"Just bee yourself, do your own sting" @ Getz Apiary

Spring Time at Getz Apiary

It's definitely spring time here at the apiary!  We have new bees (three colonies in total) and we also added two ducks to our feathered family.

Ducks

Christian worked hard on building a safe enclosure for our new ducks, Molly and McGuire.  They appreciate the 8 foot deck and the 44' pool.  We have a rouen duck that is darker in color similar to a mallard and a pekin duck.  I think they are both female...

Back to the bees...

We picked up one colony from Eden Apiary.  Burl Knupp is the President of Westmoreland County Beekeepers Assoc., a Master Beekeeper, and Owner of Eden Apiaries.  He is extremely knowledgeable when it comes to bees.

Speaking of knowledgeable... We picked up two more colonies from Bill Kopar of Kopar Farms.  He "provides pollination services to farmers in the area while at the same time building up the health and numbers of his bees to sell them.  Kopar Honey Farm creates many value-added products like honey and beeswax from which are made things such as lip balm, lotion, or candles.   Along with selling products and bees, Bill gives many lectures to a variety of audiences, from university classes to garden clubs, relaying information relevant to the skill and knowledge of the people he speaks to."*

Here you can see how hard at work they are:

We noted a log of drone brood.  So we've been taking these and scraping it off.  Yes, we kill drone when doing it (the chickens love to clean it up).  However, the purpose cuts back on varroa mite introduction since it is the drone they like to attack the most.

And spring just isn't complete without a waggle dance from one of the ladies.  Do you remember what purpose it serves and can you find it in the video?

Lastly, check out the addition to my truck:

As always, stay up on our latest photos and videos by going to https://www.facebook.com/GetzApiary/.

* quote from https://beavervalleybees.net/index.php/beekeeping-supplies/

Rough Winter

It's been a tough winter all around the state of Pennsylvania for beekeepers.  We've had lingering warmth in the Fall, a polar vortex, up-down temperatures ... all of this leading to the collapse of many bee hives.

...and yes, our colonies also suffered and collapsed.

But, we will rebuild.  After all, we have all the equipment!  So Christian and I attended the yearly Western PA Beekeeper Seminar last weekend.  It was full of excellent talks and encouragement from some well-known beekeepers.  I also got a new toy!

Grant Gillard

Boy was he ever encouraging to us!  He gave us 7 tips on being a successful beekeeper.  I took a snapshot of the things I wanted to remember most:

Karen Roccasecca

We heard from our PA State Apiarist on the inspection program, what they offer as far as help for us (that is included in our $10 registration), and how we can help with the Spotted Lantern Fly which is an invasive species in PA.  I will just drop what it looks like right here:

Randy Oliver

The keynote speaker was phenomenal! He does all sorts of research on bees and keeping healthy bees. His bees take care of the almond groves in California.  We learned about use of oxalic acid (including that PA says the word wrong), other Varroa Management, bee behavior, and bee nutrition.

My favorite thing that he talked about? We are in the "trough of disillusionment." Meaning that you find it hard between year 1 and 3, because you lose hives, something unexpected happens, etc. So we are right on par to having a better season!

New Toy

For those of you that know me, I am a tech girl - thus the blog! I came across the Broodminder vendor at the seminar. The Citizen Science Kit has a weight, temperature gauge and humidity gauge. The devices connect to your phone and then can be shared with the world to help others with your data.

So of course I bought a kit, plus two extra temperature gauges! So look for a future article on this new toy .. I mean, tool!