Wouldn't you know, the old beekeeper was right!

WOB419 · May 15, 2009, 01:42:15 PM

I have used gloves very little for the 3 years that I have been keeping bees, primarily at the advice of the bee keeping class and the "old" beekeepers that help with the students and others in our bee club. I've always been a pretty heavy smoker though (i'm not talkin' Marlboros) and I have always worn a jacket, which gets hot. I've heard the more experienced folks and the articles etc. talk about using as little smoke as possible because it is better for the bees and the inspections go better too. I believed it, but I didn't practice it very well. Then I spent an afternoon at one of my club's veteran's bee yard and he let me and 3 others work the hives with him. He didn't wear a jacket and had the thinnest shirt on that I ever saw. He had us smoke the hive very little but smoked our hands a lot. "Want a new pair of gloves" he would say every so often, then puff puff puff with the smoke. It worked great.

The last couple of hive inspections I have only worn a veil. No jacket, not gloves, but I smoked my hands probably 4 or 5 times more than I smoked the hives. It worked great. One sting in 2 inspections. I was a lot cooler by not having the jacket, which made the inspection go much better. Bare hands are much more effective and gentle with the bees than gloved hands.

Just thought that I would pass this on.

hankdog1 · May 15, 2009, 02:24:29 PM

Some good advice there i don't wear gloves and hardly have anything past a t-shirt and pants on. If your gentle enough you don't even need a veil. Smoking your hands works not real sure how but it does. Funny how most beekeepers smoke but also most of them die at a ripe old age. hehehe :-D

G3farms · May 15, 2009, 03:46:16 PM

Old fella that lived behind me did not eve own a smoker, he used a cigarrette. Darnest thing I ever saw. He died when I was a teenager, I had known him all of my life. He had over 50 hives of bees, lived in a log cabin, plowed with two mules. I sure do miss him.

G3

WOB419 · May 15, 2009, 07:47:43 PM

I am working up my way to joining the bare naked beekeepers club...They are smokin' :-D

jclark96 · May 15, 2009, 10:00:37 PM

The fellow that originaly showed me how to work with bees would never open a hive without being "fully dressed". Together we had eight hives. I could work my two before he even got out there. I quickly realized that the bees only stung me when I did something crazy. Pretty soon i was wearing flip-flops, shorts, and tee-shirt, and he was getting stung 4-5 times as much as me.
As for the veil, it only took getting stung in the eyelid once for me to quit tempting them. Went to church with a black eye, the next morning.
My smoking technique is simple, I light it up, puff it two or three times about 5 feet up-wind of the hive, wait a minute, then set the smoker down just up-wind of the hive. If I need to I'll give them a puff or two. I usually don't smoke them alot.

WOB419 · May 15, 2009, 10:18:46 PM

I don't see getting rid of the veil. One sting in the eye ball and it will be blinded is more risk than I want to take. Besides I can be brave when the girls are flying around my arms & legs, but if they start going after my face I think that would cause me to react in a not so brave way. There is nothing uncomfortable, cumbersome or hot about the veil so I'm keeping it.

JP · May 16, 2009, 08:14:01 AM

Can't do this with gloves on, the effect is lost.

...JP

HomeBru · May 16, 2009, 10:07:11 AM

Quote from: JP on May 16, 2009, 08:14:01 AM
Can't do this with gloves on, the effect is lost.

...JP

As a new-bee, that's one of my favorite parts of keeping!

J-

JP · May 16, 2009, 11:42:03 AM

You can tell a lot about bees by touching them Homebru.

...JP

pdmattox · May 16, 2009, 11:49:05 AM

JP that looks like one of alan's tricks.lol