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Our Trip to HillCo, LLC
The authors of the post recount their journey into beekeeping, leading to their first honey harvest experiences. They compare two extraction methods: crushing the honeycomb, which proved messy and wasteful, and using a centrifugal extractor, which they ultimately decided to purchase from HillCo, LLC. Their visit to the company included a factory tour, highlighting its…
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The Gnome Home bad news and good news…
On June 2nd, the second swarm from Howard County was transferred to the Gnome Home hive box. Despite initial difficulties, the colony became the strongest and aided the other colonies. Winter posed challenges, but feeding helped them survive. Unfortunately, a cold spell and small hive beetles led to their demise. After extensive cleaning and torching,…
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Bee Swarm Trap Retrieval and Mother’s Day Festivities | Recap 5/12/2024
On Mother’s Day, we picked up a swarm trap from a friend, signaling the start of a beekeeping project. After a meal out and various errands, we returned home to relocate the bees. The process of moving them to their new hive took time but was ultimately successful, providing a satisfying end to the day.
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Homing the Boone County Swarm
5/4/2024 – Busy day: Captured and relocated swarm from Columbia tree with friend Brian. Moved swarm trap to permanent hive after morning church meeting. Bees eager to leave trap, but with tools from Linda, made progress. Surprised by amount of drawn-out comb. Checked on wild swarm, found them on frames in the morning.
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Community…
1/13/2024 Happy New Year thirteen days later. I hope everyone had a great and enjoyable holiday season. When your blog is primarily about bees, it’s hard to find something to write about this time of year. The bees are hopefully safely holed up in their hive, especially today when the overnight low is forecast to…
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Final inspection of the season…
This beekeeping season has been educational, highlighting the importance of putting theory into practice. The final hive inspection involved removing unused items, counting frames, and placing a wool pillow over remaining frames. The pillow helps regulate humidity and temperature, vital for the bees’ survival during winter. The hive will remain closed until spring to assess…
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Update on the Floral Hive…
On 9/12/2023, while checking on the Floral Hive at the apiary, it was found empty, indicating absconding. Despite regular care, including providing sugar water, the bees left. To prevent a weak colony in winter, frames were frozen. The absconding may be due to various factors, possibly linked to the dry season’s poor nectar flow.
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Sunshine hive update…
8/12/2023 Between the two weeks of very high temperatures followed by what seemed two weeks of monsoonal like rain, it has been hard to check up on the bees. Last week between storms, we went down to the apiary to observe bee activity from the three hives. The hives that contain the swarms we trapped…
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Good idea, but…
7/13/2023 Just finished moving a swarm trap from Howard County to home. It is full of bees who are pretty upset. Originally, the plan was to move them yesterday the 12th, but severe weather keep us in for the night – mostly without power. The last few weeks we have talked to several people who…
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Swarm trap collection…
6/22/2023 Yesterday afternoon we rechecked the swarm trap in Callaway County and found it to be empty. Kind of disappointing, but that’s how it works. We were in contact with the family in Howard County off and on all week who confirmed bee activity at that trap. Last night, I had an American Legion meeting…