Beekeepers Friend

Right now, we have only two mites in the United States that we are concerned with. Trachea Mites and Varroa Mites.

Trachea Mites are minute eight legged critters that I think are arachnoid in shape. They live in the trachea tubes (breathing or air tubes of the honeybee). They attach themselves to the inside walls to suck the blood of the bee and they usually congregate in mass and actually close off the airflow. However, they have not been as bad in the last 10-15 years as they have been prior to that time. They are considered a secondary pest now.

The Varroa Joccobe (sp) now known as Varroa Distructor is the one we are most concerned about. They also have eight legs and are red to nearly black. With the Varroa D., we now live with several viruses. However, it seems that with a few Varroa mites, the viruses are not as many or as strong as they would be as with an infestation of mites. Also, since the Varroa are parasites (you can see them with the naked eye), the bees also have to deal with a major blood loss.

Imagine if you will, a blood sucking frisbee about the diameter of a flat volleyball attached to your back between your shoulder blades. Maybe even two just asuckin’ away at your blood and making you weak. Pretty soon you would start feeling tired and rundown and just don’t want to do anything. That is the way the bees feel and pretty soon they will be so lethargic that they will not clean house, feed the babies, and guard the entrance to the hive.

Editor’s note: The Small Hive Beetle came to the USA by way of cargo ships from sub-Saharan Africa. Now I am assuming that is in the region of the Sahara Dessert.

Normally a strong colony of bees will build a fence of propolis around the edges of the frame’s top bar all the way to the underside of the top board and herd the beetles into the corral and close the entrance except for a small opening in one end. They will feed the beetles through this opening as the beetles have learned to mimic the baby bee larva’s hungry pheromone. When we beekeepers open the box to check the bees, we break the corral and the beetles scatter to parts unknown.

That is when they find out that the bees have gotten slack in their vigilance and begin to move around and start laying eggs. The larvae hatch and enter into the honey, shoot a breathing tube up to the surface through which they can breathe air. Then the larvae eat some of the honey and then defaecate in the honey and it starts to ferment and to run, ruining the honey. That is when it is okay to cry.

Some of the beetle larvae then start crawling over the top bars and leave a slick slime on the wood. When you see this, then you cry some more. Your honey harvest in this hive is lost and you have to clean it out with a water hose, washing the slime and honey out on the ground.

However, before you get to the hive to clean it out, you will find the Lesser Wax Moths have moved in and started to lay eggs and the little larvae have hatched and is eating their way through the wax comb and the honey is running out of the front entrance. You might even find that the larvae have spun silk webbing all through the frames and tying them together. Now it is major cleanup time.

Please do not accuse the Small Hive Beetles and Wax Moths of killing your hives. Both of them are creatures of opportunity. If the bees were not weakened by the Varroa Mites, they would have kept the beetles and moths controlled. Refer to the two posts preceding this one to refresh your memory about controlling or thinning out the mites. Thing to remember is if you control the mites, then you control the beetles and moths.

Now that I have written a book in this post, I will let you get back to your other jobs and ponder my words of wisdom. At this point, I tell you that this post is based upon my memory and it is considered faulty at best. You need to research my information and talk to and ask questions of your mentors and association members. They are still your best source of information.

Let me go so I can start thinking up excuses for not splitting my hives again for the third week in a row. Remember, swarm season is upon us and your colonies will swarm if you do not split them first. Bee sure to keep your veil handy, your smoker lit, and your hive tool sharp.

There are three ways to test for mites. Actually two, one kills the bees using one of two approved solutions, and one where the bees continue to live.

Using a half pint jar with a canning top and ring, gather about an inch or two of bees and using ether spray liberally into jar and close the top. Shake the bees until all are dead and drenched but not floating with the liquid ether. Then roll the jar horizontal so the bees will touch the sides. As you roll the jar, look for the little red or black mites sticking to the side. Or you could use Isopropyl alcohol and repeat what I just said. Using Ether and Alcohol will kill the bees.

The other way to check for mites is to get a half pint jar with ring and cut an 8 mesh hardware cloth (wire screen 8 squares to the inch) to fit inside of the ring, scoop about an inch or so of bees into the jar and put the screen and ring on. Put about a 1/4th cup of powdered sugar in through the screen and shake for about a minute (gently) and then let rest a minute. Shake the sugar over a white plate, bowl, paper, etc and count the mites.You can also put a little water in the bowl and when you shake the powdered sugar into the water, it will disappear and you can see the mites quite readily. You can release the bees and they will just fly back to the hive and live to a ripe old age of 42 days +.

Count the mites and if you have 1-5 mites in the jar you are okay. Just keep monitoring and check again in 2 weeks.

If you have 6-10, then you need to treat the hive within 2-3 weeks.

If there is 10-20 mites, then you need to treat as soon as possible.

21+ mites means the hive is near collapse. You need to treat now. That means that when you go to the apiary to check the mite count, you need to take the treatments with you just in case you need to take immediate action.

There is another method for testing for mites. You need a screen bottom board for this (again 8 mesh). And you need some way to attach a sticky board under the screen. Supply houses have these kinds of bottom boards. You can purchase one and use it for a pattern to make as many as you need. I would recommend screen bottoms for every hive.

You need to purchase commercially produced sticky boards with 1″ grid lines so you can count the mites per square inch. Or you can make your own by getting a poster board or something like that and smear grease or vasoline on the board. When the mites drop naturally, they will stick to the board and die. Leave the sticky board in or under the hive for 24 hrs. or you can leave it there for 3 days. Count the mites and then divide by how many days you had the sticky board applied.  Use the same formula as mentioned above.

Remember we are going chemical-less. Your treatment will consist of white powdered sugar. Dust all the bees you see in the hive until they are ghost white. Since we are not killing the Verroa Mites, the powder coats their little suctioncuplike feet and they lose their grip on the bees and fall off. I you have a solid bottom board, the mites will just wait until another bee comes by and jump on. Did I tell you the mites cannot walk too good but they are excellent jumpers, at least for about 3/4″.

If you have a screen bottom board, then the mites will fall to the ground and then the ants will get them for food. Screen bottom boards are good for ventilation (temperature and moisture) control. You don’t even have to cover them up in the winter time. There are some beekeepers in Canada that have screened bottoms and report that the bees seem to be stronger for it.

That’s it for now. New post in a few days.

In order to be chemical free, there are some things you must do  first.

1. You must train yourself to not think of what chemicals you need to put in your hive. You must think what can I do to help the bees overcome the chemical dependency.

2. You will want to think of ways you can encourage growth and strength of your colonies.

4. You will need certain modifications to your hive bodies.

A. Screened bottom boards.

B. Migratory top boards with a hole cut in top for a feeder jar (if a full sized hive or entrance feeder if it is a nuc. (There are various methods of feeding.)

Some of the other supplies and equipment you will need will depend on how you want to test your bees for mites: ether, alcohol, powdered sugar, screened jar, or closed jar, white pan or saucer. You also need some Small Hive Beetle traps to gage the amount of beetles you have in your hives.

This is where I will wait for your questions or input to this post before I explain what these things are used for. I really don’t know if I do have any readers or not, because I have gotten very few comments lately.

Until then, I will bid you adieu.

You should have already gotten your wooden ware ready for the swarm season. When you did that, you got ready to split also. Your boxes are cleaned, painted, and have frames of wax, plastic, small lines of wax on the bottom of the top bars, or frames of drawn wax alternated with empty frames.

You can also look at Splits if you want some more information. You should have gone through your hives by now to see if they need feeding, expanding, or just plain splitting (which is another word for thinning). You should have the equipment ready and waiting for the day that you decide to do the deed.

Some of the equipment you need should include bottoms (screened), brood boxes, supers, queen excluders (if you use them), tops, feeders, feed (both sugar syrup and pollen patties), stands of some kind to keep the bottom board off the ground, and wash water, alcohol, and drinking water. Don’t forget your bee-suit, veil, smoker, hive tool, and anything else you normally use in your apiary.

Usually when I split into a nuc, I take the queen, two frames of eggs and sealed brood with the clinging bees, two frames of foundation, and one frame of honey. Then I shake three frames of bees into the nuc.

All of this goes into the truck to be transported about three miles or more to another location for at least 21 days. This will give the bees time to forget their old home location and learn the new one. If at that time I wish to bring them back to the original apiary, then I can and they will not try to go to the old hive.

The mother colony will stay at the same spot when the split occurred. I make sure that there are eggs and young larvae in the mother hive so the bees that are left will be able to make a new queen for itself.

Good luck! Have fun! And above all else, Bee Safe!

We have taken care of our honeybees to the point that they depend on us, the beekeepers, to keep them healthy and pest free. We are not doing such a good job at that. The bees have lost the ability to fight off parasites, viruses, pathogens, and the common cold like their forefathers did and that is because we beekeepers decided that we could do better then Mother Nature. We need to get back to nature.

One way to do this is to stop using chemicals in the hive. For some of us that is a very hard thing to do (or not to do). We have been taught at the beginning of our beekeeping that we MUST use pesticides to get rid of the bugs on bugs. We have to change our mind set and that ain’t gonna be easy either. We need to learn that the bees need to be exposed to the pests and parasites in order for them to start to develop an immunity to the parasites and learn again how to defend from the pests.

The survivors are the ones we need to keep and let the non-survivors parish. Sort of like a man retires from the work force and goes home and vegetates on the couch. Within 3 years he is dead! But if the man gets up and starts exercising and gets a hobby that requires him to move, then he has a long life still ahead of him.

If we keep our bees in a bubble for so long and then burst that bubble, the bees will parish because their immune system was compromised while in the protected environment. In order for babies (human) to grow to resist most of our bacterium, they (babies) need to eat the dirt. I cannot put it plainer than that.

I have a son who, in his youth period, was a very robust person. He never complained when he was sick. We really didn’t know he was sick until he played with his food, or went to bed instead of dropping off to sleep where ever he happened to be. Bees can be like that too! One minute they are robust and busy, buzy, buzzy and the next dead, dying, or gone. And that is because we have kept them doctored up to the gills with chemicals, and then we miss a treatment and they are demised.

I have not put chemicals in my hives for over 6 years. Most of the colonies died from starvation. One was because the wind blew the nuc stack over and the bees froze to death. Only 3 hives died because the mites got a good strong hold on them and made them weak so the hive beetles and wax moths moved in. For those of you who are very inquisitive, I now have only 3 hives left, but they are survivors. I will in the near future split and start to grow from my 3 nuclei and raise some very strong mite resistant, hygienic, and docile bees.

If this is what you want, then take pains to diminish your chemicals and baby them for three or four years and you can have some of the same.

Until next time, keep your veil handy, your hive tool sharp, and your smoker lit.

Alas, I am still the reporter for the NEBA workshop (unofficially). The speakers were:

Audrey Berry, Research Tech from the Mississippi State University Entomology Dept. speaking on the Small Hive Beetle and how to cope;

Mark Dykes, Research Tech from the University of Florida Entomology Dept. speaking on the African Honey Bee;

Robert (Rob) Housburgh, FL State Apiary Inspector and Lab Tech – Gainesville speaking on Using the Ozone to Sterilize Hive Bodies and Wax;

David Westervelt, Environmental Specialist I and Apiary Research – Gainesville. I think he talked on Pests and Diseases.   He also had a class on splitting hives;

Laurence Cutts, Retired Chief Apiary Inspector and Past Florida State Beekeepers Association President had a question and answer class. He is versed on all aspects of honey bees, honey, plants and Florida Honey bee and Food Safety laws;

And last but far from least, Doug Corbin, Florida State Apiary Inspector of NW Florida Panhandle showed how to assemble hive boxes, frames, and how to install foundation in the frames. He used how to and why reasoning for all of the assembly. He also had a class on splitting a hive.

Our own past president of NEBA , Wayne Miller, was on hand to help out where needed and he also had a class on splitting a hive. His hive was a hostile one and he showed how to calm the bees and continued to split. Good job Wayne.

I heard that we had over 100 people to attend which is up from 96 last year.

Again, as in the past, there were compliments on the program, honey judging, and even the signs were appreciated. We had no one get lost this year. I think it was because Wayne had some signs professionally made and they were able to be seen.

I was disappointed to see no one bring anything to sale or trade. We had several beekeepers come ready to purchase equipment. But not all was lost, as we had two vendors, Rossman Apiaries of www.gabees.com and Elmore Herman of Millie Bee -  elmoreherman@gtcom.net bring their wares to the workshop and take up the slack.

I really didn’t get to attend most of the classes as I was recruited to help my Darlin’ Princess receive the entrants for the honey judging section of the workshop. I will have to write a separate post on what the judges look for when they are judging.

We had entrants in seven classes out of a possible thirteen.

• Extracted honey: Amber
• Extracted honey: Dark
• Black jar (honey in a black jar)
• Creamed honey
• Candle (poured or dipped, straight or ornamental)
• Original bee related art
• Beekeeping gadgets

While the judging was going on, there were classes for the attendees so the judges could work without interruptions. Then while the noon meal was being consumed, the items were on display in the cafeteria.

We had refreshments and drinks throughout the day and door prizes were given out. All in all, I think it was a success and several people said that they are looking forward to next year. WELL DONE COMMITTEE MEMBERS. You did great!

I was contacted today to help get the information out to beekeepers who might be interested in getting all or part of a thriving bee business in the Tupelo country. Due to health, the beekeeper has to get out of the business. The following was sent to me to post. Thank you for your time.

Earnest, thanks for your time today.  I have attached the information we have listed publicly on our website that you may use to reach out to your associations.  I appreciate your help and will be glad to answer any questions for serious buyers, just have them call me at 850-532-9466.     Prior to releasing any additional information to someone we will require a confidentiality agreement.

Yours in confidential business marketing,

Destin Business Brokers – Lewis R Floyd – DestinBBCP@gmail.com

I am a little remiss in getting this information out to all yawl. The North Escambia Bee Association (NEBA) is sponsoring their annual Beekeeping Workshop (Last year it was the CHAUTAUQUA) at the Northview High School in Bratt, FL. Saturday February 19, 2011. Registration starts at 0700-0800. Welcoming ceremonies will start at 0800.

If you are reading this post then you have missed the deadline for preregistration. Registration at the door will be $40 Couples, $30 Singles, $17.50 Students (12 years old and up) Children 11 and under will be free.

If you want to enter the honey judging, then read the rules found at the top of this page. There was to be an entrance fee but the powers that be have waived it.

There will be a yard sale, so bring your unwanted equipment and sell, trade, or give it away at the same time you may find something you want from another beekeeper.

Several speakers are scheduled to be here and will have interesting presentations to give.

See you there. Drive safe!

I was at the Escarosa Beekeepers Assn in Pensacola last night and we had a lively discussion about wintering bees and how to feed them. First of all you have to know that half to 3/5 of the members present are newbies and they did ask some interesting questions that most of the old-timers took for granted.

First of all, “How do you know when to feed the bees?” The answer was “when they need it”. Then the the question was “How do you know when they need it?”. That was when we started to buckle down and start giving some good answers and information.

To keep from opening the hive just to check the food supply, it is recommended that the beekeeper lift the back of the hive up to feel how heavy the boxes feel. Compare the weight with the other hives in the apiary.  if it feels light then you need to feed. If you only have one hive then comparison is out of the question. You need to start early in the fall picking up the hive to get the feel of it as it gets heavier with winter honey. Then in early February you can judge with fair accuracy.

If you are feeding because of low winter honey, then you need to feed 2:1 sugar water or corn syrup. Okay, before you ask here is the formula for making 2:1 sugar water. The first number is the active ingredient. The second number is the diluent (water). So two parts sugar and one part water = 2:1 solution. Rule of thumb is to fill your container up with sugar. Boil water and mix in with the sugar to fill the gallon container up and when it cools, feed the 1:1 mixture to the bees. This is called the sustaining feed.

At this time, you will want to check the pollen and feed accordingly. To keep on tract of feeding honey (nectar), I will write another post to explain the different ways to feed pollen.

If you want to stimulate the bees to get the queen to laying just before the spring honey flow, then you want to feed a mixture of 1:1 sugar water. It was explained by an old time beekeeper that 5# of sugar will fill up a little over 3/5 of a one gallon container. Mixing water to fill the gallon container will equal to 1:1 mixture. Again referring to the rule of thumb: put sugar up to the half way mark of you container then fill/mix water to the top of the container. This will make the 1:1 stimulating liquid.

Reasoning for this stimulating food is to make the bees think that the honey flow has started without them and that kicks them into high gear trying to get their numbers up to be able to harvest and process the nectar and pollen that will be collected.

You can guide the bees into doing what you want them to do if you will work with their instincts. You really cannot make them do what you want by forcing them. You have to learn the natural ways of the bees before you can guide/train them to perform for you. That means that you need to read, read, read. Study and think. For some of us, that is a near impossibility. You need to reason out these things that you read about and if you are still confused as I am a lot, then you need to ask around and get some experienced and newbie thoughts on the subject. The key is to ask,” how can this work?”, “not why this  can’t work!”.

I cannot stress this too much – You need to get a mentor to help you learn and practice what you have learned. That will get you to the point of thinking for yourself and eventually you can experiment on your own just to satisfy your own curiosity.

Remember, to check you hive weights and feed if light. My bees are still heavy and I watched them bring in full pollen baskets. My bees will definitely need to be split real soon or they will swarm. Check your bees. Bee Spring has Sprung.

This post is different than most of the other ones I have written. This one is about my observations and abstract thinking. Florida has had a lot of new beekeepers joining the ranks. There have been over 8 new beekeeping associations formed in the last 4 years in this state alone. Alabama and Georgia have some new associations formed in the southern part in the last year.

There is a great demand for instructors and mentors for all the newbies. The Alabama Baldwin County Beekeepers Association has started it’s second year’s beginner’s course. This could be the start of an annual affair. The class last January was filled to overflowing and they expanded the attendance for this January. This year had more students wanting in than they were prepared for. They had to start a waiting list. The curriculum includes, the history of the honeybee, bee biology, plant biology, pests and diseases, and Alabama bee laws. Then how to build and care for the wooden ware,  how to start a hive by using packages, nucs, and swarms. Lots of hands on experience and plenty of question and answer time.

These meetings and classes remind me of a bee colony. In order for a colony to survive, there must be young bees willing to learn the ropes, advanced bees to feed the young, mix pollen and honey, build wax, guard the hive, and then the older or experienced bees to gather the pollen and nectar and transport it back to the hive.

In order for an association to survive, the group must have newbies to learn the ropes, advanced beekeepers to help the newbies and the older beekeepers when collecting the honey and extracting. And there needs to be the experienced beekeepers to help train the new ones as well as to be a guide and to answer questions for all the younger crowd.

I attended their regular February monthly meeting and counted around 40-45 people there and half or more of them were new beekeepers. I personally have 3 new beekeepers that I am mentoring and I have had as many as 7 at one time. For one reason or another some have dropped out, moved, or decided they knew enough to go out on their own. The point is, we need more old beekeepers helping the new beekeepers. That is how we propagate ourselves. Sorta like bees swarming. hehe.

We have enough experienced beekeepers that we don’t need to have the big name – big guns come to every meeting. We need to start inviting some of the local talents to teach a training session at each of our monthly meetings. It doesn’t need to be our own members all the time even. Some of the neighboring associations have good teachers that could be invited once in awhile. That would change up the atmosphere a little so we don’t get stale.

The Orange Blossom Beekeepers Association has started a state wide roster of people willing to teach or present a program to their neighboring associations. If any of you wish to be included, then you need to contact Beth Fox at BF54321@aol.com . She can give you the name of the contact person.

Enough for now. Spring will be here before you know it, so get ready.