a few tidbits
It has been a number of years since I have installed a “package” of honeybees. But this winter we suffered heavy losses in the apiary, so it is time to get some fresh bees into the yard.
I ordered a 3 lb. package from Chris and Vanessa Rogers at Backwoods Bee Farm in Windham. Good folks who brought about 300 packages into Maine this spring.
Below are images from my install this year.
If you are looking for a good video on the process, here you go.
The micro-apiary is now buttoned up for the winter. I think my bees are smart enough to know where “home” is – but sometimes you need to be obvious when you are dealing with user experience.
Though the regular entrances are on the bottom (landing pad), they can easily become blocked by snow (and dead bees). And, as the bees eat their way up the structure over the course of the winter, it is essential to have and upper entrance available to them. Those are the ones you see circled in spray paint.
FYI – the one on the right has two entrances, as it is two “Nucs” wrapped together to keep each other cozy.
The material used for wrapping is black 15 lb. felt/roofing paper. A Winter Insulating Homasote Board is the topmost item on the stack of hives to absorb excess moisture. 1/4″ T-50 staples keep it all in place.
Got a call yesterday via the Maine State Beekeepers Association Swarm Team Hotline: (207) 619-4BEE for a local swarm and went to grab it at dusk with my friend JCF.
Thank goodness the homeowners gave us a shout as they had received two bits of bad advice – a local exterminator was going to charge them $350 to spray the bees with poison (dumb idea – see: Why not Kill Them, by prominent beekeeper Cindy Bee – yes, that is her REAL name) and a local beekeeper (who really should know better) wasn’t patient enough to hear them out and find out where the bees really were (hanging off of the house) and only listened to the first few panicked words “the bees are IN my house” (they were not) and sent her to the exterminators. Very lazy way to deal with a “civilian” who is understandably afraid of 20,000 stinging insects on their home. Swarming honey bees are not going to attack anybody, and it is the responsibility of a beekeeper to help walk folks through that. As a matter of fact. part of the EAS Master Beekeeper requirements are “can present this information to the beekeeping and non-beekeeping public in a detailed, accurate, clear and authoritative manner.” and “knowledge and ability to communicate effectively to both beekeepers and public”.
Anyway, off my soap box.
The swarm was under the eaves of a log-style home (see red circle) and fortunately they had a sturdy ladder on hand, so we didn’t have to drag one over.
I am guessing it was around 4 or 5 pounds of our little flying friends – they were very docile. Just sprayed them with a little sugar water and scooped them into the “lucky” swarm box (see the video of it in action from last year).
Combined them with a very weak hive in the apiary by putting a sheet of newspaper between two supers and letting them chew through (the top super also had a hole for them to fly, and let the stray bees come in) overnight. Went to check at lunch today and there was lots of activity around the entrance and lots of happy bees. Will go in tomorrow to check on progress and perhaps even add another super.
All-in-all a successful bee rescue.
How about this for a wacky beekeeping product idea: Taylor’s Aerosol Hive Bomb “The Push-Button Bee Smoker”? An aerosol can with fake smoke to calm your hives down before inspecting.
Well, it is real. It was manufactured for Dadant & Sons (a formidable beekeeping supply company) I am guessing in the 1970’s (anybody have an old catalogue they could verify it in?) judging from the label and where I found it in my fathers beekeeping supplies.
One look at the caution label on the back gives me even further pause as to why it would have been produced and vexes me as to why my father would have purchased it. But the can feels pretty full, so I am guessing it was just a failed experiment – and old-time version of this goofy thing. Learn how to light a smoker folks, it really isn’t that hard.
Finson Farm Honey has made an appearance on the Ten Apple Farm blog.
http://livingwithgoats.com/wordpress/?p=1129
We hope to try their apples one of these days (their goat cheese is divine).
