The Value of Smoking of Hive

The Dmitry hive had five boxes on the hive with the top two heavy with honey so I intended to take it down to a smaller configuration in preparation for winter and didn't plan to use the smoker because I hadn't needed to smoke the Dmitry hive all year. They've been that gentle.

But it wasn't until I got into the third and fourth boxes that I saw how full of bees the hive was… then I felt a sting on my inner thigh and looked down to see way too many bees were attacking my pants.

It was a very good thing that I was wearing baggy overalls under my bee-jacket which actually prevented the stingers from getting me except in a couple of spots. It was rather surreal as I stood there very still contemplating my options.

I always keep my phone with me and the husband is in the habit of checking on me, just in case. Thankfully, he came around the corner of the house just as I began to slowly walk away from the hive, holding out the crotch of the overalls afraid that the stingers would reach me if I moved took quickly. He quickly put on a veil then used the leaf-blower to help blow the bees off of and from around me.

Look closely at this photo and you can see the yellow flecks that look like seeds... Those are the stingers left behind. There were so many bees attacking me that they been been able to reach me, I am sure this would have been a very serious situation but as it was, they only got my overalls and I learned a very valuable lesson...

Always have a smoker ready! Smoking masks the alarm pheromone that is released when a bee stings and would have prevented so many from attacking me. Whether I need to use it or not, I will always have a lit smoker at the ready when inspecting the hives from now on.