The Honey Factory

[Sally PB]

options.https://www.dadant.com/learn/the-beekeepers-calendar/

Bookmarked! Thank you.

 

[aggiemae]

W

I have just started my very own honey factory.

I was going to ha e two hives but decided to just buy one batch of bees, in case I kill them instead of two.

I can use advice from anyone and everyone with experience.

I do not plan to over winter my bees. I will use them as protein for the birds when their work is done.
My bee box:


View attachment 2078027View attachment 2078028

I have it level side to side and and 1/8th bubble high on the back side.

Here are my new workers;View attachment 2078032View attachment 2078033View attachment 2078034

this was right after I moved them into their new home.

I was out and visited them a little bit ago. There were 50-100 bees crawling on the box above the door. I hope that’s normal.

I have Saskartraz bees. I think that’s because the Sasquatch developed them.

@R2elk might know more. As I said these are my first ones.

I know they were friendly and would purr when they sat on my arm, so I could pet them.


It was a tad intimidating to have a box of bees clumped together and buzzing like mad in my hands. I was not sure how getting them into the box would go.

It was not bad, I took the queen out first. She assured me we would get along fine and she had no hostility towards me. Hopefully, she pays her rent.

Her box had a wood plug and not a candy plug in it. I popped the plug out and put a marshmallow into the hole.

I hung her box between two supers, then dumped the rest into the box and replaced the supers I had removed to make space to dump them.

All of this was accomplished without a sting!

I am a tad nervous they won’t like my box and leave tonight.

I gave them a pollen patty and a jug of sugar water inside the box and I have a chick waterer set up outside the hive for them.

They have been here 4 hours. I will check on them in an hour or so.

Just curious. Why wouldn't you try to over winter? If you succeed you'll have two (free) hives next spring. If not your hens can eat the dead bees next year. Win. Win.

 

[Sally PB]

Just curious. Why wouldn't you try to over winter? If you succeed you'll have two (free) hives next spring. If not your hens can eat the dead bees next year. Win. Win.

You won't get a reply. He hasn't been on BYC in months.

 

[aggiemae]

You won't get a reply. He hasn't been on BYC in months.

Thanks for letting me know. Ill pay more attention to the dates!

 

[R2elk]

W

Just curious. Why wouldn't you try to over winter? If you succeed you'll have two (free) hives next spring. If not your hens can eat the dead bees next year. Win. Win.

He did try to overwinter and lost his hives. This past winter is the first that he managed to get a couple of hives through the winter which were then destroyed by a bear.

 

[aggiemae]

He did try to overwinter and lost his hives. This past winter is the first that he managed to get a couple of hives through the winter which were then destroyed by a bear.

Bee keeping is hard work sometimes for little gain. Thanks for responding.

 

[CLSranch]

This past winter is the first that he managed to get a couple of hives through the winter

which were then destroyed by a bear.

I hate to say.... sometimes such is life.

 

[R2elk]

 

[Sally PB]

We've wrapped our hive with tar paper, including the cover. Then we set up a 4x8 skid on both the north and west sides, and covered that with tar paper too.

I put my ear down by the opening, and I could hear a quiet hum.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

We will have the first frost in the morning. In the evening i inserted a reducer, with a mesh cover into the entrance of the hive. So air can get into the hive but the bees can't get out. Then i tightened two straps around the hive. In the morning i will lift the whole package onto a dolly and haul it into my garage where the bees will be safe until next spring.
The hive currently consists of two deeps and a honey super, the bees have been fed syrup for the last four weeks and as long as the weather was warm they were out, collecting - whatever - i observed them coming back with full pockets.
The plan is to add a syrup feeder on top of the honey super and fill it with ~6 liters of syrup. That should be enough for the winter. I will use this feeder:

And if necessary i will add a quilt box on top of the feeder to reduce moisture in the hive.