Need help please ! - Page 2

JohnWayne · May 22, 2012

I got a call this evening about an hour before dark. It was my beekeeper friend and he was in trouble. I'm sure I don't understand half of this but he said he had one hive that "Lost" a queen.

I guess other hives know when there is a queen-less hive because he said the other hives started robbing from this one. Now most all the workers are gone, the honey has been robbed and the "nurse" (tend the hive, not sure if that is the real name )bees have to be fed a syrup of huge amounts of sugar.

So, I guess I'm keeping bees now. I get my first test in the morning around daylight when I feed them for the first time. I am a little nervous as I have no gear But after the truck ride when he brought them, we set the hive and removed the top so he could show me how to feed them. Almost all the bees were as calm as could be but a few seemed very nervous. Those he said, were robbers from another hive and sure enough when the screen was removed from the entrance those nervous bees took flight.

He said the bees had a couple of "queen cells" started but he was not sure he would wait. He may bring another queen tomorrow. We will see.

Worth1 · May 22, 2012

So what do you want to know it sounds like the guy knows what he is talking about.
I had around 8 hives at one time.

Built the hives from kits I got at Sears years ago.
Ordered the bees from Sears too.
I think I was 14 or so.

Worth

JohnWayne · May 23, 2012

Worth, I had mentioned before in the thread that I was supposed to get a hive and more or less just let anyone know who might be reading that I do have the hive now.

They are here to hopefully do my garden some good as well as those of everyone in the area and to hopefully make honey and grow for the good of the owner of the hive.

What I would like to know are things I haven't learned watching Discovery Science etc such as- I have heard that there are scents you don't wear around a hive. How close I can get with a mower without troubling the bees or what flowers (if any) I can sow in a field of orchard grass that will sprout without having to tear up the ground.

I followed the link given above and it comes as no surprise that I knew little if any of the flowers spoken of. What about crops that flower ? Radish is fast growing but I have no idea what kind of flower they make or if bees like them.

Worth1 · May 23, 2012

I dont know about the flowers we had white clover they seemed to like.
Plus plenty of fruit trees.
All together about 300 acres then the forest.

I had to mow right up to and around the hives it always gave me the willies.

This year seems slow on bees around here I think someone took out a hive.
I have wanted to have bees but I was told by a bee expert that it wouldn't be ((if))but ((when)) it was taken over by Africanized bees.
I dont need that for sure.
Worth

babice · May 23, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Worth1

I have wanted to have bees but I was told by a bee expert that it wouldn't be ((if))but ((when)) it was taken over by Africanized bees.

Oh man -

- this is truly sad.
I bought these hangy-uppy honey bee attractant things. And I have lavender and rosemary (I let both flower) planted to attract them. Plus I plant extras of my herbs that I let flower to attract them and hopefully keep them around (borage, basil, sage, thyme, dill). They supposedly like blue stuff so I'm always on the lookout for blue flowering plants.

babice · May 23, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnWayne

I followed the link given above and it comes as no surprise that I knew little if any of the flowers spoken of. What about crops that flower? Radish is fast growing but I have no idea what kind of flower they make or if bees like them.

p.s. what link are you talking about? I don't see a link? sometimes weird things happen and I don't see links or pictures. Or name some of the flowers and many of us can see if we can give you with some insight on them.

Truly sounds like Worth1 is a good resource in this case since worth has had experience with hives.

janezee · May 23, 2012

In #15, babice.

j

livinonfaith · May 23, 2012

I've heard that they like buckwheat flowers.

JohnWayne · May 23, 2012

Buckwheat is a great idea, It flowers in 4 or 5 weeks ? ( I think I recall that ) I should be able to figure out a rotation so I can have something flowering about all the time. Thanks much Livinonfaith !

livinonfaith · May 24, 2012

I found this little blurb about buckwheat and bees for you. It may actually be the original one that I read several months ago.

Anyway, it does have some decent information. Sounds like it is best to have several kinds of flowers, not just buckwheat.

C. Honey Crop:

With the exception of tartary, buckwheat is sometimes used as a honey crop. It has a long blooming period, especially in September when other sources of nectar are limited. The honey is dark in color, and has a strong flavor unpleasant to some persons but highly favored by others. Buckwheat was once an important honey crop in this country, especially in the Northeast where climatic conditions are most favorable to nectar flow. When buckwheat was commonly grown, it was one of the beekeepers' greatest sources of nectar, and the supply of buckwheat honey generally exceeded the demand. However, because of the decline of buckwheat as a grain crop, buckwheat honey now is so uncommon that it may command a price higher than that of almost any other honey.
Buckwheat nectar flow is favored by adequate moisture combined with clear, still days and cool nights. Under these conditions, an acre of buckwheat may support a hive of bees and yield up to 150 pounds of honey in a season. Reports are that it is not uncommon for a strong colony to glean 10 pounds of honey per day while foraging buckwheat. Although buckwheat is one of the most dependable and highest yielding honey plants, it normally yields nectar only during the morning and bees are unable to complete a full day of nectar collection. As a result, bees working buckwheat may not be very amiable to the beekeeper should he visit his hives in the afternoon.
Buckwheat may fill a special need for the beekeeper since the honey flow comes late in the season when other nectar is scarce. Thus, it may be possible to obtain a crop of buckwheat honey in an area where an earlier flow has been harvested from other sources. The variety Tokyo is reported to produce a lighter colored honey than most buckwheats.

And here is a link to a wikipedia file on monofloral honeys. Kind of interesting!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monofloral_honey

Tracydr · May 24, 2012

My husband and I were just taking about the lack of bees this year. I usually have plenty of bees. In Feb, I had a bee swarm in my yard ( what an impressive thing to see!) and since then, it seems like my bee population has gone down.
Makes me think a neighbor exterminated a bee hive in their tree or something.

Tracydr · May 24, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnWayne

Buckwheat is a great idea, It flowers in 4 or 5 weeks ? ( I think I recall that ) I should be able to figure out a rotation so I can have something flowering about all the time. Thanks much Livinonfaith !

If you have a place for a more permanent strip, they also love alfalfa and of course, clover. Clover is a great cover crop.
Fava beans are another cover crop, for winter, that bees like.
Any flowering fruit tree is a huge draw and lavender is always loaded with bees when it's flowering.
My citrus trees are the biggest bee magnets in my garden.
Here is Phoenix, we have a tropical, drought hardy shrub called "yellow bells" or Tecoma, which I've also noted to be popular with bees and has a very long flowering season. I'm planting a few in my garden this weekend.
What about lilacs for cooler climates?

sfmathews · May 24, 2012

We had a hive take up residence last year in an inground box where our water shut off is. I had to mow around it, and it creeped me out. The only time I didn't mow around it is if they were swarming, then I waited till dusk to do that area. They all suddenly evacuated last fall, and when I pulled the lid off, there were a number of good size comb, but at least no dead bees.
Last night I was out watering, and noticed some again hovering around the box again. So I went out after dark and removed the lid. I went out to look this morning, and at least they don't appear to have taken up residence. I'm thinking I won't put the lid back on anytime soon.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Worth1

I had to mow right up to and around the hives it always gave me the willies.

Worth1 · May 24, 2012

My wife ordered some carpenter bee nest and may get some carpenter bee cocoons.

Worth

salix · May 24, 2012

Worth, I wanted to get some mason bees this year, but time ran out for me. Maybe next year I will look into some plumber bees.

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May 22, 2012	#16
JohnWayne Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: Hickory,North Carolina Posts: 470	I got a call this evening about an hour before dark. It was my beekeeper friend and he was in trouble. I'm sure I don't understand half of this but he said he had one hive that "Lost" a queen. I guess other hives know when there is a queen-less hive because he said the other hives started robbing from this one. Now most all the workers are gone, the honey has been robbed and the "nurse" (tend the hive, not sure if that is the real name )bees have to be fed a syrup of huge amounts of sugar. So, I guess I'm keeping bees now. I get my first test in the morning around daylight when I feed them for the first time. I am a little nervous as I have no gear But after the truck ride when he brought them, we set the hive and removed the top so he could show me how to feed them. Almost all the bees were as calm as could be but a few seemed very nervous. Those he said, were robbers from another hive and sure enough when the screen was removed from the entrance those nervous bees took flight. He said the bees had a couple of "queen cells" started but he was not sure he would wait. He may bring another queen tomorrow. We will see.

May 22, 2012	#17
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	So what do you want to know it sounds like the guy knows what he is talking about. I had around 8 hives at one time. Built the hives from kits I got at Sears years ago. Ordered the bees from Sears too. I think I was 14 or so. Worth

May 23, 2012	#18
JohnWayne Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: Hickory,North Carolina Posts: 470	Worth, I had mentioned before in the thread that I was supposed to get a hive and more or less just let anyone know who might be reading that I do have the hive now. They are here to hopefully do my garden some good as well as those of everyone in the area and to hopefully make honey and grow for the good of the owner of the hive. What I would like to know are things I haven't learned watching Discovery Science etc such as- I have heard that there are scents you don't wear around a hive. How close I can get with a mower without troubling the bees or what flowers (if any) I can sow in a field of orchard grass that will sprout without having to tear up the ground. I followed the link given above and it comes as no surprise that I knew little if any of the flowers spoken of. What about crops that flower ? Radish is fast growing but I have no idea what kind of flower they make or if bees like them.

May 23, 2012	#22
janezee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Whidbey Island, WA Zone 7, Sunset 5 Posts: 931	In #15, babice. j

May 23, 2012	#23
livinonfaith Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina Posts: 1,332	I've heard that they like buckwheat flowers.

May 24, 2012	#25
livinonfaith Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina Posts: 1,332	I found this little blurb about buckwheat and bees for you. It may actually be the original one that I read several months ago. Anyway, it does have some decent information. Sounds like it is best to have several kinds of flowers, not just buckwheat. C. Honey Crop: With the exception of tartary, buckwheat is sometimes used as a honey crop. It has a long blooming period, especially in September when other sources of nectar are limited. The honey is dark in color, and has a strong flavor unpleasant to some persons but highly favored by others. Buckwheat was once an important honey crop in this country, especially in the Northeast where climatic conditions are most favorable to nectar flow. When buckwheat was commonly grown, it was one of the beekeepers' greatest sources of nectar, and the supply of buckwheat honey generally exceeded the demand. However, because of the decline of buckwheat as a grain crop, buckwheat honey now is so uncommon that it may command a price higher than that of almost any other honey. Buckwheat nectar flow is favored by adequate moisture combined with clear, still days and cool nights. Under these conditions, an acre of buckwheat may support a hive of bees and yield up to 150 pounds of honey in a season. Reports are that it is not uncommon for a strong colony to glean 10 pounds of honey per day while foraging buckwheat. Although buckwheat is one of the most dependable and highest yielding honey plants, it normally yields nectar only during the morning and bees are unable to complete a full day of nectar collection. As a result, bees working buckwheat may not be very amiable to the beekeeper should he visit his hives in the afternoon. Buckwheat may fill a special need for the beekeeper since the honey flow comes late in the season when other nectar is scarce. Thus, it may be possible to obtain a crop of buckwheat honey in an area where an earlier flow has been harvested from other sources. The variety Tokyo is reported to produce a lighter colored honey than most buckwheats. And here is a link to a wikipedia file on monofloral honeys. Kind of interesting! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monofloral_honey

May 24, 2012	#26
Tracydr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2011 Location: Laurinburg, North Carolina, zone 7 Posts: 3,207	My husband and I were just taking about the lack of bees this year. I usually have plenty of bees. In Feb, I had a bee swarm in my yard ( what an impressive thing to see!) and since then, it seems like my bee population has gone down. Makes me think a neighbor exterminated a bee hive in their tree or something.

May 24, 2012	#30
salix Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: north central B.C. Posts: 2,310	Worth, I wanted to get some mason bees this year, but time ran out for me. Maybe next year I will look into some plumber bees.