The bees seem to be fine, but I haven't done a hive inspection in weeks so who knows what's going on in there. It's been good that I haven't checked much as the summer wore on because the less the bees are bothered by the human involved the better they'll be. Possible threats that I could look for include mites, small hive beetles, foulbrood, and wax moths. I'll think about that soon, and then I'll have to decide if I'll take any action if I DO find any pests. I may not.
I started with 5 frames of bees and I now have 40 frames of bees, brood, and honey (well, sugar water honey for the most part). I haven't seen the queen for a long time but she appears to be doing a great job laying those eggs so hats off to The Queen! My goal this year was simply to end up going into the winter with a high population of bees and enough food to get them through till spring.
I'm feeding them a lot and the girls are sucking down more than a gallon of sugar water a day. I guess I'll just keep feeding them until...until what? It gets too cold to open the hive? So much I don't know.
I love beekeeping but am not sure I'm well-suited to it temperamentally. I worry too much. It's an activity that takes a lot of patience and optimism, neither of which I have in abundance. And I am highly suggestible, so when I read about potential problems I imagine that I have them all. I'll keep them over the winter and if they survive, I may donate them to another beekeeper in the spring.
6 comments:
Aw, I wonder if you can have a more experienced beekeeper come help you with the hive inspections. That might help allay some of your fears.
I haven't even harvested anything since early May, nor opened the hive; I'm just letting them do their own thing, and maybe I'll take out a comb next week or maybe I'll just wait until spring again. Mainly, I'm happy to give them a place to live.
Think of it this way: They could just as easily be in a tree and doing their own thing without ever having anyone feeding them, checking up on them or treating them. And yet they survive just fine.
I think it is wonderful that you are doing this. I am sure that I would not be suited for it but I sure appreciate you doing it, and so does my garden
We've been feeding a lot of sugar water too. It was my turn 10 days ago, and was advised to make the mixture 2:1. It was so thick! Now there's more than an inch of crystallized sugar in the bottom of the feeders. I'll be taking them off and soaking them one afternoon this week. Some clean water should loosen the sugar enough to scrape it out. What a mess! It's been attracting those damn beetles too.
Kitt: you were the person who first got me interested in bees so I should have followed your lead more closely and done top bar beekeeping instead of Langstroth beekeeping. I guess I could do both but that would probably just double my anxiety. And yes, I do hope to get some help with my final fall inspection. My four eyes are just not enough to take it all in.
Kathy: I'll probably switch to a 2:1 mixture soon so thanks for the warning about non-dissolving sugar. I wonder if it would help to melt the sugar in the water on the stove top first??
Thanks Peggy. I don't think of my hive as anything other than an exciting adventure for me but I guess you're right---some flowers, fruits, and veggies benefited too.
I did cook the sugar. It took hours. It was just too saturated. It didn't help that the first pot I used started leaking and made a huge mess of my stove top. Things are still sticky! A better "recipe" has been 10 pounds of sugar to 8 cups of water. And a little apple cider vinegar to keep it from getting funky.
Receipe for sugar water for bees from "Beekeeping for Dummies"
one part water two parts sugar
bring water to a boil
take off heat
add sugar and stir until disolved
let cool
We have not had any problems doing it this way.
ncbeesnest.blogspot.com
Post a Comment