Honey Bees
- Thread starter No_Bivy
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No_Bivy
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next year....if all goes well, I will get over 30 gallons
3.50 per half pint here....that could add up$$$$
bees are going ape shat cleaning up the empty super......looks like a swarm on the other side of the yard...
3.50 per half pint here....that could add up$$$$
bees are going ape shat cleaning up the empty super......looks like a swarm on the other side of the yard...
brendonv
Tree Hugger
Mouths watering..
K
Knotahippie
Guest
That's some cool stuff, nice pics.
D
DTW902
Guest
John are you using a queen excluder on the top suppers?
rumination
Migratory Hippie Arbolist
The queen in my hive has disappeared. I have no idea what happened to her, but they are now queenless. I've got a call into a local queen breeder and have my fingers crossed. It's getting pretty late in the season for setbacks like this. I'm going to start feeding them today. It's been a rough bee year here.
Sorry no pictures yet John. I was going to get some yesterday but a thunderstorm was rolling in as I was checking the hive and I was in a rush to get it all closed back up again.
Sorry no pictures yet John. I was going to get some yesterday but a thunderstorm was rolling in as I was checking the hive and I was in a rush to get it all closed back up again.
rumination
Migratory Hippie Arbolist
I don't know what caused it, and I'm pretty sure she's not hiding. I searched high and low for her. And there's no eggs or young larvae either, basically no brood at all. Not good.
No_Bivy
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if there is no brood....she is definitly gone....that sucks cause if there are no eggs less then three days old they cannot re-queen themselves.
I had one hive do that....I united them with another hive.
you have one hive Leon?
I had one hive do that....I united them with another hive.
you have one hive Leon?
rumination
Migratory Hippie Arbolist
Yup, only one hive. If I can't buy a queen lickety split I'm just going to give up on them for this year and give these bees to a friend to combine with some of his hives. Bummer dude. 
lumberjack
Young man on the go
http://www.honeybeesonline.com/index.html
I'm waiting for the diesel shop to call me back, and found this site to give me something to think about. On lesson 19 presently.
I'm waiting for the diesel shop to call me back, and found this site to give me something to think about. On lesson 19 presently.
MasterBlaster
Administrator Emeritus
Cool site. The lessons stop at 43.
lumberjack
Young man on the go
Their blog goes to 63.
No_Bivy
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Leon....I got to go into a top bar hive today..
A client I was working for had one. Hers seemed good except no honey..I suggested feeding.
Hey, my question is this, when you are handleing the frames you have to be careful about the comb...When I inverted the frame to see the otherside it began to bend....whats the best way to see both side of the comb without damage?
cool concept though. I guess you have to harvest the honey as "cut comb" which means they have to start over next year.....that part sucks, but maybe it leads to healthier bees...dunno
A client I was working for had one. Hers seemed good except no honey..I suggested feeding.
Hey, my question is this, when you are handleing the frames you have to be careful about the comb...When I inverted the frame to see the otherside it began to bend....whats the best way to see both side of the comb without damage?
cool concept though. I guess you have to harvest the honey as "cut comb" which means they have to start over next year.....that part sucks, but maybe it leads to healthier bees...dunno
rumination
Migratory Hippie Arbolist
The best way to handle the combs is to turn them on their long axis so that the top bar is facing straight up and down. Then you can just spin it around to see both sides. Or you can just support the bottom of the comb with your fingers.
Yes, it's all cut comb with top bars. It's not really that big of a disadvantage. It makes it easier to cycle out old comb and you get a huge beeswax harvest, which is actually pretty good stuff to have. You can sell beeswax to herbalists and the like for upwards of $25/lb. Make it into candles, salves, lip balm, etc and the value added profit is pretty high. Or you can just make the stuff and give it away as gifts. Salves especially are super easy to make, if you want a recipe just let me know. Also I don't need an extractor. Just crush the comb in a colander and let the honey run into a bucket. Easy peasy!
From the stats I've seen top bar hives produce slightly less honey than a Langstroth, but 6 times as much beeswax. Also, a Langstroth setup costs several hundred dollars. It costs me $13 in lumber and screws to make a top bar hive. I wouldn't recommend top bar hives to commercial beekeepers, but for home hobbyists I think they can be good, and simple too. Personal preference in the end, I guess.
Going to help a friend to load up several dozen top bar hives that he's taking down south for the purple sage bloom. Moving hives kind of sucks...
Yes, it's all cut comb with top bars. It's not really that big of a disadvantage. It makes it easier to cycle out old comb and you get a huge beeswax harvest, which is actually pretty good stuff to have. You can sell beeswax to herbalists and the like for upwards of $25/lb. Make it into candles, salves, lip balm, etc and the value added profit is pretty high. Or you can just make the stuff and give it away as gifts. Salves especially are super easy to make, if you want a recipe just let me know. Also I don't need an extractor. Just crush the comb in a colander and let the honey run into a bucket. Easy peasy!
From the stats I've seen top bar hives produce slightly less honey than a Langstroth, but 6 times as much beeswax. Also, a Langstroth setup costs several hundred dollars. It costs me $13 in lumber and screws to make a top bar hive. I wouldn't recommend top bar hives to commercial beekeepers, but for home hobbyists I think they can be good, and simple too. Personal preference in the end, I guess.
Going to help a friend to load up several dozen top bar hives that he's taking down south for the purple sage bloom. Moving hives kind of sucks...
rumination
Migratory Hippie Arbolist
John, PM me your email and I'll send you plans for the one I make. I've looked at a number of different designs and I think it's the easiest one. I'll also get some pictures up here soon, like I keep saying. The length of the hive depends on the other dimensions. There's got to be enough volume or the bees will fill it up too quickly.
Steve, no queen yet. All the local queen breeders are winding down for the season. My beekeeper buddy has offered to combine the bees with one of his hives and then give me a queenright nuc (mini-hive) in the spring. I'll probably go that route, because otherwise they won't make it through the winter. It's a bummer but that's how it goes. Once I get a few hives going I'll be able to take care of these types of problems myself.
Steve, no queen yet. All the local queen breeders are winding down for the season. My beekeeper buddy has offered to combine the bees with one of his hives and then give me a queenright nuc (mini-hive) in the spring. I'll probably go that route, because otherwise they won't make it through the winter. It's a bummer but that's how it goes. Once I get a few hives going I'll be able to take care of these types of problems myself.
rumination
Migratory Hippie Arbolist
Hey Butch, any chance of enabling pdf attachments on the forum? A couple people have already asked me for the hive plans and it'd be nice if I could just post them up for anyone who wants them.
Here's some pictures of my homemade ghetto hive. It's made from a 1"x10"x16' board along with some scrap lumber for the top bars and a scrap piece of corrugated metal for the roof. You could use anything you wanted to for the roof, plywood etc, as long as it shields the hive from the rain. Also a stand of some sort is recommended, the bees do not like being directly on the ground. Notice my classy stand made of an old washing machine.
My friend gave me a couple of brood combs a few days ago just to boost the hives strength with some new bees and they've started raising a new queen out of some of the eggs. So they do have a fighting chance now, for this season.
Here's some pictures of my homemade ghetto hive. It's made from a 1"x10"x16' board along with some scrap lumber for the top bars and a scrap piece of corrugated metal for the roof. You could use anything you wanted to for the roof, plywood etc, as long as it shields the hive from the rain. Also a stand of some sort is recommended, the bees do not like being directly on the ground. Notice my classy stand made of an old washing machine.
My friend gave me a couple of brood combs a few days ago just to boost the hives strength with some new bees and they've started raising a new queen out of some of the eggs. So they do have a fighting chance now, for this season.
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MasterBlaster
Administrator Emeritus
I'll check on that, Leon.
