will keep bees differently, there are as many styles of beekeeping as there are people. Don't labor over the minutiae too much (like frames in or frames out when hiving a colony), everyone will have their own opinions, just try to find out the options and do what you think will be most comfortable for you. And when issues come up, you can ask questions about those things then. But if you learn about bees and how they order their lives and how a colony works, it will be a lot easier to recognize things you can/should do and why things are happening the way there are.
Quote from: TheApostle on January 27, 2021, 08:43:56 PM
Wow. Everyone is so friendly here! I belong to only one other forum and it is cutthroat. The difference is night and day. I appreciate the willingness to help and I?m sure I?ll have a ton more questions.
I've rarely met a group of people more willing to help in general than beeks. And some great answers on here.
Welcome. Nice looking hive stand.
++on the hive stand .if your hive is not high enough the skunks will raid it and you will have mean bees.you may want to feed your new livestock . feed inside the hive and watch out for robbing.