Recent Posts

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GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. / Re: What did you do in your Apiary/Bee yard today?

« Last post by The15thMember on Today at 04:32:15 pm »

I don't know if they're a gentle crew or if it's normal but I can sit on the wall right next to the hive and supervise them without getting harassed.

It's very normal, especially for a hive this small.  As long as you stay out of the flight zone, most hives will just go about their work and ignore you. 

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GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. / Re: What did you do in your Apiary/Bee yard today?

« Last post by Terri Yaki on Today at 03:54:37 pm »

And my nuc appears to be doing well. I found what I suspect is a SHB on top of the hive this morning and I whacked it but it doesn't make me feel good about them. Where there's one, there's more. They're drinking syrup like drunken sailors and have been bringing in pollen all day long. I see some stragglers coming in early, before others are going out. I expect that those are foragers who didn't make it in before curfew last night. I don't know if they're a gentle crew or if it's normal but I can sit on the wall right next to the hive and supervise them without getting harassed.

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GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. / Re: What did you do in your Apiary/Bee yard today?

« Last post by Terri Yaki on Today at 02:24:08 pm »

It all sounds interesting to me and if I get enough resources, I'd play with it. My neighbor reports that his uncle has two queens on tap for Saturday and that beats the time it would take to make a queen. I just hope his idea bo make two hives isn't too big a bite for the remaining workers. I feel like he's on borrowed time right now.

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GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. / Re: Lost Four Out of Five

« Last post by Terri Yaki on Today at 02:16:37 pm »

Sounds like a humbling experience and everyone's nightmare. Hope your next round goes much better.

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GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. / Re: Lost Four Out of Five

« Last post by FatherMichael on Today at 01:59:36 pm »

Happens to all of us.  We experiment and sometimes it works.  Sometimes it doesn't.  I am glad you are not discouraged from continuing.  It sounds like you learned a lot from failure and hopefully, that will lead to future success!

Thank you, Kathy.

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GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. / Re: Lost Four Out of Five

« Last post by Kathyp on Today at 01:19:22 pm »

Happens to all of us.  We experiment and sometimes it works.  Sometimes it doesn't.  I am glad you are not discouraged from continuing.  It sounds like you learned a lot from failure and hopefully, that will lead to future success!

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THE 2ND AMENDMENT / Re: ATF EXPERT

« Last post by Kathyp on Today at 01:17:02 pm »

In many discussions, it's hard for a woman to even say she would pull the trigger.

My sons FIL doesn't think he could shoot someone.  I told him not to buy a gun.  IDK.  training makes a difference.  If you feel comfortable with the weapon, you are more apt to feel comfortable using it if you have to. 

When I was doing 4H I would tell the kids to practice what they were going to do in their heads every day.  Then when on the horse, practice what they had been envisioning.  The Music Man method.     Mental prep is as important, if not more important, than physical prep. 

and Kathy.. there isn't much we actually disagree on here

Didn't really think there was!   

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EQUIPMENT USAGE, EXPERIMENTATION, HIVE PLANS, CONSTRUCTION TIPS AND TOOLS / Re: Today I Made

« Last post by BeeMaster2 on Today at 12:02:02 pm »

I just looked it up, $809. Where do you have it setup at? I have been watching reviews of all types of lasers and two things that they point out are getting rid of the fumes and high chance of fire. How is this one?
Jim Altmiller

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GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. / Lost Four Out of Five

« Last post by FatherMichael on Today at 11:55:15 am »

I had never lost a bee hive before.  But coming back to bees since the bugs hit has been an humbling experience.

Two of the four I lost were rescues and, apparently, beyond repair.  I saw eggs but now suspect they were from a laying worker.

One was a swarm I caught, shaking them from a low tree limb into a pillowcase.  They started very well but fell prey to ants.

The last one was sad for me.  It was a "Texas" nuc, purportedly mite resistant "native" bees.  It died of mites.

The one hive left was in the backyard and did very well for two years with a hygienic queen from California.  But my "natural" strategy of letting them swarm for a "natural" brood break each spring backfired.  When a new queen takes her mating flight you don't know what she'll bring home.  In this case, it was two year's worth of more aggressive strains.  The neighbors complained, the bees harassed Mary and me, the neighbor's dog got stung, and their grandchildren did not want to play outside.  So, we moved them to the farm, which is a borrowed place just outside of town.  They have no mites but are not nice bees.

I'm done with "natural".  I've ordered Oxalic and a vaporizer, and will track down some Permethrin for the ants.

Will travel to San Antonio for a nuc this weekend.  Hopefully, but the end of the season I'll have four hives from splitting two.

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THE 2ND AMENDMENT / Re: ATF EXPERT

« Last post by Salvo on Today at 11:42:38 am »

The great equalizer.

In many discussions, it's hard for a woman to even say she would pull the trigger.

I think my wife would. "THREE TIMES AT LEAST. Bullets are cheap. Wouldn't want that guy to grab your ankle if you have to step over him."

She's good with a 45 but needs a two-hand hold and a Chapman stance. She weighs 111 lbs. She carries a little Walther too, better grip. She also carries a stick while walking, for coyotes just in case.

It's a scary world out there, even for walkers/joggers.

Re. Knives: It's always good to have a knife available.

Sal