3rd month of having bees and just got my first sting...

[robk23678]

I'm surprised that it took this long, especially since I've opened the hive to look twice without smoke, and the other openings with smoke I've had them crawling all over my arms and hands without incident. The worst part, I wasn't doing anything with them. I was on that side of the house, and they like to fly around and investigate, which I don't mind.

From the best I can figure, the little one landed on my hat, got caught in my hair, and gave me a good pop to the back of the head. Of course, the wife, being allergic, freaked. I went over to the garage and grabbed a sting swab from my med kit in the ATV. I love those swabs. But alas, it gave me a reason to get a haircut. Now it's at 1" long, so hopefully that will keep them from a repeat incident.

[Psparr]

We have nice bees too.

[Joe D]

Yeap, pretty lucky.  I bought 3 hives from an estate, drove up to where the bees were.  Got out of my truck, started putting on bee suit and got stung twice on eyelid before getting it on.   The fellow that had the bees had gotten down with cancer and nobody had messed with them in over a year.  By the end of the next spring they were much better behaved.  Good luck to you and your bees.




Joe

[robk23678]

And today, I went and opened the hive to check on them and their progress, (which of course the wife says: "you're crazy, after yesterday. give it a few days"). I had put the second deep on about a week and a half ago. Today when I opened up, surprise to me they had drawn 9 of the frames almost completely and were working one side of the 10th.

[GSF]

Are you feeding them?

I put a second brood box on a 3 lb package the 3rd week I had them. It surely looked to me that they had nowhere to go but out (swarm). I was feeding them sugar water and became concern about triggering a swarm response so I stopped. However as Monday they haven't even begin to consider drawing out combs in the new brood box on the bottom.

[robk23678]

Fed them for the first week, then they stopped taking any. Mine came to me as a 5 frame nuc, so they were already up and running when I got them. Never started from package, an adventure for next year maybe?

I think 3 weeks on package bees would be way too soon to add a second box, under most circumstances. A good general rule is to add the second box when they have drawn 9 of the frames in the current box. When adding a new box, always add it to the top. Bees like to work upwards.

There should be no need to feed them now, as there should be plenty of supply out there.

Advice given based on what I have learned... To each his own.

[GSF]

Thanks for the reply.

The reason I ask is my first deep (brood box) filled up with brood, bees, and sugar water honey that's why I added another brood box (deep) because I felt like I was dang if I did and dang if I didn't.