Swarm Season 2021 - Saxonburg Swarm Part 2

Sunday morning started with another call that there were more bees on the move.  Easy - just a small cluster to move.  Maybe the rest from Saturday.  Then, just when you think you know bees, more happens.

Sunday Swarm

Beekeeper's dream when it comes to a swarm.  Inches from the ground.  Easy enough.

 

After shaking these bees into the box, we stood back satisfied.  Soon, though, we realized they were vacating the tree they had been in.

 

Welcome to what it looks like when they swarm.  So apparently, part of the swarm had come out and rested on the tree.  They had been there for at least an hour.  Now comes quick thinking and outsmarting the swarm...

The bees in the box already had started working on the honey and frames we provided them.  They were working, rather than calling their sisters.

So let's out think them.  After watching the behavior, we noticed they wanted to swarm around the logs lining the yard.  So we moved the box there.  Using a stick sprayed with Swarm Lure, we were able to encourage some to go to the box.

Further encouragement was obviously needed, though, because they liked the idea of the logs.  So watching carefully that the queen wasn't settling there, we kept working the bees to stay in the air.  Slowly but surely, as some found the box, they began calling their sisters.

 

Finally, when most of the swarm knew where to go, we put the lid on the box.  Notice how they continue to encourage bees to join them (sticking their abdomen up in the air while making a particular sound with their wings).  You can even see them marching into the box!

So three generations of family rescued the bees.

 

PS> Liz braved the ride in the truck with the bees.  She was fully suited up, though!  As was Grandpa.

Swarm Season 2021 - Saxonburg Swarm

It's that time of year!  And fortunately, it wasn't our bees that swarmed...

Swarm from Saxonburg, PA

A dear friend gave us a call that her tree hive swarmed.  20 minutes later, we started searching for the queen.  I never did spot her.  Based on a lot of bees moving on their own to the nuc box we brought, I would say she's probably in my first few scoops of bees to the box.

They really wanted to go into a hole lower in the tree than their original home.  So once I had a lot of bees in the box, I smoked out the hole.  They vacated the space and began swarming higher in the tree.  So we waited a few minutes to let them settle.

Since they were out of arm reach for even Christian, I told him stick the smoker up there and smoke them.  Then we stood back and waited to see what their behavior was.  ...they all went to the box on the ground.

I'd call that a win!  We'll know in a week or so if she's in there.

 

 

 

 

Delivery: Saskatraz bees

Our UPS driver made us his first stop today.  Apparently, he is allergic to bees.  His second stop was someone fairly close with another package of bees before starting his normal route.

Up to this point, we have always purchased a nuc.  Why?  There's more bees and the queen is already established.  A package of bees can be a little more difficult.

Did you see me talk about the Saskatraz bee project?  Well, that's what delivered today...

Installation

This wasn't what I expected.  I read the instructions multiple times before today.  I also stood in the apiary surrounded with everything I needed and reread it.  The actual instructions just don't truly line up with what I had.  So I struggled a bit with package #1 and then knew exactly what I needed to do for #2.

Mann Lake provides a really nice two page document on install.

What was it I missed?  First, look at what the box looks like.  There were no frames with it.  Maybe because it was different bees?  It was just a plastic box with nothing else inside (well, the bees were).

 

OK - so remove the feed.  Easy, twist the greenish thing under the plastic cover.  You need some muscle to slide the plastic cover off.

Then where was the queen box?  We shook it out into the frame body in the hopes of being able to see down inside.  Still didn't see it.

Turns out, it is under tape and not easily seen.  We took the tape off the top and found a little bit of metal that seemed out of place under that bright pink sticker in the photo.  If you unfold it, it was obvious you just slide it towards the hole opening and the queen cage comes out.

From there, it was easy.  We shook them all down in.  I modified what I thought should be done.  You can see what I did in the picture below.  The photo was my amazement that I had already set the queen down but they continued to hang out on my arm and hand (no stings!).  Anyway, we released the queen into the hive (that is up to you if you release her immediately); then, we put the inner cover on.  We were already prepared to give them buckets of 1:1 sugar water.  So the extra hive body was big enough to take the plastic box for the rest of the bees to take their time to come out.  Then we put the sugar water bucket beside it.

All in all, it went well - I think!  Took us around an hour to prepare and do the whole install.  The picture below on the left is right after we finished (we left the feed that came with the bees on top to allow those inside time to get out).  The picture on the right was taken about two hours later.  All seem settled in now.

Busy Early Spring Bees

 The bees take advantage of the days that are sunny and 50ish degrees or higher.

What are they searching for right now?  Hopefully pollen from Eastern Skunk Cabbage or as us beekeepers like to rebrand it to "meadow cabbage" since it is so useful to bees right now!  This will be the first to appear around swampy, wet areas.  Bees love it.

Advanced Beekeeping Class

I can just buy bees and a hive, right?  Stick it in the backyard, put some flowers in...  No - bees are complex and you need to understand them.  Attending classes, even when you think you are doing good, is worth the time and money!

Today in my class, it was like an ah-ha.  We took the class with our bee-mentor, Joe at Country Barn Farm.

Spring Management

When do you put another super on?  Today I learned that you should over-super in Spring and under-super in Fall.  So on my list of spring management for April will be to give our surviving hive(s) honey supers to work with.  Maybe this will keep them focused on working on drawing out comb and not swarmy (not a technical term!) this year.

Did you catch the "for April"...?  You need to know when you are getting spring flowers.  Be ready for that.  So if April is your flower time, then get it on for end of March.

We can take a honey super that doesn't have drawn out comb and stick it on.  Let them work it for a week, check it.  Are they building it out well?  Great, then add another but between brood box and the super from last week.  Gives them plenty to do.  Skip the queen excluder at this point.  Wait for them to be working it really well before adding the queen excluder.

What an ah-ha.  But that happens with bees.  They are so fascinating and there's so much to learn!  I'll be sure to share the photos when we do this.

Let's see if this plan helps us with our remaining hive(s) and keeps us from a swarm during swarm season!

Spring Planning Time

It's that time of year - get those supplies purchased and order your bees!  Already we have ordered some honey making supplies.  We're hoping this is the year we will be bringing in the honey!

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Our current bee plan:  In addition to acquiring a couple of nucs normal bee vendor, we decided to see what we thought of the Saskatraz bees.  OK - think of that word.  Where in the world would they be coming from...?

Did you say Saskatchewan, Canada?  Then you would be right.  There's a honey bee project ongoing there to focus on "honey production, wintering ability and resistance to mites and brood diseases."

So it is like buying an AKC bee.  They come with papers.  Depending on which lineage they come from, they have a varying defense to varroa mite and increased honey production.  Plus, "all families have good to excellent wintering ability in Saskatchewan, intermediate to excellent hygienic behavior and acceptable temperament."

Let me put a pause on the acceptable temperament.  Yes, Chris will be getting stung.  HA.  They are slightly more aggressive than Italian bees.

So let's hope for great season and hope that the hives left keep going until Spring weather breaks.

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Info credit: The Saskatraz Hybrid Project
Photo credit: Mann Lake