First year, still absorbing info as much as possible. Started with 4 packages in April/May, 2 from a local apiary and 2 through the mail. Located in CT. All 4 colonies have been doing very well, however there is a clear strongest / weakest in the bunch. Inspections have been pretty normal as far as my amateur eyes can tell, mite washes have shown nothing, good looking brood, good food stores, etc… all in all, I have been loving my new hobby. The variations in the 4 colonies have given me lots to observe and learn from. Summer dearth is upon us so I’m feeding again. They ran out of syrup yesterday, so today I mix up a batch - it’s still hot, so I’ll feed tomorrow. Figured I’d check in on the hives anyway. Since things have been going well, I let the ladies be for 2 weeks and kept filling top feeders. First hive I checked today was the weakest. They looked great, eggs, capped brood, lots of capped honey, very docile. Hive 2 is the strongest. I worked through this one, removed some burr comb, saw eggs, all the good stuff… closed that one up. Moved to hive 3 and instantly got swarmed. Not sure if it was the girls from 2 or 3, but holy crap were they pissed. I’d say about 50-100 on me all stinging the suit, swarming like crazy. I closed up the hive, calmly walk away and realize they ain’t leaving… now I’m running, got tagged a few times through the suit. Stop, drop, roll…. Run… holy crap - they wouldn’t leave. Kids in the pool watching daddy run around in a bee suit like a crazy guy. Had to smoke the crap out of myself to get them off. It’s a pretty warm day, late afternoon… I’m thinking they were just hangry??? I won’t hold a grudge against my girls, but that was not pleasant. Tomorrow morning I will fill the feeders up. I can get hangry sometimes, but holy cow - I hope that’s all that was wrong!

So while I was reading my book, this author was very adamant in medium supers. I’m a 6’2, 230 pound weight lifter. Is there any actual drawbacks from using deeps as supers besides they could get heavy? I feel having only deeps would be useful due to me being able to use them for brood or excess honey.

About a week since my last posts here in Montana and here is a photo of some of my bees I found dead inside my feeder (in the hive)

While I can’t post a ton of videos due to size, this photo you can see a lack of pigmentation in many of the bees. Their wings are not deformed but many have lost their yellow pigmentation, some have even lost all their black pigmentation (which I know is not CBPV but seems worth mentioning)

Hello! Aspiring bee keeper in Queen.

Besides doing research, most resources recommended finding some kind of bee keepers association. I've looked around and the only two groups I've been able to find in my area, NYC bee keepers associatio and the Queens Beekeepers guild, seem to be in active.

Does anyone have any recommendations for groups or resources I could use to find groups to join?

Hello guys, I am doing some research on some various topics that I am familiar to. As the title states, I am working on good ending for the sentence above. If anyone could help me out, it would be more than appreciated. Thanks in advance.

In my case, you know you are a beekeeper when you can spot a queen bee in a heartbeat.

Lets say I test for mites twice a month and during the very second month (on my third test) i see mites level rise above threshold. Can i treat again?

Now when the rain stops I’m ready

So, like this morning I noticed several honeybees, swarming on the back, bottom part of the unit; where the frills are. And they are crawling inside the bottom and/ or eating away the cooling coils. This is the first time in several years I've seen this. Any clues as to why? Should they be removed somehow? 2 Add a comment 1 Commen

Has anyone used permethrin treated clothing to prevent chigger bites while beekeeping? I’m worried about the effect on the bees obviously and my usual peppermint oil/deet usage seems to be lacking as my lower body has been a buffet for these mites since June. I have been commercially beekeeping in Ohio for a few years now and this is the worst year I’ve ever had for chiggers. Thanks in advance.

https://imgur.com/a/wFzdnYc

So ...bees took over my plyo box in the yard. I don't mind them and they don't bother me. But it's so close to the BBQ. If I put on a suit can I safely pick it up and move it to a back corner?

I'm in southern ca and can not find anyone to remove for less than $300. Is that my only realistic option?

Hive swarmed about 5 weeks ago, new queen has emerged and seems to be laying well. At the top of the capped brood there are a few uncovered larvae. Is that bad or have they just not gotten capped yet? Thank you all!

Hey all, 7th year here in western NC , I am trying out Apiguard this year and had a question for any others that have used it. I see the instructions say lay on top of the brood box and then use a spacer and then the lid. Question I have is what if I have 2 brood boxes? Is it Apiguard, spacer, brood box, Apiguard, spacer and then lid? 2 Apiguards in the same hive?

Was just looking at email they sent me and have $99 full kits (1 single, 1 deep, all frames, covers, etc). They have Hoover Hives with 2 deeps, singles and all frames, full package for $185. Wasn’t looking to buy right now but just put in an order for 4 to be ready for splits next year.

Hi I live in the Notting Hill in the Notting Hill area and after research online there are very few honey bee hobbyists locally and I want to start both for the environment and the enjoyment of making honey and was wondering if anyone locally is willing to be a mentor and share they’re information.

Hello! Im from South Africa and it’s winter right now so it’s freezing 😅.

I bought two jars of honey from my local beekeepers. One is orange blossom and the other is multiflora iirc. I know that raw honey crystalizes and Im used to this, so when I opened my cupboard I saw that the orange blossom honey was solid but the multiflora one was still runny and normal.

Does this happen with raw honey? Ive been pretty loyal to this local company and Im too shy to question them. Can anyone advise me please

A swarm of honey bees has taken up in our very bee box-like compost bin. They've been there over a month. Quotes for bee-safe removal are over $300 which we can 100000000% afford. My husband wants to open the lid to see what it looks like. Honestly, yeah - Darwin Award ... but how risky is this? I'm concerned he will get stung badly, be cartoonishly chased by a swarm of bees, etc. I'm afraid of bees and want them (safely) gone. Do I need to pre-call 911? Anyway, please roast me for being insanely worried for nothing or roast my husband for being stupid in the comments. (We are in Central coast, CA)

Edit: I love him & do not want him to get hurt. After you're married as long as we are, we certainly do love standing back and laughing at each other -- But make no mistake. I am genuinely worried about him!

Hi I have a small apple orchard in southern California. I back up to wilderness area, there are a lot of wild bees already.

If I went to the trouble to set up hives, would they even be accepted by the bees in the area? I've got a lot of room, and an area in mind where I could have a few boxes set up. I'm plenty handy so building the hive box won't be the hard part.

If I set them up, what's the best and most appropriate way to get my boxes occupied? I have ideas to talk with exterminators and/or find other beekeepers nearby

I'd appreciate any input thanks so much

Hi, looking for recommendations on a chest freezer to store honey frames.(Not allowed in the house)…I have four colonies in my small NC apiary. Thanks

This story happened in central Ohio I was walking to the store and I saw a honey stand at my towns farmers market. I crossed over and asked if he had those little honey sticks and he got a little irrated and said that they aren't real honey so he doesn't carry them.

When I googled it it said that some are real and other aren't and I've met other honey vendors who say they make them themselves with their local honey.

I wouldn't put it past ppl to lie about it being real when I bought them in the past and the guy seemed a little offended that I asked if he had it so I'm just confused now. Any body have any insights on this? It's not the end of the world if the honey sticks aren't real but I don't wanna buy from ppl who just lie to my face about it. Can you actually make honey sticks with real honey? And how can I tell if my honey supplier is being honest?

Been stored a year, just opened it, jar was still sealed properly. The honey that has been scooped out was put in tea and has caused a film and loads of brown particles on the surface. What’s happened to it? Is it still ok to eat?

I wasn't working on the hives. Just standing 20 feet away watching. BAM! What a jerk...

Basically, accidentally got a deep nuc when I do all mediums.

I put these frames above the queen excluder and then, after everything hatched, I pulled them and put in mediums... But I left them near the hive in a box so I could harvest when I harvest.

It's been a month and now it's time to harvest. I have 4 frames like this, I started the harvest and the cells were rock solid and black like this. After a few mins, I found larva (like not bee, little squirmy things) so I threw the frames in the trash, and all the tools in the dishwasher... It's not worth having larva in my house.

But I'm wondering, what are these cells? Like they are so hard they are like rocks. I also found a few earwigs in the bottom of the box the frames were in, so that probably part of the problem.

No more wobble. Game changer recommendation for extraction. Frame balancing is critical too. 5/16th nut. Not sure why I didn’t do this previously lol