Join us this coming Saturday, June 16, for another chance to catch a glimpse of the inner workings of a beehive. Bring your curiosity and questions (and a veil if you have one). This is another great opportunity to learn more about our favorite pollinators, get a look inside a beehive, or get tips on keeping your own bees.
Protective veils are absolutely required in working up close to the bees. Veils will be available in limited quantity, so if you have your own, please bring it along.
The cost for the event is free for TLC and CCBA members, $5 for non-members. Click here to register for the Open Hive Day.
*DISCLAIMER* TLC is not responsible for injuries including bee stings to preserve visitors and program participants. Those with severe bee allergies should refrain from attending.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Sunday, June 10, 2012
High and Mighty (but not mite-y)
The hives are standing tall and proud at The Land Conservancy Apiary! This has been a great season for the bees, with our early spring and abundant blooms. If this is a typical year in SE Pennsylvania, our spring "nectar flow" will continue for another month or so. Then we can expect a summer "dearth" when very little forage is available for the bees. When harvesting honey from a hive in July, a beekeeper would be wise to be not too greedy. Colonies have been known to starve in the middle of summer.
Our bees definitely had a rough time in the early spring. There was a surprisingly high load of parasitic Varroa mites in all three colonies as early as late March. There are a number of treatments available (many of which I've tried), but the thing that did the trick for us was removing the queen from each colony. "Huh?!?"
Well, it turns out that Varroa mites reproduce on the developing bee larvae (brood) in their cells. If you remove the queen from a colony, the bees have to make a new one and they go through a period with no laying queen in the hive. This break in the bees' brood cycle also means a substantial break in the Varroa reproductive cycle. The Varroa population crashes. And it did.
As if this weren't elegant enough, the savvy beekeeper can time this to his/her further advantage. When you create a period during the nectar flow when there are no baby bees in the hive to care for, more of the adult bees can spend their time foraging- thus yielding a potentially greater honey crop. Win-win.
This technique was a great success in one hive, and another struggled to make a new queen for quite a while. Hive "C" failed to make a queen with its own resources, so I resorted to adding in frames of brood swiped from the other hives. If they didn't shape up by my last visit, I was about to write the colony off as a dud. When I popped the top last week, to my great surprise (and relief) I found freshly laid eggs, and several frames of capped brood- a sure sign of a new robust queen.
We're back on track for another great bee year at TLC!
Our bees definitely had a rough time in the early spring. There was a surprisingly high load of parasitic Varroa mites in all three colonies as early as late March. There are a number of treatments available (many of which I've tried), but the thing that did the trick for us was removing the queen from each colony. "Huh?!?"
Well, it turns out that Varroa mites reproduce on the developing bee larvae (brood) in their cells. If you remove the queen from a colony, the bees have to make a new one and they go through a period with no laying queen in the hive. This break in the bees' brood cycle also means a substantial break in the Varroa reproductive cycle. The Varroa population crashes. And it did.
As if this weren't elegant enough, the savvy beekeeper can time this to his/her further advantage. When you create a period during the nectar flow when there are no baby bees in the hive to care for, more of the adult bees can spend their time foraging- thus yielding a potentially greater honey crop. Win-win.
This technique was a great success in one hive, and another struggled to make a new queen for quite a while. Hive "C" failed to make a queen with its own resources, so I resorted to adding in frames of brood swiped from the other hives. If they didn't shape up by my last visit, I was about to write the colony off as a dud. When I popped the top last week, to my great surprise (and relief) I found freshly laid eggs, and several frames of capped brood- a sure sign of a new robust queen.
We're back on track for another great bee year at TLC!
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Open Hive Day on May 26th!
This will be our first Open Hive Day of the season, and our little beeyard is booming! We'll gather at 10:30 for discussion and questions, then you can join in for a routine hive inspection from 11-12pm. This is a great opportunity to learn more about our favorite pollinators, get a look inside a beehive, or get tips on keeping your own bees.
Protective veils are absolutely required in working up close to the bees. Veils will be available in limited quantity, so if you have your own, please bring it along.
The cost for the event is free for TLC and CCBA members, $5 for non-members. Click here to register for the Open hive Day.
*DISCLAIMER* TLC is not responsible for injuries including bee stings to preserve visitors and program participants. Those with severe bee allergies should refrain from attending.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Spring Buildup
It's been a while since the last post. After the lull of mid-late winter, as you all know, this spring came on early and strong. It's now been a busy time of year (for myself and the bees). I'm happy to report that all 3 hives at our little TLC Apiary made it through the winter, with food to spare.
To discourage swarming, in late winter/early spring, I had moved any empty supers (boxes) from the bottom of the stack to the top. As winter progresses, the over-wintering cluster of bees slowly eats its way upward in the hive. When it hits the top cover, the hive may start to feel crowded and swarming can ensue. "Reversing" the boxes as I mentioned can help relieve congestion, and will (sometimes) prevent the swarming tendency. As the brood chambers of our hives consist of 3 medium supers, I repeated this shuffling process a couple of times in March.
Really the only major flaw with the beeyard site is that there is no protection from harsh winter winds. Cold temperatures alone are not a big problem for the bees, but if you add dampness or winds blowing through the cracks in a hive, it can spell trouble in the winter months. A quick strawbale windbreak served very nicely to shelter the hives, and the bales will be easily re-purposed in the gardens on site this season. We hope to plant a living windbreak this year, but in a pinch, almost anything can work. It goes to show, if you think you have a less-than-ideal spot for your bees, there may be a very simple solution to get the location up to snuff.
To discourage swarming, in late winter/early spring, I had moved any empty supers (boxes) from the bottom of the stack to the top. As winter progresses, the over-wintering cluster of bees slowly eats its way upward in the hive. When it hits the top cover, the hive may start to feel crowded and swarming can ensue. "Reversing" the boxes as I mentioned can help relieve congestion, and will (sometimes) prevent the swarming tendency. As the brood chambers of our hives consist of 3 medium supers, I repeated this shuffling process a couple of times in March.
Really the only major flaw with the beeyard site is that there is no protection from harsh winter winds. Cold temperatures alone are not a big problem for the bees, but if you add dampness or winds blowing through the cracks in a hive, it can spell trouble in the winter months. A quick strawbale windbreak served very nicely to shelter the hives, and the bales will be easily re-purposed in the gardens on site this season. We hope to plant a living windbreak this year, but in a pinch, almost anything can work. It goes to show, if you think you have a less-than-ideal spot for your bees, there may be a very simple solution to get the location up to snuff.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Winter
About a week and a half ago, we had a nice sunny day in the mid 50's, so I figured it was a good time to check up on the bees. All three hives were flying; Hive #1 was very active as usual. All this activity is actually a bad thing this time of year. The bees spend all this energy flying around, foraging for something that isn't there, and using up their winter stores.
Sometime back in November, I had placed some "emergency feed" in the form of dry sugar in the hives. Unfortunately I had to feed all three hives a lot of sugar syrup this fall, but I still didn't feel convinced they were in great shape. For "insurance", I placed a sheet of newspaper on the frames at the top of the hive and poured 5 lbs. of granulated sugar on top of that. Then I placed a wooden spacer around that and closed the hives up as usual.
When I checked on them recently, there was not a shred of evidence that there was every any sugar placed in the hive. We did have a very mild fall, and the bees were active much later that I'd usually expect. It's very possible (and maybe likely) that they just carried the sugar out the front door, like the unwanted debris it was, and dumped it on the ground. It's also possible that they consumed it all. I'm hoping it was the former, because if they hit the emergency back-up food already they've got a long, lean winter ahead.
At any rate, I went back and repeated the whole procedure, leaving each hive with a fresh 5 lbs. of sugar. If they are already depending on this emergency feeding, I'm sure they will go through it quickly. So my plan is to return whenever the weather permits this winter, and top them off as needed. I'll keep you posted.
Sometime back in November, I had placed some "emergency feed" in the form of dry sugar in the hives. Unfortunately I had to feed all three hives a lot of sugar syrup this fall, but I still didn't feel convinced they were in great shape. For "insurance", I placed a sheet of newspaper on the frames at the top of the hive and poured 5 lbs. of granulated sugar on top of that. Then I placed a wooden spacer around that and closed the hives up as usual.
When I checked on them recently, there was not a shred of evidence that there was every any sugar placed in the hive. We did have a very mild fall, and the bees were active much later that I'd usually expect. It's very possible (and maybe likely) that they just carried the sugar out the front door, like the unwanted debris it was, and dumped it on the ground. It's also possible that they consumed it all. I'm hoping it was the former, because if they hit the emergency back-up food already they've got a long, lean winter ahead.
At any rate, I went back and repeated the whole procedure, leaving each hive with a fresh 5 lbs. of sugar. If they are already depending on this emergency feeding, I'm sure they will go through it quickly. So my plan is to return whenever the weather permits this winter, and top them off as needed. I'll keep you posted.
Monday, October 24, 2011
Feeding, feeding, feeding
We had a great open hive day last time. I'm pretty sure we're going to have a few more serious beekeepers in out area next season! The weather cooperated enough to have a good look in each of the hives, and we got a chance to see what a hive should, and should not look like going into the winter.
All three hives at TLC apiary have been surprisingly light on stores this fall, and I've been feeding them heavily to prepare for the winter. Just this month, each hive has received about 5 gallons of 2:1 syrup (2 parts sugar to 1 part water), and I think they're finally getting close to the weight I'd like them to be before winter. Since we're close to the end of the season for feeding, I may put some dry sugar under the cover of each hive as "emergency feed", in case they really need it before I can get to them in the early spring/late winter.
For those of you who came out last weekend, you may remember I had previously split a hive to deter what I thought may have been late season swarm preparations. After I recombined the two parts of the split, to make one strong hive again, we found new queen cells being constructed. That really threw me for a loop, because the chances of a swarm surviving at this time are nil, and I don't really think there would even be time for one of those new queens to emerge, mate, and begin laying.
My options seemed to be: #1- determine if there is even a laying queen in there and them cut all new queen cells (the worst), #2- purchase and install a mated queen from somewhere (after removing the existing queen and all queen cells), or #3- just wait and see. Fortunately "wait-and-see" worked out for me in this case. When I went back several days later, all of the queen cells had been torn down. Presumably the original queen did the deed, as there was brood of all ages (including eggs) in the hive; she hadn't missed a beat in her duties. It seems that sometimes when the beekeeper does a major manipulation (like combining hives), the colony might get the urge to supersede the queen, whether or not there is anything wrong with the queen. Not all supersedures are successful, though, and in this case I'm glad it wasn't.
All three hives at TLC apiary have been surprisingly light on stores this fall, and I've been feeding them heavily to prepare for the winter. Just this month, each hive has received about 5 gallons of 2:1 syrup (2 parts sugar to 1 part water), and I think they're finally getting close to the weight I'd like them to be before winter. Since we're close to the end of the season for feeding, I may put some dry sugar under the cover of each hive as "emergency feed", in case they really need it before I can get to them in the early spring/late winter.
For those of you who came out last weekend, you may remember I had previously split a hive to deter what I thought may have been late season swarm preparations. After I recombined the two parts of the split, to make one strong hive again, we found new queen cells being constructed. That really threw me for a loop, because the chances of a swarm surviving at this time are nil, and I don't really think there would even be time for one of those new queens to emerge, mate, and begin laying.
My options seemed to be: #1- determine if there is even a laying queen in there and them cut all new queen cells (the worst), #2- purchase and install a mated queen from somewhere (after removing the existing queen and all queen cells), or #3- just wait and see. Fortunately "wait-and-see" worked out for me in this case. When I went back several days later, all of the queen cells had been torn down. Presumably the original queen did the deed, as there was brood of all ages (including eggs) in the hive; she hadn't missed a beat in her duties. It seems that sometimes when the beekeeper does a major manipulation (like combining hives), the colony might get the urge to supersede the queen, whether or not there is anything wrong with the queen. Not all supersedures are successful, though, and in this case I'm glad it wasn't.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Last Open Hive Day this year!- Saturday, October 15th
During our last open hive inspection of season, we'll be talking about how bees overwinter, and what we can do to help them prepare. Participants will have access to protective veils to get a close-up look at a hive during a routine inspection. Hive inspection begins at 11:00AM. Our apiary will be open from 10:30AM, and I'll be there to answer any questions before we get started. This is a great opportunity for non-beekeepers, prospective beekeepers, and new beekeepers interested in seeing another apiary. Space is limited, so reserve your spot!
Special note: participants who have additional veils available to bring, please let us know.
RSVP required: contact Maya Baruch at (610) 347-0347 or education@tlcforscc.org
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