Two Weeks with a Honey Super And All I Got Was Some Burr Comb.

I patiently waited two weeks for the girls to start doing their thing in the new honey super. During this time, I wondered how much they would accomplish up there knowing our spring nectar flow was over. When I removed the super today I found this wonderful burr comb reaching up from the queen excluder. I really hated to remove it because it is such a wonderful piece of comb (with a bit of nectar in it for good measure...) but I had to do so and began my inspection down in the bottom box.

There was lots of pollen, honey and capped brood with a few larvae in the bottom box. Two frames were heavy with pollen and honey. While there were some larvae and lots of capped brood, I did not see any eggs. I did remove a queen cup from the bottom of one frame.

I must have made a mistake with the order of the hive bodies my last inspection as the middle box was nearly void of any drawn out comb. While I did not spot the queen today, the top box was busy with lots of eggs, larvae and capped brood. I did remove another queen cup from the top of one frame and then rotated the sparse middle box to now sit in the top position.

Summer is typically swarm prevention so will check in on the bees in another two weeks and see if the brood has moved up to utilize the top box.

First Honey Super On!

It is a big day for the apiary as I added the first honey super! In just one week's time, the girls have nearly filled the 3rd hive body with eggs, larvae and honey. It is simply amazing how quickly a hive grows in strength and productivity.

This photo is of the third frame in the middle hive body (I'm using three medium supers for the hive body.) Lovely brood pattern and lots of honey.

I did not take the time to search out the queen because she's doing such a super job as evidenced by the amount of eggs present. Instead, I was looking for swarm cells and removed two uncapped queen cells found on the bottom of a frame in the middle box. I rotated the hive boxes so that the emptiest bottom box is now on the top.

One important step in learning how to be a beekeeper is effective and minimal use of a smoker. I have been having trouble keeping it light throughout my whole inspection as I find a quick couple of puffs disperses the bees and allows placement of a hive box or cover without crushing the bees.

To take the advice of long-time bee keeper Bob Cory, fire burns from the bottom. So I took great care today to create a nice base fire. I did think it had burned out before I was finished with my inspection but with good use of the bellows, we were still able to communicate with the Chief via smoke signals well after I was finished.

What's the Point of Joining a Club?

There are some, like myself, who joined BUMBA as part of the Short Course and continue to attend meetings in order to further our knowledge about this new hobby. And I was thoroughly enjoying everything I was learning as well as getting to know the good folks at BUMBA. There are a few outstanding people in that organization who not only know a lot about beekeeping but who also go out of their way to help out the newbies. They patiently answer our questions and even visit our hives to help us learn.

But all that good will has been soured by a recent comment by a club officer. There was a bit of discussion at the meeting due to something stated in the presentation that was confusing. Questions were raised but the answers only worked to make it even more confusing. I was hoping one of the more experienced beekeepers would intervene and clarify things, but instead an officer of the club reprimanded the room saying essentially, that we should be doing our own reading to learn our own answers to the questions.

Uh? What is the point of joining a club if it is not to share information? If you cannot or will not encourage participation and welcome it from everyone, any club will eventually die out. I don't think that will happen to BUMBA as it is certainly strong enough based on the size of its roster. But I cannot help but wonder what damage has been done thanks to this off-handed comment by a club officer.

Added Third Brood Box

The feeder was nearly empty this morning but the bees were very calm during my inspection. It was a very warm day with the propolis sticky on the frames. It really is an experience to observe them as they go about the business of the hive.

The bottom box contains mostly honey, pollen, nectar and capped brood while the queen has been doing most of her laying in the upper box. I did spot the queen up there today. She's still marked by the white dot on her back and is visible in the center of this photo.

Only one small burr comb to remove from the bottom box but did have what was either the beginning of more burr comb or queen cells. I removed four which were in the very early stages of construction. I doubt they were queen cells but a hive needs food, ventilation and space to thrive and it was beginning to seem crowded in there. I also added ventilation by placing thin sticks under the top feeder and removed the entrance reducer.

Hungry Little Buggers

Hot today at 90 degrees with a bit of humidity but lots of bees coming and going from the hive. Checked the feeder to see they have nearly emptied it in just 3 days time! So many more mouths to feed!

First Peek at 2nd Brood Box

It is just amazing the progress that has occurred in only 9 days time! Not only is the hive noticeably busier with more and more of the bees now being the darker Russians, but they are going gang-busters in the second brood box with so many more bees to get the job done. Here is a lovely frame from the lower box that has capped brood, pollen and honey. :-)

I did not spot the queen today but there are plenty of eggs in both boxes and the brood has moved from being on the inner-most 3-4 frames out to nearly both sides of 5 frames.

While checking for queen cells I did spot this huge burr comb. Hated to remove as it sure is a thing of beauty but I know it will cause problems later if I don't. Nice brood pattern on this frame.

It was a textbook inspection. All looks good. Happy hive!

Second Brood Box Added

Its been 31 days since I installed the hive. While it was late this afternoon on a cool and cloudy day, tomorrow's forecast is for scattered showers so I needed to check the hive now. Otherwise I would need to wait over a week and I knew I was very close to needing the second brood box.

When I opened the hive it was very apparent how well the queen had been doing as the population sure had increased! A queen is capable of producing more than 1,500 eggs a day and it takes 21 days for a worker bee to hatch. With the hive hatching for 8-9 days now, that makes for potentially another 12,000 more bees than when installed! :-)

The four inner most frames have brood, the next two frames are loaded with pollen, nectar and now capped honey stores. The bees are just now starting to draw out the two outer most frames so it is definitely time for another brood box.

Here is a lovely picture of the third frame with the queen. She's been easy to spot not only because of the marking painted on her back and her larger size, but because of her darker coloring. She's my lovely Russian Queen! Looking around the hive you can easily spot the darker Russians that have hatched since installation. Eventually, the entire hive will be darker in color.

I started my inspection without wearing gloves but there were so many bees that they would walk right up my hands, which is really neat. But it becomes not so neat as the hive got agitated when I would scrape off the burr comb. Once I put on the gloves I was much more relaxed and could enjoy the experience of the bees walking all over me.

I didn't intend to spend too much time in the hive but while checking for supercedure cells I spotted this large burr comb hanging underneath a frame. This frame was the very first to have eggs. Look closely underneath all those bees and you will see the empty cells where they hatched. Some now have eggs and larvae, beginning the cycle all over again.

Once finished with the inspection and away from the hive, I could study the burr comb. You can see in the photo that the queen layed eggs on one side of the comb! No wonder the bees were not happy that I removed it!

Overall, I am really quite pleased with the progress of the hive. So far, the only thing different that I notice in using all medium supers is that the pollen and nectar on the brood frames seems to be a smaller area than how it is typically found on the deep frames. Will have to consult with those more experienced than I on this difference.

Second Inspection

Checked the hive this afternoon. The day was warm, humid and sunny with just a slight breeze. I had on a new white one-piece coverall utility suit that worked real fine as a beekeeping suit.

Smoked the girls, took off the cover and feeder, smoked again and peaked inside to see how things are going. The center three frames are full of eggs, larva and capped brood with nectar and honey above as in the picture here. Three more frames are nearly full with nectar and pollen with the outer four frames just starting to have drawn comb. I did have a bit of burr comb to remove from a spot on the frame and from the underside of the feeder.

This was also my first experience letting a bee crawl up from the hive onto my hand. A gentle urging with my finger turned her around and back into the hive she went. I applied the wiggling finger a few times to move a bee out of the way and enjoyed the gentle contact with them.

I did notice that the left side of the hive has more frames with drawn comb than the right side. Could that be due to the one side getting the late day sun where as the other doesn't? Because of this imbalance I did move the outer most empty frame from the right side of the hive to the left to give the girls a chance to work on it, added more sugar water to the feeder and closed up the hive.

Here is a nice picture of my pretty, dark Russian queen (She is marked by the white dot on her back.) I am so proud of how well she is doing!

Overall, I am very pleased with the progress of the hive and will probably be ready to add on the second super next week. While I am very comfortable with the amount of girls currently in the hive, I can't wait to see the expanded population next week as some are due to hatch any day now!

Busy as a Bee - The Days of the Life of a Honey Bee

The life span of the worker bee is just six weeks (42 days). Every one of those days, from the moment the bee emerges it has specific tasks. Initially, the responsibilities include tasks performed within the hive. At this point, the bees are referred to as house bees. As they get older and their duties involve work outside of the hive, the bees are known as field bees. In some instances, the occupations change within minutes and they sometimes overlap.

Days	Task
1 - 3	Housekeeping - Cleans and polishes cells in preparation of new eggs and for storing nectar and pollen.
3 - 16	Undertaking - Removes any dead bees and disposes of the corpses as far away from the hive as possible.
4 - 12	Working in the Nursery - Feeds and cares for the developing larvae.
7 - 12	Attending to the Queen - Groom and feed the queen.
12 - 18	Nectar and Pollen Placement - Deposits the nectar and pollen from the returning field bees into the cells.
12 - 18	Fanning - Controls the temperature and humidity of the hive while evaporating the moistures from the curing honey. Is also a form of communication
12 - 35	Comb Builders - Produces beeswax for making new comb and for capping cells.
18 - 21	Guarding the Hive - Stationed at the entrance of the hive to make sure returning bees are, in fact, family.
22 - 42	Foraging Bees - Orientation flights help the bees learn the landmarks to help find their way home before joining the ranks of the field bees.

First Inspection of the Hive

It was a real treat checking the hive for the first time today! The girls were quite calm and busily doing their thing while I checked each frame. The center most where the queen cage had been now has eggs, larva and covered brood! The comb is pretty much drawn out on the inner most frames with pollen and nectar (or is is sugar water?) stored in them. The outer six frames (three on each side) have not yet been drawn out.

We could easily spot the queen, thanks to her marking but even without the mark, her size gives her away. I was really surprised at the amount of eggs and larva present. The industrious bees get right to work when installed in their new home.

Enjoyed watching a couple of bees doing the waggle dance which is used as a means to communicate the location of a good source of nectar or pollen. The waggle dance is performed by first shaking quickly from side to side and then doing one half of a figure eight, returning to the starting point and pausing to shake again before doing the other half of the figure eight. The shaking, direction of the figure eight and length of the dance transmit to the field bees exactly where they can find this particular source of food.

Bees 2, Beekeeper 0

I was standing to the side of the hive this afternoon, and well... I was actually leaning on the top as I enjoyed listening to the ping ping of the rebel bees trying to use their bottom door. I was also leaning over towards the front of the hive watching the bees come and go. AND because I was disregarding every rule of safe beekeeping, I even had on a black long sleeved t-shirt which was layered under a lighter short sleeved t-shirt. AND of course I wasn't wearing my veil when a guard bee came up to investigate me, getting tangled up in my bangs.

I am not the least bit surprised that it stung me in the forehead.

First Peek

Took a first peek into my own hive today to ensure the queen was released and to get a feel for the overall health of the hive. The queen is out and probably under this cluster in the photo. All looks well to me.

The larger gap created by having the queen cage installed allowed for a nice view of the light cream wax combs being drawn out from the black foundations.

Also swapped out the screen used on the bottom board. I had initially placed two layers of 1/4" hardware cloth offset by half in an attempt to make 1/8" openings but as hardware cloth is not exactly square, some openings were of the desired size while others were either too small or too large. The bees quickly found the larger openings to be just large enough for to use as another entrance to the hive. After replacing the screen with one of the correct size, I could hear the ping, ping of the rebel bees against the metal hardware cloth as they still tried to use the "bottom door".

Productive Weekend for the Hive

While the overnight temps were quite cool this first weekend home for the bees, the days were sunny with a nice breeze. The trees currently in full bloom as evidenced by the yellow pollen covering the vehicles, deck, sidewalk, etc. I was tickled to see the field bees returning to the hive with their pockets full of two different colors of pollen. One was a pretty vanilla-cream color with the other a bright orange. I can't wait for my first peek into the hive to see how they've got it stored!

The Party Drone

Checked in on the hive as I headed out for my morning exercise. Spotted there on the front, and as still as could be from the cool temperature, was a lone drone. I had to chuckle! It was almost as if he was caught out too late after curfew and couldn't get in. :-)

Actually, this drone is in a chill-coma. Chill coma occurs when the temperature is such that the bee can no longer warm itself. In this state the bee appears dead but as the temperature increases the bee, too, will warm and eventually return to normal activity.

By the time I returned from my run the sun was up a bit and the drone had moved on. Many bees were flying around the front of the hive, up and down, side to side, orientating themselves to the hive's location. All seems well with the apiary!

Bees 1, Beekeeper 0

Spent today just waiting for the workday to end so that I could get home and install the bees. The late afternoon was calm and not too warm. The girls were clustered nicely in the cool of the garage and were given a bit of sugar water to fill their bellies and keep them satisfied during the transfer to their new home. Not one to worry about getting stung, I didn't think twice that my shirt wasn't all that loose. At least it was bee-friendly white. The fit of the shirt, however, would come back to haunt me...

Extracting the queen cage was simple enough. There were a number of attendants with her and the sugar plug was still going strong. I easily set her up attached to a frame. But removing the can of sugar water was a bit difficult as sat down in the box a bit. While slowly lifting it clear of the opening, I got my first taste of how quickly those little bees can wiggle through the smallest of spaces! But so far, so good. All was proceeding exactly as expected until what came next...

I have not read anything about this nor was it ever mentioned in the Short Course what happens when you gently tap the box in order to get the bees down in the bottom and ready to dump into the hive. The sound of the collective buzz put me on alert that this seems like one angry box of bees and I'm supposed to open it up and then dump them loose? Well, okay...

The second I removed the covering I found myself standing in a swirl of pissed off bees. That didn't bother me so much until I realized that my shirt was not as loose as I had hoped and I got stung on the arm. Now, a bee sting really does not hurt all that much. Frankly, I'm troubled more from the discomfort of a tick bite than I am the bee sting, and I'm suffering from both at the moment.

While I paused that millisecond, wondering how many more stings I was about to get through my shirt, my husband took off shouting something about the black hat he was wearing. I was so focused on getting the bees installed that I didn't give a thought as to what he may be wearing - he was only the photographer, after all.

I really wasn't as disturbed by the swirling mass of angry bees as I was interested in how many more bees were still in the box and how easy it was to dump them onto the queen cage and into the hive. I installed the rest of the frames, filled the top feeder, put the lid on and placed the entrance reducer in the opening. Bees installed: Done!

The Girls Arrived!

Picked up the package of bees tonight after work. It was the neatest experience to walk into the garage at Free State Bees and hear the hum of thousands of bee wings! The odd loose bee would slowly buzz around our heads and I'm totally enthralled with these little creatures.

Holding the package for the 6 mile ride home allowed me to really study the bees up close in a way that I never have before. Most of the girls were clustered around the queen and the swarm seemed to almost breathe as one, moving with the sway of the vehicle. I could easily pick out the drones with their larger size.

Installation of the package into the hive will have to wait until tomorrow as I had a class tonight. The bees are settled in on the floor of the garage. Checking on them after dark and in the cooler temperature, I got a good sense of what they will be like once inside the hive. Where this afternoon there was much movement, tonight the bees are nearly all still. I watched them for some time as I know this was a rare opportunity to experience the bees in this state.

So, the hive body has been readied, the stand is in place in the garden and I've reviewed how to install the package of bees. Tomorrow is move-in day!

Class #4 of BUMBA Short Course

This very interesting class covered diseases and pets and how to recognize which is which.

American Foul Brood (effects pupae), European Fool Brood (effects larva), varroa mites (begins with pupa), tracheal mites (cough, cough), and the like... Out of the bazillion things one needs to know about keeping bees, I found this easiest to learn.

Class #3 of BUMBA Short Course

The 3rd class covered fall and winter management as well as queen rearing.

Hopefully, the new colony will be well established and strong for the spring honey flow so that it will have adequate food for the winter. Feeding fondant (bee candy) will be necessary if they don't.

Most of the activity in a bee colony is aimed at surviving the coming winter. Winter bees have a live span of 120 days enabling them to live clustered within the hive. Enough food and good ventilation are keys to successfully wintering a hive.

I was most fascinated with the queen rearing presentation having no prior knowledge of what that entails. I have studied the supplies in the catalogues and now I understand how they use queen cell cups.

Making a Hive a Home

This weekend was one of those lovely early spring days where sun was bright and the temps were warm... just right for working in the yard, constructing the hive boxes and giving them a coat of paint.

While it is still way too early to begin moving things around, sowing seeds and planting, we worked out the perfect spot in the garden for the hive and surrounding landscaping.

Winter will probably come back around one last time this month but we're ready for the bees come April!

Class #1 of BUMBA Short Course

Really enjoyed the first class. I ride to the course with my co-worker Jonathan. He and his wife, Brenda used to keep bees. With Becca back in Texas and Anna heading back to Michigan this spring, Jonathan will be taking over the hives at Hard Bargain Farm. Jonathan is so much fun and a wealth of information and practical experience!

No knowing what to expect at the first class, we found the room full of students and the folks at BUMBA are so much fun! Dave Polk of Free State Bees did a presentation of the parts of a hive, giving lots of tips on what you need to get started as well as what things you don't really need even though the catalogues try to convince you that you do! :-)

The talk on bee biology was extremely amusing as the presenter had a great speaking style but she also wore a bee costume which made for such fun! Did you know that bees will not 'go' while in the hive? I knew that bees are very tidy but I didn't give a thought to their 'potty' habits. They manage to hold it through the winter while clustered inside. Warmer late winter days will find the bees taking 'cleansing flights' to take care of 'those' needs.

Bee Friendly Gardening

Each January, as the seed catalogues arrive, I begin the ritual of planning any garden changes for the coming year. Along with the new flower garden that I will add around the hive, I'm going to add more bee friendly plants throughout the rest of the front garden.

The front garden gets sun for most of the day. I've been conditioning this soil ever since we purchased the house six years ago and it's the garden where I have success with just about anything that I plant here. Currently there are are two butterfly bushes, an 18 year old hydrangea, bridal veil, purple cone flower, brown-eyed susan, shasta daisies, columbine, a phlox or two and a mysterious yellow-flowering plant that was passed along by seed from my aunt to my mother to me.

Along the front of the porch is a well-conditioned garden that is mostly shade and there is a clematis at the sunny end.

Marigolds are hardly staples at the garden centers. They are available locally in numerous varieties, sizes and color combinations. Look for pops of them all over the yard. I'll also add many more hyacinths, snowdrops and crocuses this coming year. (I'd actually like to naturalize the front lawn full of crocuses but that's another dream for another time...)

I'm thinking I'd like to add lavender along with bee balm and various mints. Thankfully, the lawn is full of clover and we have many holly trees.

Bee Friendly Plants

Annuals
Asters	Calliopsis	Clover
Marigolds	Poppies	Sunflowers
Zinnias
Perennials
Buttercups	Clematis	Cosmos
Crocuses	Dahlias	Echinacea
English Ivy	Floxglove	Geraniums
Germander	Globe Thistle	Hollyhocks
Hyacinth	Rock Cress	Roses
Sedum	Snowdrops	Squills
Tanzy	Yellow Hyssop
Garden Plants
Black Berries	Cantaloupe	Cucumbers
Gourds	Peppers	Pumpkins
Raspberries	Squash	Strawberries
Watermelons	Wild Garlic
Herbs
Bee Balm	Borage	Catnip
Coriander/Cilantro	Fennel	Lavender
Mints	Rosemary	Sage
Thyme
Shrubs
Blueberry	Butterfly Bush	Button Bush
Honeysuckle	Indigo	Privet
Trees
Alder	American Holly	Basswood
Black Gum	Black Locust	Buckeyes
Catalpa	Eastern Redbud	Fruit Trees
Hawthorns	Hazels	Linden
Magnolia	Maples	Mountain Ash
Sycamore	Tulip	Poplars
Willows

Honey Milk Balls Recipe

We're in the midst of our second snow storm this week so enjoying the downtime surfing the Internet. I came across this vintage recipe, transcribed below. Publication date is unknown. It sounds so good on this wintery day!

Honey Milk Balls

6 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup dried milk
1/2 cup crushed wheat flakes or powdered sugar

Blend honey and peanut butter and mix well. Add powdered milk gradually and work into the honey mixture well. Form into small balls and roll in the crushed wheat flakes or in powdered sugar. Chill until firm.

BUMBA Short Course

Signed up for the Short Course offered by BUMBA - The Bowie-Upper Marlboro Beekeepers Association. A short course is a volunteer-taught introduction to beekeeping basics and bee biology held each Spring.

Membership to BUMBA is included with the class fee so attended a meeting the other night. The crowd is lively and there was standing room only! I didn't know what to expect but I didn't expence such a fun crowd. The program was interesting. I know I'll have many mentors to lend a hand should I ever need anything.

If you are interested in learning more about bees, I recommend you get to know the folks at BUMBA.

Decisions, Decisions...

Of the many considerations given when starting a hive, which type of bees to order and how you want them were relatively simple choices.

Many races and hybrids of honey bees are available and each have their own pluses and minuses. Certain characteristics were important to me, mainly gentleness and disease tolerance. The bee girls at the farm have Italian and Carniolans so I chose Russians. I thought it would be interesting to be able to compare the three. Russians seemed to have developed a resistance to the pesky varroa and tracheal mites. They also winter in smaller colonies which leads to better success when it comes to over-wintering.

One of the most popular options is to purchase a package of bees. Packages are about the size of a shoebox and contain a queen and three pounds of bees (about 11,000). Another good option for a new beekeeper is to buy a nucleus (nuc) colony of bees. A nuc consists of four to five frames of brood and bees, plus an actively laying queen. When I contacted my friendly neighborhood beekeeping supplier, Dave Polk at Free State Bees, he offers packages so decision made!