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Bees being bees…
The author has been helping their son with a deck building project and working in their flower gardens. They are concerned about their bees due to abnormally dry weather, but are seeing signs of pollen foraging and orientation flights, indicating a healthy colony. They also attempted to capture the bee activity in pictures and a…
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Observing…
The bee colony appears to be settling in well after a week. The feeder needs frequent refilling, indicating their activity. There is increased bee presence on unused frames and a replacement feeder revealed no dead bees. A more thorough inspection is planned for next week to assess the colony’s progress.
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Transferring the bees from Langstroth frames to Layens…
The post describes setting up a new beehive, converting frames, and observing bee behavior near the apiary. After bringing the nuc to the apiary and setting it next to the hive, frames were prepared using a table saw. The process involved moving frames, cutting and attaching pieces, and adding a frame feeder to help the…
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There’s always Plan B, err make that Plan C…
The post emphasizes the importance of planning, drawing from experiences in the military and event management. It then discusses plans for beekeeping, weighing the pros and cons of different approaches. Ultimately, it details the process of obtaining bees from a local supplier, highlighting the journey and the Air Force veteran who provided the bees.
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Tonight’s the night..
May 16, 2022 Besides being the first words to a cheesy Rod Stewart song, it’s the night we retrieve our first swarm trap. The location in Fulton has had activity for at least a week. This afternoon I went to the location to see for myself. I saw lots of activity, but couldn’t get a…
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We may have bees…
The writer observed the first honeybee of the year at their apiary, likely a scout. After several days of no activity, they noticed bee activity on May 9th, and on May 10th, saw activity from both hives. They plan to wait before inspecting further. Additionally, a swarm trap set up at a friend’s home showed…
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Time to build stands…
The author realizes it’s mid-February and hadn’t considered stands for hives. After finding simple plans at https://horizontalhive.com, they used cedar from Lowe’s to build them and found the process easy. This choice was made due to cedar’s durability and resistance to decay. The stands were quick to construct, making the project a success.
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What resources do honeybees need…
The content discusses the basic needs of bees, including a place to breed and store resources, foraging resources, water, dryness, ventilation, warmth, calm air, and sun protection. The author addresses his ability to affect these needs, such as foraging resources like trees and wildflowers, as well as water sources. The importance of sun protection and…
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What about the top?
Types of tops There are two types of tops that we could use for the hives; one is a flat top and the other is peaked. Both of them are functional. The flat top is easier and costs less to make. My concern was that I would not be able to lift it off by…
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Back To Work…
Hive Construction If you are keeping up with dates, we are now up to the last two weeks of August, 2022. It was a very busy month. After enough frames were completed to at least get us started, it was time to start hive construction. I followed this plan as much as practical https://horizontalhive.com/how-to-build/best-beehive-stand.shtml. The…