Hello Beekeepers.
Just wondering if any of you avid gardeners also keep some bees? Its an interesting sideline to go along with gardening.
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Lindsaylew82
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 2115
- Joined: Wed May 21, 2014 9:26 pm
- Location: Upstate, SC
I am part of the bee hui. We have 4 hives at the garden. After 2011 the bees totally disappeared from the gardens after the varoa mites arrived and the hive beetles came soon after. The UH bee project helped us establish the hives at the garden. We went out to check the hives this past Saturday to remove the maqs and check the hives and found a swarm. Unfortunately we were unable to capture it and it flew off while we were trying to cut the branch.
The start up costs are expensive. Someone said he spent about $950 for the suit, smoker, tools and starter hive. It is even harder here since there are no bee stores so everything must be ordered from the mainland. Some people have built their own top bar hives and if they are handy that can be helpful. Even wood here has to be imported so it costs more for the raw material and our climate and termites makes wood rot fast.
The bee project helped us out by giving us brood boxes and supers but some of them are over 25 years old. We do harvest honey and the extractor and buckets were an additional expense. The honey sold goes back to the UH.
We are trying to work out a budget now since we have different sizes of supers and we want to standardize them and we have telescoping covers that are rotting out. The frames also need to have the foundations replaced since some of them are three years old.
The bees are fascinating to watch. We have a very small queen that is a good layer but she likes to brood in the top two supers and the workers store honey below. She is so tiny she can get through the queen excluder. We may have to replace her soon since she is over a year old. Two of our hives have swarmed and we did catch a swarm last year, but that one is in trouble we have treated all of the hives with MAQs. The swarm hive has more bees than the last time we looked but still has more honey than brood. We will try to combine the swarm hive with one of the other hives.
Our group is also required to do polinator outreach to the public. We have a teaching hive and polinator information that stresses beeing BEE friendly but also reminding people that there are other polinators besides bees. We have a native garden and honey bees have only been in the islands for about a 100 years, so our native plants were polinated by other insects. We have artificial hives for carpenter bees and leaf cutter bees which are solitary bees.
In the herb garden that I am in charge of, I plant sunflowers and I let the basil bloom since the bees visit them every day. They really liked the corn tassels earlier this year. They were after the pollen.
We are fortunate that we really don't have a winter, so there are flowers even in the winter months although they are limited. There are food sources in the 17 acre garden year round.
We have requeened last year so our hives now have very docile queens. We have Italian bees.
More people are interested in bee keeping and the bee project said because of our climate, we will have to live with varoa mites and hive beetles. In all probability, the managed hives will be the only ones that will be able to survive. Swarms from the managed hives are going out though and bees that disappeared from gardens are returning.
The start up costs are expensive. Someone said he spent about $950 for the suit, smoker, tools and starter hive. It is even harder here since there are no bee stores so everything must be ordered from the mainland. Some people have built their own top bar hives and if they are handy that can be helpful. Even wood here has to be imported so it costs more for the raw material and our climate and termites makes wood rot fast.
The bee project helped us out by giving us brood boxes and supers but some of them are over 25 years old. We do harvest honey and the extractor and buckets were an additional expense. The honey sold goes back to the UH.
We are trying to work out a budget now since we have different sizes of supers and we want to standardize them and we have telescoping covers that are rotting out. The frames also need to have the foundations replaced since some of them are three years old.
The bees are fascinating to watch. We have a very small queen that is a good layer but she likes to brood in the top two supers and the workers store honey below. She is so tiny she can get through the queen excluder. We may have to replace her soon since she is over a year old. Two of our hives have swarmed and we did catch a swarm last year, but that one is in trouble we have treated all of the hives with MAQs. The swarm hive has more bees than the last time we looked but still has more honey than brood. We will try to combine the swarm hive with one of the other hives.
Our group is also required to do polinator outreach to the public. We have a teaching hive and polinator information that stresses beeing BEE friendly but also reminding people that there are other polinators besides bees. We have a native garden and honey bees have only been in the islands for about a 100 years, so our native plants were polinated by other insects. We have artificial hives for carpenter bees and leaf cutter bees which are solitary bees.
In the herb garden that I am in charge of, I plant sunflowers and I let the basil bloom since the bees visit them every day. They really liked the corn tassels earlier this year. They were after the pollen.
We are fortunate that we really don't have a winter, so there are flowers even in the winter months although they are limited. There are food sources in the 17 acre garden year round.
We have requeened last year so our hives now have very docile queens. We have Italian bees.
More people are interested in bee keeping and the bee project said because of our climate, we will have to live with varoa mites and hive beetles. In all probability, the managed hives will be the only ones that will be able to survive. Swarms from the managed hives are going out though and bees that disappeared from gardens are returning.
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Lindsaylew82
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 2115
- Joined: Wed May 21, 2014 9:26 pm
- Location: Upstate, SC
April till about July bees swarm.
It is the way bees multiply. When the honey flow starts in the spring the bees multiply. They can run out of room and places to store honey so the hives have to be watched. supers added and we rob the honey supers.
Bees can forage up to 2 miles or so away but try to forage closer. When the colony decides that they need more room or there is too much competition for food souces in their area the colony will put the queen on a diet so she loses enough weight so she can fly. The queen is the largest bee in the hive with a long abdomen but she has tiny wings. Some beekeepers will mark and clip the queen's wings to make it harder for her to fly. When the colony decides it is a good day to go. they will usually start very early in the morning. About half the bees in the hive will fill up on as much honey as they can eat and carry. They will swarm like a tornado just outside the hive and wait for the queen to come out and take off. They usually don't go very far. The queen tires quickly and is not used to flying. They go about 25 feet away and the queen will usually settle on a branch or pole off the ground. The other bees will huddle around her and form a cluster. Scouts will be sent out looking for a new home. It may take a few days and the scouts will try to convince the swarm that they have found just the best spot. During this time the swarm has no honey or larva to protect and they are gorged on honey so they rarely attack anyone unless they feel threatened. If the swarm does not feel secure they may take off and stop again a short distance away and hold up waiting for the scouts to return. This is the best time to capture a swarm. They are looking for a home and you just have to convince the queen that your hive is the best choice. Sometimes even when you capture a swarm they decide to abscond because they don't like that they did not get to pick the spot. It can take hours to capture a swarm. They can be shaken in but it is better if the queen decides to walk in herself. If the queen goes in , the rest of the bees will follow.
Meanwhile in the old hive...... queen bee gives off a pheromone that tells the bees in the hive that she is present and healthy. When the colony decides the hive is too crowded they stop feeding the queen and start preparing special cells to convert some of the worker bees into potential replacement queens. They build queen cells which are larger and stick out like a peanut Multiple cells will be readied in preparation for the swarm. When the queen dies or is no longer producing or healthy the colony may decide it is time to make a new queen, in which case they will build a supercedure queen cell. Usually supercedure queen cells are in the middle of the frame and there can be just one. The queen cells are larger than worker cells. Worker bees will no longer get the birth control pheromone that the queen puts out and laying worker(s) will lay drone cells. Queens only produce females, unmated bees can only produce drones. When the new queen emerges, she will sting all her rivals. A fight will ensue only if another queen emerges at the same time and then they will have to duke it out. The new queen will go on a mating flight to an area where drones from many different hives hang around waiting for queens to mate with. The queen will not want to mate with drones from her own hive. She has to mate with about twenty drones before her hive will let her return to the hive. She will then be able to store the sperm she has gathered to lay eggs for the rest of her life.
https://honeybeesuite.com/is-it-a-swarm- ... dure-cell/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajiTOWnOG1M
https://www.scmidstatebeekeepers.org/hon ... ecycle.htm
https://www.scmidstatebeekeepers.org/swa ... emoval.htm
It is the way bees multiply. When the honey flow starts in the spring the bees multiply. They can run out of room and places to store honey so the hives have to be watched. supers added and we rob the honey supers.
Bees can forage up to 2 miles or so away but try to forage closer. When the colony decides that they need more room or there is too much competition for food souces in their area the colony will put the queen on a diet so she loses enough weight so she can fly. The queen is the largest bee in the hive with a long abdomen but she has tiny wings. Some beekeepers will mark and clip the queen's wings to make it harder for her to fly. When the colony decides it is a good day to go. they will usually start very early in the morning. About half the bees in the hive will fill up on as much honey as they can eat and carry. They will swarm like a tornado just outside the hive and wait for the queen to come out and take off. They usually don't go very far. The queen tires quickly and is not used to flying. They go about 25 feet away and the queen will usually settle on a branch or pole off the ground. The other bees will huddle around her and form a cluster. Scouts will be sent out looking for a new home. It may take a few days and the scouts will try to convince the swarm that they have found just the best spot. During this time the swarm has no honey or larva to protect and they are gorged on honey so they rarely attack anyone unless they feel threatened. If the swarm does not feel secure they may take off and stop again a short distance away and hold up waiting for the scouts to return. This is the best time to capture a swarm. They are looking for a home and you just have to convince the queen that your hive is the best choice. Sometimes even when you capture a swarm they decide to abscond because they don't like that they did not get to pick the spot. It can take hours to capture a swarm. They can be shaken in but it is better if the queen decides to walk in herself. If the queen goes in , the rest of the bees will follow.
Meanwhile in the old hive...... queen bee gives off a pheromone that tells the bees in the hive that she is present and healthy. When the colony decides the hive is too crowded they stop feeding the queen and start preparing special cells to convert some of the worker bees into potential replacement queens. They build queen cells which are larger and stick out like a peanut Multiple cells will be readied in preparation for the swarm. When the queen dies or is no longer producing or healthy the colony may decide it is time to make a new queen, in which case they will build a supercedure queen cell. Usually supercedure queen cells are in the middle of the frame and there can be just one. The queen cells are larger than worker cells. Worker bees will no longer get the birth control pheromone that the queen puts out and laying worker(s) will lay drone cells. Queens only produce females, unmated bees can only produce drones. When the new queen emerges, she will sting all her rivals. A fight will ensue only if another queen emerges at the same time and then they will have to duke it out. The new queen will go on a mating flight to an area where drones from many different hives hang around waiting for queens to mate with. The queen will not want to mate with drones from her own hive. She has to mate with about twenty drones before her hive will let her return to the hive. She will then be able to store the sperm she has gathered to lay eggs for the rest of her life.
https://honeybeesuite.com/is-it-a-swarm- ... dure-cell/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajiTOWnOG1M
https://www.scmidstatebeekeepers.org/hon ... ecycle.htm
https://www.scmidstatebeekeepers.org/swa ... emoval.htm
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Lindsaylew82
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 2115
- Joined: Wed May 21, 2014 9:26 pm
- Location: Upstate, SC
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Lindsaylew82
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 2115
- Joined: Wed May 21, 2014 9:26 pm
- Location: Upstate, SC
Each city will have ordinances for where beehives can be located. My county has a 25 ft from the property line requirement. Some people actually put the beehives on the roof. Even though the beehives can be kept in urban areas, it is still good neighbor relations to make sure their concerns are met. If they are spraying their property with insecticides, it probably is not good for your bees either. Properties on perimeters and properties with more acreage are better.
I don't have bees at home but I do have polinator friendly plants and have bees in my yard everyday. The bees are pretty used to my presence and foraging bees are not normally aggressive. They are more interested in collecting nectar and honey than in attacking people. They will only attack when they feel threatened. I can get up to about 6 inches from a foraging bee. If I get too close they usually give a warning buzz to back off. The main thing around bees is to move slowly, don't make a lot of noise because that scares them and makes them more defensive, and if you see a bee checking you out, just stand still and slowly cover your face with your hands. Do not swat at them. That will be seen as an attack. If I come up on bees and get the warning buzz, I slowly back off. I also don't wear yellow in the garden. A lot of bugs think I am a flower and light on me. Within about 25 ft of a hive, you have to be very careful and should be wearing a suit. Some beekeepers don't even wear long sleeves or gloves. They get stung, but it is the cost of beekeeping. Guard bees protect the hive from intruders within a 25 ft diameter circle. They will literally get in your face and try to make you back off or sting.
Swarms usually look scary but are usually safe to be around since they don't have honey or brood to protect. They will only get defensive if they feel threatened.
Whenever hives are opened, bees swarm , or hives are requeening they are vulnerable to losing their queen. Without a queen the colony will ultimately perish in less than a month, unless the hive is able to raise another queen or the beekeeper requeens.. Swarms leave and cannot return to the hive again. They must find a new home within three days or they will starve. As soon as the swarm finds a new home they get to work establishing housekeeping building combs so the queen can start laying eggs. Since it is the old queen that leaves with the swarm, a captured swarm usually needs to be requeened. You won't know how old the queen is unless she is marked and it is better to start with a fresh well bred queen.
One of the beekeepers got his suit on Amazon and he got the "j" hook hive tool. It is so much easier to remove frames with that than the standard hive tool. There are a few hive types: Langstroth hive (that is what we have), Warre hives, top bar, and flow hives.
I don't have bees at home but I do have polinator friendly plants and have bees in my yard everyday. The bees are pretty used to my presence and foraging bees are not normally aggressive. They are more interested in collecting nectar and honey than in attacking people. They will only attack when they feel threatened. I can get up to about 6 inches from a foraging bee. If I get too close they usually give a warning buzz to back off. The main thing around bees is to move slowly, don't make a lot of noise because that scares them and makes them more defensive, and if you see a bee checking you out, just stand still and slowly cover your face with your hands. Do not swat at them. That will be seen as an attack. If I come up on bees and get the warning buzz, I slowly back off. I also don't wear yellow in the garden. A lot of bugs think I am a flower and light on me. Within about 25 ft of a hive, you have to be very careful and should be wearing a suit. Some beekeepers don't even wear long sleeves or gloves. They get stung, but it is the cost of beekeeping. Guard bees protect the hive from intruders within a 25 ft diameter circle. They will literally get in your face and try to make you back off or sting.
Swarms usually look scary but are usually safe to be around since they don't have honey or brood to protect. They will only get defensive if they feel threatened.
Whenever hives are opened, bees swarm , or hives are requeening they are vulnerable to losing their queen. Without a queen the colony will ultimately perish in less than a month, unless the hive is able to raise another queen or the beekeeper requeens.. Swarms leave and cannot return to the hive again. They must find a new home within three days or they will starve. As soon as the swarm finds a new home they get to work establishing housekeeping building combs so the queen can start laying eggs. Since it is the old queen that leaves with the swarm, a captured swarm usually needs to be requeened. You won't know how old the queen is unless she is marked and it is better to start with a fresh well bred queen.
One of the beekeepers got his suit on Amazon and he got the "j" hook hive tool. It is so much easier to remove frames with that than the standard hive tool. There are a few hive types: Langstroth hive (that is what we have), Warre hives, top bar, and flow hives.