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Author Topic: More Free Bees!  (Read 2083 times)

Online FatherMichael

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More Free Bees!
« on: June 06, 2021, 10:47:24 am »
Caught a swarm earlier this spring and now will get more free bees.

A lady posted on FB that she wants to put down her aggressive hive but keep the honey.  The bees stung her dad and husband, she said.

I told her I would take the bees and give her the honey, which we plan to do this afternoon after church and dinner.

It's a big hive!  There are three 8-frame deeps and a medium super.

Will do a split on the spot by transferring frames to an empty insulated hive and some Pro Nuc Boxes.  I'll be sure to get eggs and brood evenly distributed.  The hive will be ready to set on the stand already there in the apiary and the nucs will go into an insulated Long Lang already in place in the apiary.

She wants me to keep all the hive parts, too.

And get this.  I'll be able to back right up to them!
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41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?

42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

43 And he took it, and did eat before them.

Offline .30WCF

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More Free Bees!
« Reply #1 on: June 06, 2021, 10:51:50 am »
Sounds good. I hope for you that it was just by happenstance that the people just got stung by mistake or by aggravating the bees.
Is there a plan B if you show up and get attacked by angry bees?
It?s still free equipment either way. Yay!

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Online BeeMaster2

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #2 on: June 06, 2021, 01:28:26 pm »
Father,
There is a good chance that the hive went queen less and they are up set. Check for eggs and prepare for replacing the queen.
Jim Altmiller
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Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
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Online Ben Framed

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #3 on: June 06, 2021, 02:37:41 pm »
Awesome! As Jim said, check for eggs making sure there is a queen.
Just a suggestion: I don't know your set up or know if you are raising new bees, splits, and or queens as of now? If so and this hive is really mean, really aggressive; I am suggesting that you take them to an isolated location, away from other bees, including yours. Far enough away from other bees that the drones which may already be present can't find virgins to breed. Destroy all drone brood to slow down the mean genetic cycle, (you don't want mean drones breeding your gentle natured virgins, in your home yard if you are raising some), or anyone else's for that matter. Change the queen out with a good gentle natured bred queen, and give the hive time to repopulate with a gentle strain of bee. As the mean bees naturally die off.  In the meantime they will continue to bring in the honey as long as there is a flow, making for a smooth easy gradual transition to a gentle hive. Congratulations!

Some say drones fly far away to mate, Honeypump has taught us that virgins will and sometimes will mate with drones from the same yard.
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2 Chronicles 7:14
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Offline jtcmedic

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #4 on: June 06, 2021, 03:54:06 pm »
The splits should calm them down, bet their is some aggravate factor, as weed eater and lawn mower
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Online FatherMichael

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #5 on: June 06, 2021, 09:37:31 pm »
It went okay, I guess, for my first time to do this kind of thing.

She had seven frames in eight frame boxes, which made for a couple of interesting cross comb situations.

The bees were not aggressive.

There were brood at all stages. In all there were only ten frames of brood.  They were evenly divided.  A five frame, queenless nuc went into the Long Lang.

I saw the queen; she looks like a nice Cordovan and went it into the Bee Box hive with five frames of brood.

The top super had no honey in it at all, no comb even drawn.  The medium super had some honey.  I took it for my Bee Box hive at her request.

She got four deep frames that were full of capped honey, which is what she wanted.
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41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?

42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

43 And he took it, and did eat before them.

Offline .30WCF

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #6 on: June 06, 2021, 09:42:15 pm »
Win, win.


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Online Ben Framed

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #7 on: June 06, 2021, 10:11:07 pm »
It is good to hear they were gentle. This was a blessing! Congratulations.....
Did you have much trouble straightening out the cross comb problem?
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2 Chronicles 7:14
14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Online FatherMichael

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #8 on: June 06, 2021, 10:15:11 pm »
Quote from: .30WCF on June 06, 2021, 09:42:15 pm
Win, win.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Amen.
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41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?

42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

43 And he took it, and did eat before them.

Online FatherMichael

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #9 on: June 06, 2021, 10:23:19 pm »
Quote from: Ben Framed on June 06, 2021, 10:11:07 pm
It is good to hear they were gentle. This was a blessing! Congratulations.....
Did you have much trouble straightening out the cross comb problem?

When I pulled them apart most of the comb went with one side.  Left them that way for now because there was brood in them.
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41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?

42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

43 And he took it, and did eat before them.

Offline Nock

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #10 on: June 07, 2021, 02:52:06 pm »
Can?t beat that.
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Offline van from Arkansas

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #11 on: June 07, 2021, 09:05:59 pm »
Blessings, yes Sir.  Could not happen to a better guy.  Glad for you FM.
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I have been around bees a long time, since birth.  I am a hobbyist so my answers often reflect this fact.  I concentrate on genetics, raise my own queens by wet graft, nicot, with natural or II breeding.  I do not sell queens, I will give queens  for free but no shipping.

Offline Bob Wilson

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #12 on: June 07, 2021, 09:42:25 pm »
Congrats Michael. I am glad God worked it out for you that way. It's a nice boost for your apiary.
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Online FatherMichael

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #13 on: June 07, 2021, 09:46:03 pm »
Thanks, Van and Nock,

They had not been inspected since last September.

Checked on them today and treated with Apiguard.

It seems that a lot of bees from the Long Lang migrated over to the Bee Box.

How far apart do splits need to be?

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41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?

42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

43 And he took it, and did eat before them.

Online FatherMichael

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Re: More Free Bees!
« Reply #14 on: June 07, 2021, 09:53:07 pm »
Quote from: Bob Wilson on June 07, 2021, 09:42:25 pm
Congrats Michael. I am glad God worked it out for you that way. It's a nice boost for your apiary.

Thanks, Bob.

It sure makes up for that winter loss!  I wanted to get ahead this year.  It seems I may but with a little more finagling, perhaps?

 
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41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?

42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

43 And he took it, and did eat before them.
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