winter peek and a moldy mess

[Darlene]

It's been in the low 60's for the past week so I decided to take a peek inside my two hives.  I opened the one I was most concerned about first (not as much activity as the other) and discovered that about a third of the hive was covered in mold and mildew.  The inner cover was moldy and one side (both the top and bottom hive bodies) was icky with the mold infesting the nearest three or four frames.  The bees were all clustered on the other side of the box and still have honey stores but their numbers are down considerably from fall - I'm guessing about four frames of bees.  Also, there were a lot of dead varroa mites on the board under the SBB.  My assumption is that I need to put them in a new hive body right away and move only the frames that don't have mold to the new box.  Is it okay to do this now even though there is still some winter to go?

My second hive seems to be in fabulous condition - a lot of bees going about their business, a good amount of stored honey, and I even saw some brood.  And to think that this was the hive I was afraid might not make it!  Just this one experience demonstrates how important it is to start with more than one hive (I started beekeeping last June.)  If I'd had only one I would not have seen such a dramatic difference and have the opportunity to learn a lesson or two or three...

[Finsky]

when you situation is so I recommend this:

- Take brood frames away. They are full ofmites. Let birds pick larvas and pupas away or destroy combs. Don't let robber bees go onto combs.

- Then give oxalic acid trickling on bee cluster . It is easy. Or what ever good handling.

- When weather is good enough take from better hive frame of emerging bees. It helps weak colony to build up.

- Give to boath hives area where they make dronecombs. Let dronebrood catch mites.

Give to bees such a space which they can keep warm. Extra frames away.
.
.

[gsferg]

Hi Darlene-

Sorry to hear about your "mess". I'm a first-year beekeeper too so my advice is questionable. Finsky's advice is sound, if a bit harsh. I would not have thought of removing the brood, but it might be a good idea.  Treating the hive without removing the brood will leave a lot of mites in the hive and since the hive has been dwindling and it's been winter, chances are the bees are old, tired, and short-lived due to mite predation and the brood IS heavily infested with mites. The brood that emerges will be weakened, if not diseased. If you've got 4 frames of bees, breaking the brood cycle and treating with OA as suggested just might make the difference between losing the hive and saving it. You may be close enough to spring where the bees will not be set back too badly.

An alternative to removing the brood and dribbling OA is to do a series of 3 OA vapor treatments, about a week apart. Vaporizng OA is simple enough to do, but takes a bit of practice. Removing the brood and dribbling OA is certainly fast, and simple.

I'd feed them a little 1:1 syrup to stimulate brood rearing and if there's no pollen to bring in, I'd give them some, or a good pollen substitute. They're going to need all the help they can get.

As for the mold, when the bees population increases they'll probably manage to clean it up.  I'd make sure they have sufficient ventilation, top and bottom, to help get moisture out of the hive.

I don't know what your weather is like in Quincy this time of year. If it's been in the 60's hopefully, spring is close. Here in Maine, it's 10 degrees out and we're slated for a foot of snow tonight.

Let us know how it goes.

George-

[Darlene]

Thanks Finsky & George for your prompt response and info!

I wouldn't have thought to discard the brood, but now that I think about it, I'm sure they're heavily infested.  Thanks for reading my mind about moving a frame of brood from the good hive to the bad.  Will they fight when I do that?  If so, how do I minimize it?

Also, I'm not clear if it is necessary to move them to fresh hive bodies?  I've a couple of spares so it wouldn't be a problem.  

As for feeding, is a 1:1 ratio okay?  I've read that a 2:1 ratio is recommended for winter.  I've a top feeder and I'm thinking that this goes directly on the hive body then the inner cover and then the telescoping cover.  Correct?

I'll have to read up on the oxalic acid treatments and other options.  I'm partial to non-chemical methods, but I'm not sure if that is possible.  Research, research...

I'm thinking spring will come early, but it's been known to snow in April or June for that matter.  Mountain weather!

[TwT]

Darlene, I have a couple questions for you,,,, they told you what to do now, but what is the reason for all the moisture in your hive to cause all that mold, sounds like alot of mold in that one hive...

1. did you have a hivetop feeder or a feeder jar on the intercover?
2. was your feeder leaking?
3. is your hives in a shaded area?
4. do you keep your hives in a moist area like a wet area?
5. do you have top and bottom ventilation?

[Darlene]

Hi TwT.  I've been wondering why I got so much moisture, too.  I've  answered your questions below:

1. did you have a hivetop feeder or a feeder jar on the intercover?
2. was your feeder leaking?

I didn't have a feeder on the hive.

3. is your hives in a shaded area?

No, they do get some shade but mostly sunny this time of year.  Actually, this hive gets the most sun.

4. do you keep your hives in a moist area like a wet area?

This is a tricky question.  I actually live in a very dry area, but this winter we've had more rain than I can ever remember.  Usually it rains or snows for a few days followed by a week or so of sun.  Not this year, just rain, rain, and more rain.  I'm thinking that was a large factor in this mold problem.

5. do you have top and bottom ventilation?

When I put them to bed for winter I noticed a bit of mold on the inner cover so I lifted the cover a bit with a piece of wood.  They also have an entrance hole in the top hive body.  I did reduce the bottom entrance to the small one-inch opening.  Another factor is I closed off the SBB with a thin piece of plywood.  So, they only had the two small entrances and a bit of a lift of the top cover for ventalation.  

Both of my hives I treated the same way for winter (although the one w/o the mold didn't have the top cover lifted).  There was a difference in strength between the hives when I closed them up for winter.  The one with the mold was very strong, seemingly bursting wth bees.  The other hive had been knocked over twice by racoons during the summer/fall and had significantly less bees.  I'm thinking that by their large numbers the bees produced a lot of heat and condensation in the hive.

I did what the others suggested and am hoping for the best.  I plan to treat them for nosema and varroa once the weather is more steady.

I'm going to be browsing the site for ventilation issues.  I'd appreciate any thoughts on the matter.

Take Care!

[Michael Bush]

I agree that it's probably mites and lack of ventilation.  With the lack of bees adding to the lack of ventilation.  What to do now is the problem.  Probably no matter what you do they will fail at this point.  Finsky's advice is about as good as any.

[Finsky]

As for feeding, is a 1:1 ratio okay? !

When hive have food enough it is no use to feed them. If you need new brood, bees need pollen (pollen frames, pollen patty or from nature).

I'll have to read up on the oxalic acid treatments and other options.  I'm partial to non-chemical methods, but I'm not sure if that is possible.  Research, research...

Oxalic acid treatment is the most safe. "Non-chemical methods" - every one should love them if they work. It is the most populat method in Finland (70%) and we have not varroa problem any more. Beekeepers here say that it works amazingly well.

I'm thinking spring will come early, but it's been known to snow in April or June for that matter.  Mountain weather!

It is not good idea to wake up colony too early. When bees start their brood reaing in large scale they will destroy them if there is snow in ground during one week.

After winter hives seem to be in comfortless condition. It belongs to system, but they recover quite good.  Mold in hives is usual too.

Often nosema kills 3/4 from colony and still it survives.