Hive check 7/4/19

The bottom deep was pretty empty...much lighter than I expected.  But it is because all that brood is now hatched so I have a lot more bees flying around.  The queen is busy laying eggs and the pollen is so  varied and pretty in the cells.

I was going to add a super today but decided to wait until the next hive check.  They still have room now in the lower deep and about 3 frames in the upper deep so I added more sugar syrup instead so they can build out the few remaining foundations.  I didn't have a lot of comb on the frames this year so they've needed to put in some extra effort.  They seem to be thriving at the moment.

Dare I speak too soon?

I also added another sticky board which I will check on Sunday and do a mite count. Trying to get in the habit of doing it, even though I read that once a month is enough. Can't hurt though since there's no disruption to the bees.

I took this photo the other day when it was just slightly beyond its peak but it will be loaded with Elderberries in August.  I want to get them before the birds do. Will need to be diligent in watching for the perfect time to pick.

Mama and baby elderberry bushes.  I think I will move baby to another part of the yard that needs a focal point.

Looking from the hive area to the back yard and see some of the vegetable garden (with a few flowers around too)

Happy Independence day!

Added another sticky board

June 22 - I added another sticky board to check on mites.  I will take out the board on Tuesday and count them.

• There was lots of capped brood; 
• more bees so some have hatched
• I didn't see the queen but saw lots of larvae in various stages so I expect she's still in there. I always feel better, however, if I actually see her.
• Sugar water was all gone this time - probably because of all the rain we had last week.  But it's sunny today! I added more sugar water.
• So far, these bees have a great nature.  Not at all hostile.
• They are busy working in the second deep as well.  Lots of nector; a lot of cleaning done. It actually felt heavier than I expected when I removed it to get to the bottom deep.
• There was a lot of debris on the bottom board so I scraped that all out before adding the sticky board

Then I closed it up.  I also mowed the bee yard and added a pot of flowers.

A clumsy start with my screened bottom board (SBB) addition

I knew it wasn't right.  It didn't feel right. It didn't look right.  But I left it as it was and posted questions and photos to the Brattleboro Beekeepers Group on Facebook. It wasn't long before someone said that it looked upside down.  And darned if that wasn't the issue. I still can't believe I didn't see that at the time because now it's so obvious.  They were a great help.  If you're a beekeeper, happen to be reading this post, and aren't in a group, join one. You'll find a great sharing of issues and ideas.

So I flipped over the SBB and now the entrance reducer was in a position I recognize.  I left open the upper entrance (the circle one).  They seem to like that.

Today I pulled out the sticky board to check for Varroa mites.  So you get the count, when you're asked, you leave sticky board in the hive for three days and then you take it out and look for and count the mites you find in the rest of the debris on the board.  I used some paper taped together to the size needed to cover the board that fits at the bottom of the hive.  Then I sprayed with cooking oil...maybe I discussed this already.  I may spray heavier next time.  It didn't seem sticky enough.
But the count was 6 divided by 3 (the three days)=2  So my mite count today is 2.

I need to investigate how often I need to do this. I would think about every few weeks.

So I don't need to treat them yet.  I think that if the count is eleven or more, it's ready to treat. I also need to double check that fact.

June 7th hive check and added screened bottom board

I want to do the right thing this year regarding varroa mite counts and treatments.  I am set to do Oxilic Acid this year but first I want to get my counts.  So I bought and put on a Screened bottom board today, adding a layer of paper with cooking oil sprayed on so they stick as they fall from the bees.  I will go check on Monday to see what I have for counts.

Happily I saw the queen this week.  I hadn't seen her last week and was a little worried but not too much because I had seen recent brood.  Today I saw her and she was very busy.  They had filled in another frame or two with full brood and pollen.  I thought it was time to add another deep so I did that too.

I then added the frames I had extracted last weekend to the upper deep and let the bees clean them off.  At least they won't need to build comb from scratch in that deep.  They've had to do a lot of building in the lower deep.  I was careful to remove any drone comb from the frames I put in too.  And have added a green drone frame to the upper deep and the one in the lower deep is being built out, but no brood in there or eggs.  I'm keeping my eye on this after last year!

Bees still had not finished up  their sugar syrup from last time but I added more anyway hoping the ants stay away and the bees drink it.  I guess they don't really need it at the moment.

Notice the entrance reducer on the front.  That is not  correct, I'm sure.  I don't know if this screened bottom board is supposed to go over my regular bottom board but that seems like way too many bottom boards. 

Hive check 5/26//19 - two queens?

I had a surprise during today's inspection.  I was looking at each frame when I spotted a bee with a green dot on it.  I was pleased to see that.  I hadn't noticed the dot when I put her into the hive.  But as I started watching her, I realized this was the smallest queen I've ever seen!  I began comparing her to other bees nearby and thought a mistake might have been made when marking queens.

So I kept going and a few frames further in and who do I see?  Another queen who looked like a queen should look.  Long and skinny.  She was also marked in green.  So I'm assuming that the marker must have hit the worker bee by mistake. 

Otherwise, things looked really good in the hive.  I want to do a powdered sugar check but want to wait until more bees hatch because I don't want to lose a bunch of bees yet. I wonder if I'm making a mistake and should do it sooner.  I am thinking I could do it within a week or two.

Ants got into the sugar water but I have cleaned it and added more to keep them building comb.  They are doing good but soon will need more space for hopefully more brood.  Today I had a few frames in the center that were full of brood, nectar and pollen but more capped brood than anything else on these few frames.

Weather is now in the80's.  We finally have a long spell of early summer weather for the next several days.  They should thrive, as should the garden.

Planting is done, except the usual replacing a few that might have died already...like my cucumbers have.  One tomato plant disappeared totally and don't see anything at all where the plant was. I kept a few spares so will put one in that place.  Otherwise, things are coming along.  I noticed beans and up now and carrots, seeds I had put in a few weeks ago.

So glad to finally have things under control. In the spring, there are so many chores to get things done. If we miss that window, we may as well kiss the season goodbye.  It's short enough.  But I've noticed myself relaxing and enjoying my space for now..

Hive check - 5/19/19

It was time to go into the hive to see if the queen had been released and if she were alive.  Naturally I didn't actually see the queen, but there's a lot of activity in the hive.  There was nectar, pollen in various colors, and was happy to see some new brood.  So that tells me the queen is likely in there.  The workers are busy making new comb because my old comb was thrown away over the winter. It was old and dark colored so thought we should start with mostly fresh frames.

I need to research (again) when to check for varroa mites and treat them.  I will try the powdered sugar method to see the number of mites I have now.  And think I'll test again in early August and treat at that time...at least that's what I think prior to my research.  I also am prepared to use Oxilic acid as a remedy.  For now, I have a drone frame in the hive.

Bee's are here

It's been cold and rainy most days for the past month.  Today, however, is sunny and in the high 50's...still too cool, in my opinion, but the sun feels very good.  It was a good day to take a drive to pick up my bees.  I tried a new vendor this year, just for the heck of it. Given my history with losing bees, I figured I could spread the wealth!  But they are from the area so should be good stock used to our weather here in Southern Vermont.

The forecast for the week is showing a few days of sun and the rest is rain and cool.  One day it won't get to 50 degrees! Bees won't do much foraging until it warms up more and I suppose they'll want to get used to their new surroundings.

In my yard, I have vinca, daffodils and another spring bulb flower.  I've put out my geraniums on the porch but hanging plants are still in the greenhouse.  They have Petunias so they would prefer warmer temperatures.  Forsythia is at the end of its bloom but I did see some dandelions around and some tiny white flowers that appear on the lawn.  They were mowed a few days ago but will be back in another day or two so that'll be good pollen for the bees.  I know there's lots of pollen out there given the yellow on my car.  I noticed I don't have that much in the house.  Probably because the doors and windows have been mostly closed since it's been so chilly.

I just ordered a varroa mite jar lid so I will be checking for mites in a few weeks.  I need to be diligent with it this year.  My fingers crossed for a good bee year!