Smoke??

asprince · April 25, 2007, 09:53:55 PM

I have been going into my hives lately without smoke. Is this OK? My new packages don't seem to care.
Steve

Understudy · April 25, 2007, 09:56:59 PM

That is fine. Just keep it close by when they get all PMS on you.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

LET-CA · April 25, 2007, 10:29:00 PM

I tried that a few years ago in Colorado; got to thinking I was pretty good - and then one day the bees chased me all the way to my neighbors house. My friend was sitting on his back porch watching all this. I thought he'd die laughing at me. I'm a big believer in having a little smoke wafting through the air. A couple of small puffs in the entry and then set in on the ground several feet upwind of the hive. Everybody has fun, nobody gets hurt.

asprince · April 25, 2007, 10:33:03 PM

Now I have noticed lately that several bees always follow me back to the truck and it takes them awhile to give up and leave. That is probally as sign that I need smoke. Steve

Shizzell · April 25, 2007, 11:14:36 PM

Well, I'm probably the stupidest on this forum... Right before the honey flow I went into the hive without any stings, and I didn't use any smoke. I didn't even use my veil. I checked back in on them during the middle of the flow, when they had a little honey to protect, I didn't use any smoke, and no veil. I went into the top chamber, and then when I opened up the bottom, I got stung around 10 times on the face. 5-6 times around my eyes, and 3 on my eye lids. (They tend to go for the eyes!) Anyways, that was the last time I didn't use my veil, as well the smoker.

:'(

Sean Kelly · April 26, 2007, 06:57:08 AM

Quote from: Shizzell on April 25, 2007, 11:14:36 PM
They tend to go for the eyes!

Man! I guess so! Ouch!

Sean

bluegrass · April 26, 2007, 07:56:54 AM

Quote from: Understudy on April 25, 2007, 09:56:59 PM
That is fine. Just keep it close by when they get all PMS on you.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

If I don't use smoke I always wear the gear. The thing I don't like about not smoking is the amount of bees that get crushed when putting the hive back together. With the smoker I just give them a puff and they clear. I have a colony from a cutout that are the nicest bees I have ever seen. I went out to feed them and sugar dust them last week and was not going to use the smoke. It was a little windy, but they where flying a little so I opend them up and all hell broke loose. I was glad I had the smoke ready even though I had to stop and rip up some sage from a nearby flower bed and stuff it in the smoker. I am out there spinning around puffing smoke everywhere trying to get the few hundred bees to stop bouncing off of me. When I was done the yard almost looked like it had a forest fire starting up or something.....I put them back together and told them....oopps sorry.

Mici · April 26, 2007, 03:07:55 PM

shizzel that's not really normal. you see, during a flow they're busy and hapy-that's when they don't sting. but when they've got nothing to do, and have to protect the stores, that's when they get mad-this is not during a flow...

KONASDAD · April 26, 2007, 03:49:33 PM

Be prepared is all. Sometimes they are just angry off all the time.

JP · April 26, 2007, 04:03:44 PM

Don't forget that when you don't use smoke you are increasing the chance that some of your bees will die when stinging you or your gloves or whatever. The only time I don't use smoke is on some cutouts when I remove the bees from an interior cut inside the home I am working on, but then smoke doesn't work as well on some removals as on your own hives. Something about removing them and their complete hive that they don't quite like.

Michael Bush · April 26, 2007, 08:30:01 PM

>is this ok?

You asked the bees and they seem to think so. If they change their mind they will let you know.