Apprentice Beekeeper Class 12:15pm – 2pm (w/break)Fred/Gail Pollard After the bees arrive (nucs vs...
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Transcript of Apprentice Beekeeper Class 12:15pm – 2pm (w/break)Fred/Gail Pollard After the bees arrive (nucs vs...
Apprentice BeekeeperClass
• 12:15pm – 2pm (w/break) Fred/Gail Pollard
• After the bees arrive (nucs vs pkg. of bees)
• Installing the bees & queen
• Early care (feeding)
• What to look for
• What you might see (Drawing comb)
• Requeening
Your Start
• Hive – Accessible by vehicle to transport honey – Pick a sunny spot with air ventilation– Avoid heavy wind areas use wind breaks– Place hive south to east catching early sun– Place hive 4-6 inches above ground– Use of standard size equipment allows
interchange between hives (home made?)
Working Bees
• Wear comfortable clothing light color (PPE)
• Use a smoker (only if needed) with just enough smoke to control bees
• Temp should be 55 degrees or warmer
• Best time of day between 10am & 4pm
• Move slow and steady as not to trigger aggressive behavior
Buying Bees
• Types of bees• Spring Time – Bees arrive mid-April
– One pound of bees is approx 3,500
• Equipment – New or used• Packages, NUC, or buy used?• Inspect any winter colony you buy
– Look for diseases– Weak colonies– Poor equipment
Types of Bee: CARNOLIANS
• Dark bees with gray or brown hairs. Native to the Alps of Europe.– Large dark bees (good for
cold climates)– Gentle Bees– Conserve winter stores– A little late in spring raising
brood– Dark bees, makes finding
the queen harder
Types of Bee: CAUCASIAN
• Dark bees with gray hairs. – They are gentle– Long tongues– Winter well in cold
climates– Finding the queen is a
challenge
Types of Bee: ITALIANS
This is the most popular bee in North America. Light color with bands of brown to yellow.– Gentle – Good producers– Use less propolis than
some darker breeds– Their biggest weakness is
that they are prone to rob and drift
Types of Bee: RUSSIAN
• Due to isolation in Siberia and a century of exposure to mites these bees are hardy winter and resist parasitic mites.– Gentle– Frugal winter eaters– Can be aggressive
After the bees arrive (Nuc vs Package bees)
• When you decide to get bees, you can obtain your colony in two ways:– A Nuc, pronounced nuke, is a nuclear hive. It
is four or five frames from a working hive including a queen.
– Package bees come in a screened cage the size of a shoebox. There are three pounds of bees (upwards to 10,500) in the package. There is a can of sugar syrup in the cage and a queen in a box.
NUC: 5 frames = small hive
• A nuc comes in a nuc box. It is usually a cardboard hive. The cardboard nuc boxes cost around $7.
• You can get wooden nuc boxes for a bit more.
Nuclear Hive
• A Nuc is 4 or 5 frames from an existing hive. • It is a colony that had been working well for a time and
the bees know and are related to their queen. • The frames will contain honey, pollen, eggs and larva. • The frames were pulled from a working hive. • This is the nucleus of a hive. If you feed the bees and
keep them happy, they will have a good start • Some think a NUC will stand a better chance of success
than a package.
Installation of NUC
• Remove 4-5 frames from hive body
• Transfer frames from NUC box to hive
• Add sugar syrup via feeder
• Close hive body to insure the bees stay and get acquainted with their new home.
• Seal the hive for 3-7 days
Package of Bees
• Screened Wood Box• Can of syrup (1:1)• One Queen in cage• 3 lbs of bees /
~10,500 workers
Package
• The bees are grabbed from many existing hives • The queens are raised separately and may not
be related to the hive. • Store your package 2-3 days, if necessary• Empty the package into your hive and let them
get used to the queen. • If you feed them enough and all goes well, they
will all get along and start a colony. • In three or four weeks the hive should be
established and start increasing.
Installation of package
Install Package
• Prep - have a cover ready to replace can!
• Remove can (hive tool)
• Pull queen cage (PREP)
• Cover opening
• Replace cork with marshmallow
• Locate cage in hive
• Add bees
Package: Prep Queen Cage
• Wait for queen to move away from cork
• Pullout cork• Keep hole covered!• Add marshmallow • Workers will eat
marshmallow and release queen
When you Hive
• Feeding
• What to look for
• What you might see
• Drawing comb
• Requeening
Hive Package Bees (pg17)
• Prepare with two hive bodies and a feeder• Remove most of the frames from the top hive body• Add a feeder of your choice • Set the can of syrup drip side down into the space you
made (can rests on the top of the frames)• Place the queen cage w/marshmallow use the metal tab
make a loop, secure to the inside of the hive body• Sprinkle a little syrup onto bees through the side screens
of package• Gently place the package down into the hive body• Close the hive, seal the hive for 3-7 days
To Hive Bees continued
• After 3-7 days open the front of your hive, allowing a 1.5 inch opening
• Remove top cover and inner covers
• Inspect the hive, you should be ready to remove the package box, syrup can and queen cage…..
• Introduce new frames
Early Care of Hive: Feeding
• Feeding sugar syrup to honey bees helps ensure that bees survive periods when honey may run short, such as new hive or before winter.
• Feeding syrup is also an important way to ensure bees build up well in spring.
• Bees should never be allowed to run short of feed. (how long before a bee starts to starve?)
Feeding Hardware
• External – Boardman– Easy to see level– Refill often
• Internal– Top Feeder– Holds large amount of
syrup– Hard to see level
Feeding Alternatives
• Small Chicken water bottle• Solid patties• Pile of sugar• Humming Bird feeders
Feed the Bees
• Feed the bees as necessary, keep a constant supply of sugar water. – Feed until 2-3 frames are full of drawn comb
on the bottom hive body– Remember Top feeder (pg17)
Drawing Comb
• Bees can make the wax comb on anything
• Plastic wax foundations help keep uniformity for extraction
• Bees build the comb structure with wax
• Angled comb keeps the honey inside
• Comb is caped when full
What you should not see!
• Dead or Missing Bee’s– What might go
wrong??– What causes loss
• Lack of water• Hive ventilation• Insects (ants)• They simply left?!• Insecticide Spray
What If’s
• Queen is trapped in cage– Gently release her into the bottom of the hive and
close the hive ASAP to keep her from flying away
• Queen is missing– The queen has left the building
• Need a new queen ASAP (Who ya gona call?)
• Queen is dead– Need a new Queen ASAP
• Add a frame from an older hive, larvae, capped brood,
After 6-7 days
• Check to see if Queen is laying– Work carefully use
minimum smoke, – Queen is usually in the
center of the bee cluster
• If you see brood present then you know the queen is there
What to look for 3 weeks
• Frames with drawn out comb
• Caped honey• Brood (eggs – larva)• Queen • Lots of working bees
Requeening
• WHY?– Sick queen– Old queen– Queen is gone?– Swarming
Looking at your Queen
• How Sick Is The Queen?
Queen issues
• Sick queen– Diseases– Parasites– Insecticides
• Old Age– Pheromones, different or low?
• Swarming– Honey bound- other?
Queen Cells (two types)
• When; typically just before nectar flow
• Often supersedure and swarming take place at the same time (inside frame)– Need to replace
• Swarm cells (edge of frame)– Need to leave
Need A Queen??
• Buy a queen– Online– Local seller
• Buy a frame (How long before a queen is raised) – Local seller– Brood– Worker bees
Questions and Answers
Thank You