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TEXAS BEE SUPPLY
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Cover Photo: Marshall James - Dripping Springs, Texas
April 2022
Feature Topics Let's Split! ReQueening When to Add Honey Supers Maintaining Hives in a Single Deep
Edition 22
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Table Of Contents
Did you miss last month's issue? Click the cover below and step inside. We welcome your feedback and submissions! Beekeeping Questions: help@texasbeesupply.com Article suggestions, questions or content submissions? editor@texasbeesupply.com
6 Monthly Tips 8 Let's Split! 11 Ask The Experts: When to Make Splits 14 ReQueening 18 Ask The Experts: How to Find Your Queen 22 How to Know When Nectar Flow Begins and to Add Supers 24 Managing Single Story Hives 28 Interview: Kim Townsend 30 Swarm Season! 36 Topics Beekeepers Can't Agree On: Types of Foundation 40 Spotting Eggs and Larva 46 Free Bees! How to Bait a Swarm Trap 49 Pop Quiz 52 How to Use a Green Drone Frame 54 Recipe - Honey Bulgogi Sliders 56 There's Mold in My Feeder! 58 Club Announcements 60 Webinar Q & A 62 Drought Chart
Page Topic
MORE INFO
Kim Townsend & Shannon LaGrave
HOUSTON AREA
With this 1-day class, we'll give you the knowledge and confidence to keep your bees healthy and thriving! LIVE BEE YARD EXPERIENCE
Topic Highlights Hive Equipment & Protective Gear Basic Functions of the Hive Overview of Workers, Queens and Drones What's What In a Hive Identification & Treating Bee Diseases & Pest Yearly Hive Management Nutrition Honey Production & Harvesting
James & Chari Elam
DALLAS AREA
2022 BEGINNING BEEKEEPING CLASSES
1. As spring enters full swing, your hive should continue to grow rapidly. Feed sugar syrup only as needed. Work to maintain a 20 lb surplus of stored honey or syrup in your second brood box. The more syrup and honey you have stored in your second brood box at the start of the honey flow, the more honey the bees will store in your first honey super, rather than having to fill the second brood box first. There should be no need to feed any form of pollen substitute. 2. April is the perfect month to requeen hives. We recommend requeening every year to ensure seamless brood production, and hives that remain as healthy as possible. 3. Most splits are made in April, as that is when queens are typically available. Remember to give each split 3-4 frames of brood, a new queen, and feed them well for at least 3 weeks. Check out our virtual or in-person splitting classes to learn more! 4. If you are purchasing hives, nucs or packages, make sure to feed well, verify the queen is laying, and add boxes when the first box becomes 80% full of bees. Search for the article "Your First Month Home" under "Bee Help & Questions" on our website for more details! 5. April is the most common month for hives to swarm. Ensure each hive has sufficient room, or is split to prevent swarming. 6. It is generally not advised to treat for mites (or any other issues) as the spring honey flow begins late April or early May in most regions. An exception to this would be in far South Texas, where the honey flow can begin in early April. However, in North, South East, Central, and East Texas, the major honey flow usually begins the first week of May, give or take a week depending on weather.
By: Blake Shook
Photo Credit: Randall L Brown
april tips
Here is an example of all of the resources you are looking for to use in a split. The object is to have an equal balance in each split so that both sides have an equal opportunity to continue to grow.
By: Chari Elam
Let's Split!
If you’re like me – making splits is my favorite part of beekeeping! It certainly can be intimidating … BUT – it is a part of beekeeping we can ALL do. Most of my joy in beekeeping (other than this magazine and teaching) revolves around “playing with bees”! What better way to play with bees than to make splits?! As you become a better beekeeper you won’t be able to keep from making bees. Some of you are saying – What?! Yes, that is true. Bees can be like rabbits given half the chance. Healthy, thriving colonies will produce more bees than you can manage in 1 colony and will require splitting! This is a very good thing! Call yourself successful if you are preparing to make splits! Making splits isn’t hard. The simple overview of it – equalize the contents of a double deep colony and you have a split. There you go! Well… maybe a bit more to it than that, but in essence that’s pretty much it! The kicker here is to have the “right” resources being equalized between your split boxes. It’s easy for me to say… just move this and that. But, in reality when you get into your hive, odds are, you’re going to question what you are seeing and what goes where. My goal here is to make it abundantly clear what you need to do and what you need to see when making a split. Formula: 2-3 - frames of brood (open and capped) 2 - frames of food resources (honey and pollen) Fill the balance with new undrawn frames and/or simply divide the remaining resources between the 2 boxes. Put them in the same order as you would see in a typical brood nest. Brood (open and capped) in the center Resources (honey/nectar/pollen) left and right of the brood Empty, undrawn or resource frames to the outside of the nest (both sides equal’ish’) I say equal(ish) because odds are they won’t be exactly the same on both sides. 2-24 hrs. later add a queen to the Queenless side of the split – For detailed information on installing queens and requeening, check out Blake’s article this month HERE. Now what? Feed, Feed, Feed! It is imperative that you feed a split colony. Also, remember that you have weakened the colony by doing this split. Watch for Small Hive Beetles and keep them under control! I stress that because, SHB will take over a weakened colony this time of year if you have them in abundance. Thankfully, not all areas do. If you are unclear what a Small Hive Beetle is or what it can do, check out this very helpful article by Nanette Davis: CLICK HERE After care of your split So often once a split is made, we tend to pat ourselves on the back and leave it there. No, no, no… You have just started! Within just a few weeks you will find that a successful split will have taken off and you need to add a second deep. Did you see the short article in last month’s issue on adding a second deep? If you didn’t check it out HERE! This article is talking about swarm prevention, but adding space is adding space, regardless of your intent. Honey Production? Yes! You should easily expect honey production from these early splits. We’ll talk more about adding supers next month, but for early nectar flows know this – in double deep colonies full of resources (honey/nectar), you will be able to add supers. Note: If there are empty “undrawn” frames in your boxes (2 deeps) your bees will likely fill those with nectar before going into the supers. Be careful not to add them too soon, but too late is equally important. Now, let’s make some splits!!
When do You make Splits?
Couldn't make our Spring Splits Class? No Worries! Check out our Summer Splits Classes!
Michael Kelling President Central Texas Beekeepers Assoication Master Beekeeper
Cameron Crane Liberty County Beekeepers Association Owner Crane Meadows
More Info
We are here for YOU before, during and after you get your bees! help@texasbeesupply.com 1-800-356-4229
Photo Credit: Jacob Osborne - Kentuck Honey Farms
Requeening
R
Here's a video of me requeening a hive.
equeening a hive with an existing hive is relatively simple and easy once you get the hang of it. For colonies that have a queen a year or more older, April is a good time to go ahead and get it done. Queens are becoming more readily available, and the weather is more favorable for bees and beekeepers alike. Order a replacement queen, and once she has arrived alive and well, move to step 2. Find the queen in your hive & remove her. See “Tips to Find a Queen” for help finding a queen. Wait a minimum of 2 hours and a maximum of 24 hours before installing the new queen. Ensuring the bees have access to the candy plug in the queen cage, (this is what they eat through to release the queen) insert the queen cage in between two frames of brood in the hive. Make sure the cage is inserted in a way that allows maximum access to the screened portion of the cage. Close the hive, and if there is not a current honey flow then be sure to feed the hive a gallon or two of syrup as they accept the new queen. This will increase the likelihood of acceptance. Wait 5-7 days and check back to ensure the queen was accepted.
If the queen hasn't released - try poking a hole in the candy to help the bees release her
Image: Dummies.com
How to tell if a new queen was accepted Requeening a hive is only half of the battle when it comes to getting a hive to accept a new queen! Ensuring she is accepted is critical. Keep in mind that it can take a new queen 2-3 days after being released to begin laying eggs, and even then, she may only have eggs on 1 frame in the hive. Here are a few signs she WAS accepted: The bees seem characteristically calm & unagitated. No uncharacteristic running, loud buzzing, unusual aggression, etc. The queen cage is empty There are eggs in the hive There are no queen cells being raised Signs she WAS NOT accepted: The bees are uncharacteristically running, loudly buzzing, and unusually aggressive. The queen is still in the cage, or dead in the cage. If she is alive in the cage, poke a hole through the candy with a toothpick to help the bees release her. There are no eggs or larva in the hive There are multiple fresh queen cells with larva in them being raised What to do if your queen wasn’t accepted This is frustrating, but fairly common. If this happens to you, here is what to do: Look very carefully for eggs! It only takes the bees 12 days to raise a new queen using a 24-hour old larva. So, if you killed the old queen 13 days ago, and you saw queen cells in the hive, odds are the bees already have hatched out a few virgin queens, and you are better off letting them try to finish the process. Virgin queens usually go on a mating flight 5-7 days after hatching and begin laying 5-7 days after returning from the flight. So, start watching for eggs about 14 days after she hatches. If it has been less than 12 days since you killed the old queen, you can go through the hive, carefully look at each frame, wipe out any queen cells, then quickly get a new queen to replace the one which was not accepted. If you can’t get a new queen within a few days, it’s best to just let them finish raising their own queen with the queen cells already in the hive. Since this process is slower, you may need to add a frame of brood from a stronger hive to keep their strength up. By: Blake Shook
Evidence there is a queen laying - fresh eggs and developing larvae
nhbees.wordpress.com
Multiple queen cups or cells
"Day-In-The-Life" With A Professional Commercial Beekeeper!
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Finding a queen can be challenging for even the trained eye. Let's ask the experts how they do it.
Dodie Stillman Vice President - Texas Beekeepers Association President - Austin Area Beekeepers Association Master Beekeeper
Tara Chapman Featured on the Today Show, Vice Media and Eating Well Magazine Two Hives Honey - Austin, TX
Harrison Rogers Vice President Harris County Beekeepers Association Treasurer- Real Texas Honey Program Certified Texas Master Beekeeper
With the purchase of any gift card from March 30 - April 8th you'll be entered to win. Location: Savoy Texas Event Date: April 16th 10:00 am - 3:00 pm We'll be selecting 6 lucky winners at random on April 8th at 2:00 pm!
Spend a Day with Blake Shook! Join Blake as you observe first hand the magnitude of what a Commercial Operation looks like. Making splits, checking back on queen acceptance, shaking package bees & more! Come prepared to work and ask questions!
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Let's join Blake as he walks us through a hive ready to add a super!
Ask the Experts
Determining when to add a honey super can often be colony specific. Some may be ready and some not. Logic tells us that nature will be the first clue, but more than that – is THE hive ready? Things to look for: Nectar producing plants in bloom A healthy population of bees both top and bottom box Frames 80% drawn comb (virtually no empty frames) White wax inside your hive Nectar coming in and being stored in your hive Adding “new” undrawn foundation in your supers? Continue to feed syrup for a week or so – allowing the bees time to start drawing comb on the new frames. Once a fist size of wax is being drawn, add your queen excluder and monitor as they are being filled. Add additional supers as they fill to 80%.
Lauren Ward Entomologist A Bar Beekeeping
How to Know when the Nectar Flow begins and when to add a Honey Super
By: James Elam
Managing Single Story Hives
Benefits Along with limiting the weight to a single brood box, this method of beekeeping offers additional advantages that make life easier for the beekeeper and maybe even for the bees. Effective mite control is more easily attained as testing and treatments are primarily confined to a single box. And an added bonus, less cost for treatments, as most require you to double the dosing for each brood box. Hive inspections of the brood nest are easier as is finding the queen when necessary. Single brood box management tends to tame or minimize the power in numbers equation common to defensive hives. The larger the colony population the more likely it is to self-organize in a potentially extremely defensive behavior (J Millor 1999) Honey bees have the remarkable ability to adapt to the nest size available by expanding and/or contracting populations as required for survival. When populations exceed cavity capacity, something must change. Feral colonies can manage populations through swarming. Beekeepers can also enact change through population manipulation, space expansion and the division of assets (splits). A key factor for keeping bees in a single deep is to focus on space. Space constraints are what cause swarms, but space doesn’t have to be “brood space.” Bear in mind, a queen cannot lay in more cells than there are available in any single brood chamber hive. But the amount of bees present can take up much more room than a single hive body has available. Consider: A single deep brood frame has approximately 3500 cells per side (7000 per frame). Multiply that by 10 (10 frame brood box) = 70,000 (+/-) opportunities for emerging/living bees. A queen can lay on average 1500 eggs per day which emerge in 21 days for a total brood cell occupation of 31,500 or roughly only half of the cells available. The remaining balance of 30,000 cells can now be used for brood foods and or additional brood space if required. The 50 /50 ratio allows for a revolving door of over 30,000 cells for the queen lay in as required during buildup and peak season. Solution There is enough brood space in a single deep for a queen to lay effectively and efficiently. Where the space constraints come in, are from the working bees and resources! Solution without adding a second deep – Add a honey super (preferably with drawn comb.) It is imperative you use a queen excluder between the deep brood box and the honey super for this system to work. The queen must stay in the bottom box. Adding the super early in the population growth season will supply the bees with more room to move around, feeling less crowded and open up space for the queen to move freely (limiting a swarm sequence.) In turn, workers will continue bringing in resources but instead of putting them in the brood box, they deposit most of it in the super as the pantry for the nest. Supers act as an extension of resources. They will move those resources back and forth as they are needed. Now that the super is an extension of the “nest” (notice I didn’t say brood nest), honey will be stored above leaving more space for bees and brood and the bottom box. Managing your Single-Story Hive Continue adding supers as the season progresses allowing them to store plenty of honey for themselves and for honey production to be extracted. At the end of nectar flow remove all but 1 honey super. Remember, the first honey super is their food and additional living space. Feed after extraction to encourage the bees to store in any open cavities in the single brood box as the population peaks and ultimately declines as the season progresses. Overwinter with a super if there aren’t enough stores in the single brood box. Splits and Frame Manipulation Part of keeping single story hives is taking advantage of the growing resources (including bees) in your hive. Beekeepers that keep single deeps tend to have more bee hives due to the fact that they have the bees to continue to grow their apiary. Each single deep has the opportunity to make at least another hive each population growth season, if not several. Sharing frames from hive to hive is part of a healthy apiary. For a single-story hive beekeeper, it is more often used as a balancing act than a boosting for another colony. Keep a regular check and good records on each hive in your yard. As one out grows another, pulling a frame (or trading frames) helps manage and equalize all the hives. From beginning to end, single brood box management is possible for those who enjoy managing and regularly going into their bees. While the process details are best implemented by experienced beekeepers with a clear understanding of bee biology and best management practices, all can enjoy the benefits of this method of beekeeping. James Elam
Beekeeping popularity among hobbyists is at an all-time high. One of the greatest barriers to some beekeepers is the necessity to repeatedly lift heavy boxes. A deep brood box full of bees, brood and honey should weigh about 80 lbs. A deep honey super is likely to weigh 70 – 90 lbs. The elimination of even a single brood box may be the difference between “I physically can’t do this” to “I can see myself doing this.” Single deep box management absolutely offers the opportunity to control the physical lifting aspects inherent to beekeeping.
Did You Know?
In a traditional hive set up – a strong colony can produce up to 100 pounds of harvestable honey per year. But, considering unexpected factors, on average you can expect 30 – 60 pounds per hive. Factors that can affect the yield: Weather conditions Hive location Presence of pests and diseases Competition from other colonies Beekeeper management skills
Wear What the Pros Wear Designed by Beekeepers FOR Beekeepers
Meet Kim Townsend - Hear her story of how one person (Rex Smith) changed her view of what a beekeeper and bee removal expert is and should be. After this fascinating story and glimpse into her life, we talk about how she handles swarm season, queens, Varroa mites and upcoming supering. We can all learn from this beekeeper!
with Chari Elam
Interview Series April Edition Kim Townsend
SUPER SUIT
Photo Credit: Kellie Jensen
Experienced beekeepers are well aware of the risk of a stray swarm and have the hives to overcome the loss when it occurs. However, sideliner and hobby beekeepers might not be so accepting. Managing the space in a hive is an art. A dance really… Knowing when to add space, split or share resources can make the difference of a “hive gone” or expanding your apiary. Earlier in this issue, you may have read an article on making splits – but there are times we make split(s) and there are times we opt “not to split” yet but maintain or grow to a solid double deep box. Or, as another article in this issue instructs us, maintaining a single deep without swarming. We should all know what a swarm is – it is the “divide and conquer” of our colonies. It is nature at its best. Not only is it required for the species to flourish, but it’s in their nature. As bee(keepers) we have a responsibility to manage our colonies to prevent our bees from swarming – even if we don’t want more bees. Primarily swarm management is done by making splits. We set the guidelines for this event and typically successfully manage to expand our bee yards each year. But sometimes we need to simply manage the bee yard and not make a split, but instead manage the bees to prevent swarms. Space being your key factor here, inspires us to add space to thwart off impending swarms. Scenario 1 I want to maintain a double deep and it’s April. My goal is to keep it at a double and not split in order to maximize my honey production for an early nectar flow. Solution #1: Balance the bee yard Taking frames of capped brood from the strongest colonies and sharing with your weaker ones can and will make a big difference in the population growth. Keeping in mind, a single deep frame fully capped (when emerged) will yield 7000 new bees. That is a lot of bees to pump into an already full double deep. Although too much for that hive, those bees could be a huge boost for another hive. What if you only have one hive… or your other hives don’t need more bees? Solution #2: Offer these valuable bees to another beekeeper that might not be so fortunate. Transferring bees to another bee yard frame(s) at a time has its challenges. You need that frame to stay at 93-95 degrees. This can be achieved by transporting it in a Nuc box (with adhering bees) and when at the new destination simply shake those bees at the entrance after smoking the entrance rather well. Or you can carry multiple frames in an ice chest – preheated with a light bulb or by heating a brick at a low temperature in the oven. This will ensure the frame(s) stay warm until installed in the new hive. Haste makes waste – don’t delay getting these frames transported and installed. They won’t survive very long without being inside a hive. Scenario 2 Just like too many bees will cause a colony to swarm, it’s the same with resources. Depending on where your bees live or migrate from (for migratory beekeepers), an overabundance of pollen can “clog” a brood nest. If you’ve just come back from pollinating almonds and you are pollen packed, eliminate the clog! Some areas of the nation will experience a huge pollen flow early and cause the same issue in a non-migratory hive. Either way, too much pollen isn’t a good thing – it’s taking up valuable space. Bees can move honey from one location to another in a hive, but will rarely move pollen. If you have more than a couple of frames “full” of pollen, consider sharing it with another colony or simply remove them. Unfortunately, bees won’t rob these out in the bee yard. Once pollen is stored in a cell it’s no longer attractive to foraging bees. Scenario 3 When a colony starts backfilling a brood nest it’s a sure sign a swarm is imminent. Nectar flow is the culprit here. When nectar starts coming in, bees will instinctively bring in as much as they can whether there is room or not – to the point there isn’t any! Often, just removing a few honey/nectar frames will alleviate the issue and allow the colony to continue on. When doing so, remove the outer honey frames and replace with the center frames that the bees are backfilling with nectar. Compress the balance of the brood box adding empty, undrawn foundation left and right of the brood nest (not the center.) This is a good opportunity to use your back-stock of drawn comb frames (if you have them) – ideal for jump-starting the queen into laying and circumventing a swarm. Noteworthy When a colony has started swarm preparations it can be challenging to change their minds. Thankfully, bees are very forgiving when it comes to our manipulation of their hives in spring. They are so focused on their projects at hand, they’ll pretty much accept just about anything we do to an extent. Think through your options and make the decision that best suits your needs at that time – and, be prepared, it could be different with each colony! By: Chari Elam
Swarm Season It's H-E-R-E!!
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Plastic Foundation!
Topics Beekeepers Can't Agree On! By: Lynne Jones
I usually decide on my question for beekeepers at least a couple of weeks before I post it on Facebook, and my planned question for this article was no exception. March 1st, I opened the Texas Friendly Beekeepers group early that morning and to my surprise the first thing I saw was Becky Brandt Recer’s post asking: “New beeks question: Wired foundationless, plastic, or wax foundation frames? What is your preference and why?” It was almost the exact same question I planned to ask! Since it would seem really odd to have two people ask essentially the same question back-to-back, I asked the same question only of the beekeepers in the Central Texas Beekeepers Association and Friends group and used the comments from both groups for my analysis. All total, 21 beekeepers responded, but only 17 stated their personal preferred foundation. By far, plastic is the preferred foundation (15 of 17). Some of the comments for plastic were more specific: heavy wax on plastic foundation; plastic foundation, heavily waxed; plastic foundation with good wax; heavy waxed plastic foundation; black plastic foundation; plastic foundation with extra wax (only black in Brood box); waxed plastic foundation; black plastic for brood & yellow or white for honey; half sheets plastic foundation; plastic foundation coated with beeswax less than 24 hours; black plastic foundation; and, black plastic foundation with extra wax. Not just a preference for plastic, but for heavy waxed black plastic foundation. Plastic is favored because it works well in an extractor and because it saves the valuable comb for bees to re-use. There’s also no risk of the comb falling off due a beekeeper’s inexperience in handling frames or of comb collapsing in the heat of July/August in Texas (yes, it does happen.) If you struggle with seeing eggs in cells, try using black plastic foundation. (I had never seen eggs until I switched from wired wax to black plastic.) But for success with plastic foundation, it must have a coating of heavy wax applied because in my experience, the bees do not like plastic foundation. Without wax they will build comb on the frame, but with as little of the comb touching the plastic foundation as possible. When heavily waxed, the bees have no objection to plastic foundation. One of the beekeepers who commented on his preferred foundation was Chris Moore, of Moore Honey Farm in Kountz, TX. When a beekeeper who has been in business since 1999 with 2,500 colonies shares how his operation does something, I stop and pay attention. Chris prefers, “… plastic foundation coated with beeswax less than 24 hours before putting on the bees. The wax will be soft and have a good aroma. They jump all over it.” I sent an email to Chris and asked him what led him to installing freshly waxed frames as their standard practice. Chris explained that one morning after they’d rolled hot wax the previous day, he noticed the wax was still semi-soft and had a wonderful aroma - so he "stuck a few frames in hives right away." He could see the bees really loved these freshly waxed frames – unlike the frames that were rolled on a rainy day 2-3 months prior. Chris said, “… it’s not convenient at all, but now we will roll hot wax on in the morning and put them on in the afternoon.” If you DIY when it comes to waxing plastic foundation, maybe you’ll want to give this a try! I followed up with new beek Becky Brandt Recer and asked her what foundation she has decided to use. Becky told me, “I am going to try several types of foundations – beeswax covered black plastic, wired wax foundations and wire foundationless.” I think she’s made a good choice. I will check with her in the Fall and find out how each type did for her. Welcome to beekeeping Becky! Facebook Links: Central Texas Beekeepers Texas Friendly Beekeepers
Wax Foundation!
WONKY COMB PHOTO BY CHARLOTTE EKKER WIGGINS
*Though the beekeepers who commented on their preferred foundation may use one type of foundation primarily, almost all who answered do not use it exclusively. Below are different foundation options and the number of beekeepers who indicated they use it.
Lynne Jones - Owner of Brazos River Honey Secretary-Treasurer of the Fort Bend Beekeepers Association and Advanced level in the Texas Master Beekeeper program
Check out Dodie Stillman's article (May 2021) on how to wax frames - title "Wonky Comb?"
Check out our Premier Assembled Frames 10% More Cells Than the Average Frame
15 – Plastic
2 – Wired wax
1 – All plastic combo
1 – Foundationless (for brood and honey)
3 – Foundationless (for comb honey)
1 – Wired foundationless (for comb honey)
2 - Starter strip (for comb honey)
2 – ½ Sheet plastic in center of frame, leaving ¼ space on sides for natural comb
Spotting Eggs and Larva
Almost as challenging as finding the queen in a hive is seeing eggs and larva. They are tiny! An egg is smaller than a grain of rice, and is in the bottom of a dark cell. However, learning to see eggs and larva is very important, as they will tell you if you have a laying queen in the hive or not. Fortunately, there are a few tips and tricks to help you see eggs and larva. One quick interesting fact- an egg takes 3 days to hatch into a larva. On day 1, an egg stands up vertically in a cell. Day 2 it’s tilted at an angle, and day 3 it is laying flat on the bottom of the cell as it begins hatching into a larva. Tips and tricks for spotting eggs & larva: Hold the frame so sunlight shines directly into the cells. This is critical to be able to see eggs & larva! Use your smartphone. Yes, phones can even help spot eggs and larva! Position the frame so the sun is shining into the cells. Next, hold your phone about 6 inches from the frame and take several pictures, making sure it is focusing on the cells. Or, take a very slow video at various heights above the frame. When you get back indoors, you can zoom in on the pictures or videos and often see eggs! Regarding which frame to select to take the pictures and videos: Take the video/pictures in the center area of a frame. Eggs are and larva are often not on the outer edges. Use 1-2 frames with the most bee activity on them in the middle of the brood box. When you buy new frames, get black foundation. It is much easier to see white eggs and larva on black foundation rather than yellow or white! Tear down surrounding cells to expose a few cells, or use a knife to shorten cells to more easily see into the bottom. Use a powerful flashlight during an overcast day to shine into the bottom of the cells. This is very effective! If you still can’t see eggs or small larva, but have seen your queen, capped brood, large larva, and there are no queen cells, there are most likely eggs.
Work With LIVE Bees! There is no better way to gain the confidence needed to be a successful beekeeper than by working hands on with live bees. We'll show you exactly how to do hive inspections and what to do to care for your bees to keep them healthy and thriving!
Is there really a way to get “Free Bees”? Well, maybe not entirely… but it IS possible to draw bees into your possession if that is your goal! With a little pre-planning and some ingenuity, your ability to capture a rogue swarm is right around the corner!
Quick Setup Guide 1. Put traps out NOW! 2. Use a large enough container to house a good size swarm (Nuc box, 8/10 frame deep box w/solid bottom or swarm trap). 3. Small entrance no larger than 1 – 1 ½ “ 4. Bait with old comb, pure bees wax and/or swarm lure 5. Securely place trap 6 – 12 feet off the ground with the entrance facing southeast. 6. Check it often 7. Once you’ve trapped a swarm wait until you see them bringing in pollen before you move them. 8. Move as far away as possible late in the day/dusk.
Helpful Tips Think about the added weight of bees and honey when placing the hive in a tree and consider how you’ll be taking it down. This may determine where and how high you place it. Other bee colonies attract swarms so place them near your bee yard or someone else’s. When using swarm traps consider leaving them a couple of weeks after you see pollen coming in – allowing time for comb to be built. Then transfer comb and bees into a hive box using rubber bands or wire. This gives you a better chance of the hive staying once moved. Consider feeding swarms once moved to encourage them to stay.
Check out Wes Brown's Tip for making SWARM STICKS with Swarm Commander
Photo Credit: Joey Davenport
Text
Take advantage of swarm season! Set up a swarm trap near your bee yard and bait it with the best swarm lure available!
Question: Have you ever seen this before? Do you know what it is?? Answer on page 60
SWARM COMMANDER
POP QUIZ
Look Into What We're Up To!
Photo Credit: University of Arkansas
Drone Trapping
How To: Place one drone frame in each hive in frame position 3. Leave for 2-3 weeks - (Drone brood is 24 days from egg to emergence.) Remove the frame “before” drone brood emerges to prevent a “mite bomb” in your hive – counterproductive to the method approach. Freeze the frame overnight. Remove and warm to room temperature. Drag your capping scratcher across the cells, breaking them open, then place the frame back in the hive for the worker bees to clean out the dead drones and mites. Repeat the cycle as the bees refill and cap cells.
Green Drone frames are a one piece plastic frame imprinted with a larger cell pattern to encourage the worker bees to make drone comb. Varroa mites prefer drone comb over worker comb due to the fact drone cells are capped 4 days longer than worker brood, enabling them to produce more offspring. As part of your Integrated Pest Management practices, drone frames can be an integral part of staying ahead of a mite infestation, thus lessening the need for mite treatments.
Photo Credit: Trunch Beekeeping Group
How to Use Green Drone Frames for Varroa Management
For Sriracha Mayonnaise: 1 T - honey 1 T - Sriracha hot sauce 1 T - rice wine vinegar 1/2 cup - mayonnaise 1 tsp. - sesame oil
For Bulgogi: 1/2 lb. - ground beef 1/4 tsp. - kosher salt 1/4 tsp. - black pepper 4 T - soy sauce 2 T - honey 1/2 tsp. - minced garlic 1 - scallion, thinly sliced
HONEY BULGOGI SLIDERS – Honey.com YIELD: Makes 2 servings INGREDIENTS DIRECTIONS In a bowl, add all ingredients for the bulgogi and mix well. Form into 4 even patties and flatten to make them the size of the slider bun. Set aside, covered. In a separate bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sriracha mayonnaise. Whisk well until it is evenly blended. Set aside, covered. In a large sauté pan, preheat the pan until small wisps of smoke appear. Over medium-high heat, add the vegetable oil and sear the bulgogi patties to the desired doneness. Remove and drain on a paper-towel-lined plate. To assemble, spread the sriracha mayonnaise on each half of the slider bun. Place the bulgogi patty on the base bun, topped with romaine lettuce, red onions, and pickle slices. Place the top bun to cover. Serve immediately. Recipe developed by Chef Wook Kang for the National Honey Board.
For Assembly: 3 T - vegetable oil 4 - slider buns 2 leaves - romaine lettuce, sliced 2 T - red onion, thinly sliced 2 T - pickle slices
HONEY BULGOGI SLIDERS
Pro Feeder This internal feeder is a favorite for large scale beekeepers. Inexpensive and easy to clean. The cap and ladder system provides stability as well as ensuring minimal drowning.
Hive Top Feeder This feeder is constructed of a single piece of heavy-duty plastic to provide a no-leak reservoir. Featuring a galvanized steel safety screen to prevent drowning of bees.
There is mold in my feeder!
Boardman Feeder This inexpensive entrance feeder is suitable for applications needing smaller quantities of feed. Ideal for backyard beekeepers with the ability to refill frequently.
This is especially common when the weather begins to warm, and you are using a Boardman entrance feeder. Sugar water has a shelf life of 7-10 days so make sure you only give the bees as much as they can consume in that time period. Using premade syrup from a bee supply company will prevent this from happening, as the mixtures are often made to not ferment or develop mold. If you do find mold in your feeder, Dump out the syrup and clean the feeder thoroughly. Next time you make syrup, add a ½ teaspoon of unscented bleach per gallon of sugar water to prevent mold growing inside feeders. The bees love it, and it does not harm them. Or add 1 teaspoon per quart of Pro Health– a feeding stimulant comprised of lemon grass and spearmint. Not only is it beneficial to your bees, but it also prevents syrup fermentation.
Walker County Beekeepers Association 1402 19th Street Huntsville, TX 77340 Last Thursday of each month Q & A on the front porch at 6:30, meeting at 7:00 PM
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Denton County Beekeepers Association Meets the 2nd Tuesday of each month both in-person and on zoom! Details on www.dentonbees.com and on Facebook
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Elm Fork Beekeepers 3rd Thursday each month in person or Zoom at the VFW Hall in Gainsville, TX. Go to: elmforkbeekeepers.org for Zoom link
Tri-County Beekeepers Association 4th Tuesday @ 5:30 pm of each month Sam's Restaurant - Fairfield, TX
Lamar County Beekeepers Association Meets 1st Thursday each month at 6:30 Red River Valley Fairground - Building B Paris, Texas
Montgomery County Beekeepers Association 3rd Monday of each month 9020 Airport Rd. Conroe, TX 77303 Non-members welcome! www.mocobees.com
Kaufman Area Beekeepers Association Second Tuesday each month at 6:30 pm United Methodist Church, 208 S. Houston St. Kaufman, TX New Beekeepers Q & A 5:45-6:15
Comal County BeeKeepers Association First Thursday each month at 6:30 - 7:00 dinner - 7:00 - 8:30 meeting Beefy's on the Green - Spring Branch, TX
Pineywoods Beekeepers Association 2nd Thursday each month Lufkin Angelina County Chamber of Commerce 1615 S. Chestnut Lufkin, TX
Hill County Beekeepers Association In - Person meetings every 3rd Tuesday of the month 6:30 at Hill County Annex Office, Hillsboro, TX
Wood County Beekeepers Association 1st Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm! The current meeting location is the Winnsboro Civic Center
Travis County Beekeepers Association 1st Monday 7-9 pm Zilker Botanical Garden ~ Gift Shop 2220 Barton Springs Rd. Autin, TX 78746 www.TravisCountyBeekeepers.org
Harris County Beekeepers 4th Tuesday each month - 6:30 Meet & Greet - 7:00 meetings start - 5001 W. Oak, Pasadena TX 77504 Harris County Beekeepers Association
Austin Area Beekeepers Association Third Thursday each month at 7:00 pm Frickett Scout Center For meeting details CLICK HERE!
Fort Bend Beekeepers 2nd Tuesday of each month (except Dec) in person or online. Bud O'Shieles Community Center 1330 band Road, Rosenberg, TX
Hays County Beekeepers Association In - Person meetings every 3rd Wednesday of the month 6:30 -9pm at Suds Monkey Brewing Company - 12024 US-290, Austin, TX
Central Texas Beekeepers Association Washington County Fairgrounds VIP room 4th Thursday of each month, 7:00 pm CentralTexasBeekeepers.org
Club Announcements
Always FREE! Zoom (Anywhere) or In- Person (Area restrictions apply) Enjoy a 1 hour LIVE Presentation from one of our presenters! You choose the topic!
Houston Beekeepers Association 3rd Tuesday each month in person at Bayland Community Center, 6400 Bissonnet St Houston, TX 77074 HoustonBeekeepers.org
Liberty County Beekeepers Association First Tuesday each month at 6:30 Texas Bee Supply in Dayton/Huffman For more information go to LibertyCountyBeekeepers.org
Webinar Q&A
Answer to the Pop Quiz is: Varroa Mite Poop - If you see this you likely have an overabundance of Varroa mites. Read More About it!
Some GREAT questions from the March Webinar meeting! Click on the button below to read them all!
Fun Fact Bees unintentionally pollinate the plants they are foraging on. It's almost like an unspoken agreement between bee and flower where both benefit! The flower (or plant) gets pollinated in order to perpetuate its species and the honey bee obtains a key component of their diet (pollen as protein) for the same reason - to perpetuate the honey bee species! It's a win, win for both plant and pollinator!
Video Courtesy of : Jared Lanig
LOCATIONS TO PICK UP BEES!
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Photo Credit: Marshall James - Driftwood, Texas