The Way To Bee

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 130 The Way To Bee

See the video version of this episode here:

 

https://youtu.be/JmkyQOhe8_s

Backyard Bee Keeping Questions and Answers Episode 129 with Frederick Dunn

This is the audio track from today's YouTube video segment:  https://youtu.be/Wmc5INVSjZQ

 

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 128 with Frederick Dunn

Welcome!

This is the audio track of today's Youtube presentation:  https://youtu.be/t6qkbZbgDx8

 

The following time codes are generously provided by 

Adam Holmes 

 

 

1:45 1)In the past you were treatment free, would you go over your reasons for changing? The good and the bad?

 

13:38 2)One of my queens fainted when I was marking her. The condition is in the book Queen Bee: Biology, Rearing and Breeding:

16:03

 

3)I didn't find my queen, lots of capped brood. No queen cells. So do I split this hive now if no queen? What is the best way to keep this hive from swarming?

18:42

 

4)I have a flow hive with the super full of honey. I put the flow-super above that and they are not filling it up. Should I move the super?

24:33

 

5)We have rapid round feeders in Norway. The quality is highly variable as you know. Does the sock really work to minimize drowning?

33:44

 

6)I live in Texas, what if anything should I be doing for my hive to insulate the hives or insure they have sufficient resources?

38:50

 

7)Just a quick update on my laying worker nucleus. What you recommended, worked.

40:15

 

8) After JC's Bees was hacked last week, watch for scams.

43:46

 

9) I have a question about the beesmart insulated inner covers. I put one on my 8-frame box, but can't put an 8-fram box on the cover. The intention was to have a feeder shim. 48:15

 

10) I have searched around the web attempting to get specific answers regarding proper filters for respirators/masks for Oxalic Acid Vaporization.

51:50

 

11) Can you go into a little more detail on how you use your resource hives to help build up weak hives? I'm primarily interested in how you introduce a frame of brood.

54:27

 

12) Why use 1:1 syrup at all if they don't have to dry out 2:1 syrup? Here it is fall and I have a couple of hives that need more capped honey.

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers 127

Welcome to another episode of backyard beekeeping questions and answers.

This is the audio track from today's YouTube video:  https://youtu.be/pGnS82WjWhk

 

Today's topics are as follows:

1) Can honey bees know instinctively know the weather is going to be bad and decide to swarm?

2) Do you consider late season swarms to be caused by varroa mites?

3) Is it possible for a hive/colony to survive a major robbing event? Would robbing bees kill the queen?

4) Since the BeeSmart Design insulated inner cover doesn't fit the Flow-Brood Box Dimensions, what do you think of these feeder shim ideas? This is my wintering with flow hives video: https://youtu.be/CZsGV1F8xbQ This is the BeeSmart Designs insulated inner cover: https://www.betterbee.com/wooden-hive-equipment-10-frame/ICBS1-BeeSmart-Insulated-Inner-Cover.asp

5) Can you tell us how to set up for winter and how to prepare for robbing season? Subscribe to the American Bee Journal: https://amzn.to/2WdBuCM BeeSmart Robbing Screen: https://amzn.to/3AGrdhr

6) You can see pollen on the legs of returning bees, but how can you tell if they have nectar?

7) I think I have one colony with a laying queen and another that isn't productive. Should I combine them now, or wait it out? In this video, I demonstrate how to combine colonies: https://youtu.be/Dr8QUVi-15s

8) Will bees cap stored sugar syrup?

9) How do you push frames back after inspection when bees are in the way?

 

Oxalic Acid miticide update: by Randy Oliver of ScientificBeekeeping.com

"unfortunately, the label change does not include using OA Dissolved in glycerin, either for the solution (dribble) method, or the extended release pad method."

Always follow established and approved application methods and dosing.

"The ONLY current registrant of OA is API-Bioxal, so to legally apply OA in any form, you would need to have the API-Bioxal package and label in your possession."

Ref - October 2021 issue of the American Bee Journal, page 1061 (Randy Oliver)

Backyard Beekeeping Question and Answer Episode 126,The Way To Bee

Thank you for listening!

This is the audio track of today's YouTube video presentation with Frederick Dunn

https://youtu.be/0P648k-p17w

 

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 125

Welcome to another episode of Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers.

This is the audio track from today's YouTube presentation.

 

https://youtu.be/BjQuWV7ZPjQ   Click this link to view.

 

The question list and associated time links are generously provided by:

Adam Holmes

1) I'd like to build a vertical tube that covers the hive entrance and gets the bees up and away from where children play. How will a long vertical entrance effect the bees? 1:53

 

2) We can not find the queen in a hive even though we always see eggs, larvae and pupae. Any ideas? 9:45

 

3) If I have a betterbee polystyrene hive, do I need more insulation? What about entrance size? 17:16

 

4) I'm wondering why you aren't filming in front of your observation hive this year? 30:19

 

5) Do I need to put a different entrance reducer on for winter, or a mouse guard? 32:12

 

6) My hive keeps producing supercedure cells even though there is a laying queen. Should I remove them, or leave them? 34:27

 

7) My flow-frames were not working, you're right, they were in the open position instead of the closed position. 42:17

 

8) With newly hatched queens, how long should I wait for them to begin laying? don't want to get into the hive too often. 48:19

 

9) Laying workers are in the hive, will they stop if I add frames of eggs and larvae? 50:51

 

10) I'm having a problem with my Hive Butler, the sides are spreading apart with medium frames, will they also do that with deep honey frames? 57:47

 

11) If bees are swarming, is it possible to steer them into a specific hive? 1:01:56

 

12) Is bearding a sign of overcrowding? I don't want my bees to swarm. 1:08:26

 

13) Could I alter the slatted rack so that my Flow-Hive remains in the tilted/harvest position but he tray remains level? 1:11:20

 

14) Is there a way to make a screen so wasps will leave but they can't return? 1:16:06

 

15) I only visit my bee yard two times a month and don't want the sugar syrup feed to spoil. What can I do? 1:18:20

 

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 124

Welcome to another episode of backyard beekeeping topics.

This is the audio track from today's YouTube episode:

https://youtu.be/GvYAsAUhOhI  

 

All topic links are generously provided by -

Adam Holmes

1) My rapid round hive top feeder doesn't fit the BeeSmart Design insulated Inner Cover, any suggestions? 1:44

 

2) What's the deal with the Murder Hornets we keep hearing about? Are they really dangerous? 10:56

 

3) BeeScanning app update, does it make an accurate count of varroa mites? What else is new with it? 21:27

 

4) I have a situation with my hives, is it too late to be splitting them? 26:00

 

5) I have a Layens hive, one frame is almost completely filled with pollen, should I leave it or remove it? 31:29

 

6) Questions about my Long Langstroth Hive, should I be feeding pollen patties if there is no bee bread? 35:46

 

7) Can you explain the purpose of the slatted board? I noticed it in your Episode 120. 33:00 again at 39:17

 

8) I recently came across the ceracell hive top feeder. I wonder if it won't result in the same number of dead bees the rapid round does? 40:23

 

9) I have two hives, yellow and blue, one has a queen but low resources, the other is queenless with lots of resources. Should I just let the queenless colony die out, or should I buy in a replacement queen? 46:25

 

10) One of my hives was robbed, I think I have it under control, but how do I tell if the robbing has stopped? How much of an opening should I provide? 48:47

 

11) What kind of cage should I use to contain a queen so that I can cause a brood break? 56:05

 

12) What can I rub on my hummingbird feeders to keep the bees away? 58:48

 

13) How far will bees fly before defecating? I don't want them to poo on my neighbor's laundry or parked cars. 1:01:29

Show less

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 123 Formic Pro losses and more!

Welcome  to another edition of backyard beekeeping topics.

This is the audio track from today's Youtube Video:  https://youtu.be/ASFGHk5KKRI

 

Time links are generously provided by:

Adam Holmes 

 

 

1) I had queen loss after treatment with Formic Pro, have you used formic pro? Your theory regarding my problems? 1:44

 

2) Are there any occasions when you wouldn't smoke your bees when entering a hive? Since they react to smoke in negative ways, do they also react badly when no smoke is used? What might be the downsides? 8:00

 

3) If supercedure cells are created to replace a queen, why do so many beekeepers destroy them? 16:38

 

4) Regarding the BeeScape App, what did your follow-up mite test numbers show? 22:30

 

5) Big storms are about to hit us, I have no idea how to secure my hives against high winds. 28:00

 

6) What factors drive a colony into winter preparation? 32:18

 

7) Bees navigating in cloudy/rainy weather... Don't bees see into the UV wavelength of light? That would mean they can see the UV that transmits directly through the water vapor of the clouds. 39:32

 

8) Please discuss the effects of forest fire smoke on honey bee behavior. 45:00

 

9) Questions about wintering horizontal hives - Would you leave a space below the follow/divider board if it's going to be insulated? 49:20

 

10) What's your opinion regarding feeding Pro-Sweet vs Sugar Syrup? 53:26

Backyard Beekeeping Episode 122 Fainting Queen Bee and Crystalized Honey information

Thank you for joining us, this is the audio track from today's Youtube

https://youtu.be/urpjyTm3800

 

 A list of today's questions will post below later on. 

Backyard Beekeeping Episode 121 with Frederick Dunn

Welcome to my PodCast!

This is the audio track from Friday's YouTube presentation:  https://youtu.be/-659lJnxZ4E

 

SEE what I'm talking about by clicking on one of these time stamps.

Time stamps are provided by the incomparable - Adam Holmes

1) Migratory vs Telescoping Covers, why use one over the other? 1:27

 

2) I got a tiny speck of marking paint on the eye of one of my queens, will she be OK? I'm worried. 3:31

 

3) I'd like your comments on how to deal with a honey-bound hive? I have scattered brood in the honey super. 6:53

 

4) Can I use the new Beesmart Insulated inner cover as an insulated cover for my feeding super rather than underneath? 14:05

 

5) Do honey bees need more winter resources in warmer climates than they do in the cold? I wanted to try your method of one deep and one medium super. 20:39

 

6) If I have a hive that requires varroa mite treatment, should I be treating all of my hives, even if they are not at treatment thresholds? 27:23

 

7) I made a split from a strong hive, one has a laying queen and the other didn't produce one. Can I just combine the two colonies? I think it may be too late to just add another frame of eggs. 36:00

 

8) What are your thoughts on using heavy dipped Acorn drone plastic foundation for supering? What is the approximate rate of travel of bees up the comb during winter? 38:54

 

9) If I'm giving 1:1 sugar syrup to build comb, does it matter if you use a frame feeder in the brood box, or do you need a frame feeder in the super? 42:45

 

10) During a dearth period, is it possible to overfeed 1:1 sugar syrup? When I pour sugar syrup in my Layens Hive frame feeder, the bees start doing orientation flights, why? 49:20

 

11) Can you describe single brood chamber management? 52:32

 

12) What do you think about treating bees with oav at night? 58:54

 

13) When looking at the bees on the landing board, can you tell the difference if the bees have swarmed out? 1:00:22

 

Join me each and every weekend as we continue to learn and share about honey bee keeping!  :)