The Way To Bee

Backyard Beekeeping episode 110 what I use for record keeping, my favorite app.

This is the audio track from my current YouTube video.

See the entire video here:  https://youtu.be/hTOxfMt4gd4

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 109

This is the audio track from Frederick's Youtube video that posted today May 7th 2021

See the entire video here:  https://youtu.be/7BZLIGIAPZU

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers episode 108 package fails and more!

This is the audio track from today's Youtube video:

 

Time stamps are provided courtesy of:

 

A C

8:20 1) I went to the BeeWeaver website to order the survivor stock that you mention in your videos, they are offering only Italian/Carniolan hybrids, are those the ones?

 

12:27

2) I am scheduled to receive two packages in May, is it ok to treat them with oxalic acid a few days after putting these in the hive? 26:15

 

3) My Saskatraz bees made it through winter and are alive and flying. I am concerned as I noticed no drones. Do bees still bring in pollen if the queen is missing? 31:27

 

4) If I want to speed up production in my flowhive while keeping the queen excluder in place, can I drill a hole in the front of the Flow-Hive cover? 37:07

 

5) When workers serve the Queen in the hive, is that a lifetime role, or do they graduate to other jobs like the others? I read that a bee's lifespan may have less to do with chronological age and more to do with flight time. 43:50

 

have Spirulina in the background on the shelf. I tried using it, the bees don't seem to want it. Have you tried it? What application did they consume?

Show less

 

 

2

 

 

 

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 107 electric fences could be bad for your bees!

This is the audio track from this YouTube Video:  https://youtu.be/Azg0n2Ib8yI 

 

Time stamps are provided courtesy of  Adam Holmes

1) Is it possible that my hive was taken over by a four year old queen? 2:09

 

2) When waiting 3 days to re-queen a hive, do you have to worry about them building emergency queen cells? 6:40

 

3) What are the favorable traits of the BeeWeaver Queens? Compared to Italians? 14:23

 

4) How long can I leave a queen in her cage? When will that become a problem? 22:55

 

5) My hive seems to be dwindling and making drones. Some cells have eggs halfway down. What do you advise? 27:45

 

6) Have you ever heard of Eco Wood Treatment? 30:48

 

7) Curious to know if bees scout a swarm trap before they swarm out? 39:33

 

8) Are standard Lang Medium Supers compatible with the Flow Hive Brood Box... want to stack one. 44:31

 

9) Why are my bees already giving drones the boot? Is this normal? 46:05

 

10) Should I smash extra queen cells to prevent after-swarms? 49:44

 

11) I'm buying a nuc, but it is only available as a medium frame, I have deep boxes, what can I do? 55:55

 

12) I have a 9 x 9 bee yard and electric fence at 15 x 15 feet, 3 foot offset. I'm trying to figure out how to orient the hives. 59:33

 

13) Would you notice a drop off in pollen being brought into the hive during the days leading up to a swarm? 1:07:17

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 106 how far away should you place your swarm traps and more!

Welcome to my Podcast, this is the audio track from the YouTube Video:  https://youtu.be/O6BeI8X_OTk

 

www.TheWayToBee.org  

 

Time stamps and question list provided by:

Adam Holmes

1) My package of bees will probably be arriving in the rain, can I install them in the pole barn and then move them outside later on? 3:45

 

2) You recommended painting the interior surface of the gable style hive covers, does it matter if we shift or change out covers, will the bees notice/care? 13:30

 

3) Why aren't there any pre-drawn plastic cell frames for beehives other than the flow-hive frames. 18:17

 

4) When you inspect your hive, do you inspect every box? Only Brood? Which one? 20:20

 

5) I need to feedback honey frames that have Honey B Healthy in the honey, the bees are ignoring it, can't find it. I have scratched open the cappings and it caused robbing. 22:15

 

6) Do you swap out the insulated covers with gable wood hive covers in summer, or to you keep them the same all year around? 28:44

 

7) How far should my feeding station be from my hive? My Swarm Trap is 250 ft from the same hive. How far away should swarm traps be? 36:40

 

8) How are none of the bees investigating the Flow and not contaminating the jar? 51:40

 

9) Verify the clearance of your rapid round feeder, the inner cover may not allow the bees to get to the feed. My cone has a notch that allows it to get too low and the bees can't pass. 55:44

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 105 with Frederick Dunn

This is the audio track from today's Youtube of Episode 105

https://youtu.be/SPFwjvIC1NA

 

Topic listings and time stamps are provided courtesy of

Adam Holmes 

 

 

1) How long do your BeeWeaver Queens last? 2:40

2) How do you do splits? 7:42

3) I had a queen lay drone eggs in the flow-frames of my flow hive. how should I manage that situation? 11:07

4) A friend wanted to buy my Organic Honey, is it really good for allergies? 20:05

5) When looking at my swarm trap, how do I tell the difference between scouts and robbers? 27:02

6) I am confused about why you want us to do splits after we see drones on the landing board, aren't the drones too young to mate? 32:10

7) A week before my colony of bees swarmed, there were hundreds of dying drones in front of the hive, is that part of the preparation for swarming? 34:55

8) You mark the top of your Better Comb frames, do you mark other frames as well? 40:50

9) Where is the best place to keep my suit? Indoors, shed, or garage? 44:47

10) How long do Flow-Frames last? Can I use them in Horizontal hives? 49:32

 

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers Episode 104 April 2nd get ready for swarms and splits.

This is the audio track from a YouTube video:  https://youtu.be/pRsX7U_eNms

 

www.TheWayToBee.org 

 

Pinned by Frederick Dunn

Adam Holmes 

 

 Time links are courtesy of Adam Holmes

 

1) Would making beehives from OSB work to cause the bees to make propolis on the hive interior? 3:25

2) When a new colony is being installed, should I use Honey-B-Healthy, or should I stick with smoke? 8:15

3) Do you harvest any fruit, or are your trees just for the bees? What are some organic products that could be used to protect fruit trees, but not harm bees? 11:56

4) What must the condition of a hive frame be for you to put it in the fire pit? 15:40

5) I have a Flow-Hive 2 and the HyfeGate won't fit in and lay flat. Have you tried this on your Flow-Hive 2? 21:36

6) I have a nucleus of honey bees coming this spring, the frames are medium depth, not deep frames. Should I put them in a medium box above or below the deep box? 25:48 7) Can Varroa Mite droppings be present in capped honey? 32:36

8) Not following... find heavy mite load and then saying workers just died after normal life span. 36:54

9) We have flower pots and the bees are face down in them in the dirt. They have done this several times now. What are they doing? 48:27

10) What tools do you carry in your beekeeping toolkit? 55:20

 

REPLY0 replies

Backyard Beekeeping Question and Answers Episode 103 with Frederick Dunn

Thank you for stopping by.

This is the audio portion of today's Youtube:  https://youtu.be/zDCrLTkHmk4

Get your own podcast coffee mug:  https://freds-fine-products.preview.teespring.com/listing/honey-bee-with-pollen-on-face#previewData=U2FsdGVkX18mZCDppOQ53QTV8WvvoVdfiHuw7ViUlnIFvINsJyH8rXOJMxQ1nef/

Time stamps and links brought to you by the over-achieving Adam Holmes

 

 

1) Have you had a chance to open your Long Langstroth Hive yet? 2:00

 

2) There is too much space between lower frames and upper frames, more than the recommended 3/8" "bee space", could I shave off the boxes to get them closer to that ideal space and eliminate the burr comb issues? 10:10

 

3) You have talked about not using Queen Excluders and using a honey-bridge in Flow-Hives to prevent the queen from laying. My confusion is, what is preventing the Queen from expanding her brood into a medium super? 17:55

 

4) Do you re-queen feral bees, swarms that you catch? And if so, do you recommend waiting 3 days? 26:20

 

5) I have a hive with a laying worker, confirmed by only drone brood present, should I allow them to dwindle away, or combine them with another active hive? 30:17

 

6) One item that still perplexes me, is how the boxes just merely stack on each other. We have high winds etc... 40:55

 

7) Is there a downside to taking a frame of honey and brood from another hive to help keep swarms in their box? I have a colony that isn't completely dead, but has only a few bees coming and going. Should they be helped? 45:30

 

8) How did the Broodminder function over winter for you? 52:20

 

9) How do you deal with a very small colony if you also have large ones? 55:50

 

10) I built a long Langstroth hive, I put a nucleus colony in it and they did not survive. I used all plastic Acorn Frames. 1:04:04

 

11) Why do you put your Long Lang hive entrance elevated from the bottom, why not have it level with the interior floor? 1:09:04

 

12) I have 4 hives that are doing great, is late March, early April too early for making splits? 1:15:09

 

13) Will a queen lay workers that vary in appearance? Or is this likely due to bee drift? Thoughts? 1:17:41

 

14) Do you recommend reversing boxes? The lower box has only drawn comb. 1:23:09

Show less

 

Backyard Beekeeping Questions And Answers Episode 102, package, nucleus, or swarm, things to consider.

This is the audio recording of the YouTube episode 102 of Backyard Beekeeping with Frederick Dunn

Get a podcast coffee mug: https://freds-fine-products.preview.teespring.com/listing/honey-bee-with-pollen-on-face#previewData=U2FsdGVkX18mZCDppOQ53QTV8WvvoVdfiHuw7ViUlnIFvINsJyH8rXOJMxQ1nef/

Questions and time links are courtesy of Adam Holmes

1) If a hive dies over winter, do all of the varroa die as well? Can I do an Oxalic Acid treatment in spring? 3:11

 

2) Can I keep the hive as a single brood box? 11:56

 

3) I have Ross Rounds on my hive, and they aren't finished. Can I treat with Oxalic Acid, or should I use Formic Pro? 21:10

 

4) Please explain why you decided to raise your own stock of treatment-free varroa resistant bees in your backyard. And move treatment required bees to another location? 27:52

 

5) Will bees still use old pollen? If I froze and stored them, but now wondering if I can put the frames in a nuc. 37:18

 

6) What measures do you take with newly hived swarms? 40:50

 

7) I am a new beekeeper and am interested in catching a feral swarm. I'll be using a Layens Hive. Would prefer not to rob anyone near me of their swarms. Do you think I will be in for lots of disappointment? 47:47

Show less

 

Here is the full video: https://youtu.be/nHk5--03kEg  I invite you to visit the main website for more links and information:  www.TheWayToBee.org

Backyard Beekeeping Questions and Answers 101 when you start feeding, keep feeding, and more tips.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3o6XkGqJQXU

 

Timestamp references provided courtesy of :

Adam Holmes 

 

1) Can I rub ultra bee dry pollen sub directly into the combs for the bees when the weather doesn't permit foraging? 7:51

 

2) Looking at building 2 Long Langstroth Hives. Can I install two colonies in each end and use queen excluders to allow workers from both colonies to work the same honey frames, or will they fight? 16:18

 

3) Is it too late to move my beehives? If I do, is sun or shade better? What about orientation flights in the new location? 22:20

 

4) My hives are building a lot of drone comb, should I remove it, or shift it to another position in the hive? 29:35

 

5) Do worker bees clean varroa mites off the queen, or can Queens die from mites as well? 34:45

 

6) Both of my hives died due to starvation, I'd like to hear your ideas on why this happened? 39:21

 

7) I'm interested in the beekeeping mittens you put on your grandsons, I can't seem to find them? 47:45

 

8) I'm starting 3 layens hives this spring. I have questions about how many frames to use and how to arrange them. 50:16

 

9) We're having some recent warm weather, my bees are flying and bringing in some pollen. They have pollen patties, but don't seem to be touching them so far. With nothing in bloom, where are they getting the pollen? 57:21