I was covered in bees today. My little boy is turning out to be a very good swarm spotter, and pointed me in the direction of a thorny rosebush in the abandoned field next to our property. Sure enough, there were bees clustering in there. I think I've got them, but not sure. I'll go out to check soon. Wish me luck.
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
Good luck!
Posted by Samprimary (Member # 8561) on :
NOT THE BEES
Posted by AchillesHeel (Member # 11736) on :
Was Henry Winkler there?
Posted by Bella Bee (Member # 7027) on :
More to the point, was Michael Caine there?
Posted by Sean Monahan (Member # 9334) on :
More importantly, will the Covenant be there?
Posted by scifibum (Member # 7625) on :
"I think I've got them, but not sure. I'll go out to check soon."
I'm curious - got them how? Are you killing them? Capturing them? Just confirming their existence?
Posted by Synesthesia (Member # 4774) on :
Yikes.
I'm raising moths. Who do not sting. I love them
Posted by El JT de Spang (Member # 7742) on :
I like my women like I like my coffee...ALL COVERED IN BEES!!
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
quote:Originally posted by El JT de Spang: I like my women like I like my coffee...ALL COVERED IN BEES!!
You're no longer cool, JT. I was just one post away from getting to make the first Izzard reference.
Hobbes Posted by El JT de Spang (Member # 7742) on :
Sniped!
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
I think Jenny is a Beekeeper, IIRC.
Posted by AchillesHeel (Member # 11736) on :
quote:Originally posted by El JT de Spang: I like my women like I like my coffee...ALL COVERED IN BEES!!
I like my women like I like my coffee... ground up and kept in the freezer.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
quote:Originally posted by Kwea: I think Jenny is a Beekeeper, IIRC.
:nod:
Yep. Catching a swarm is good fun.
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
I've caught 3 swarms in the past 2 weeks. Now we have 10 hives. Scott, any tips on how to keep these girls from continuously swarming? I know of at least 2 swarms that we've lost in addition to the ones I've managed to capture.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Intellectually, I know the answer-- you need to split your hives.
Realistically, our bees wintered very poorly. We occasionally gathered wild swarms, but our bees didn't have a population problem in the spring.
[url=http://saulcreekapiary.com/Hive Split.htm]Link[/url]
Posted by Foust (Member # 3043) on :
HOWDITGETBURNED
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
quote:Originally posted by Scott R: Intellectually, I know the answer-- you need to split your hives.
Realistically, our bees wintered very poorly. We occasionally gathered wild swarms, but our bees didn't have a population problem in the spring.
Yeah, we split, but maybe too late? And we did feed the hives. I'm wondering if we perhaps fed for too long. Thanks for the great link! I'm sorry to hear your bees had trouble in the winter. We found that feeding really helped. We have a feeder that takes up 2 frames' worth of space in the hive, and fill it with sugar water. I am amazed at how aggressively the bees swarmed this year. They seem to be done now, at least for the time being. We now have bees everywhere! I am trying to be patient for the honey. We are planning to sell at the Farm Market this year.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
We thought about selling at the Farmer's Market, but there were lots of farmers there already selling honey from South America at a rate cheaper than we could go.
What worked for us was to find a bottler who sold us these nifty bottles on the cheap-- like small vinegar bottles, very cool design, with a cork opening. We bottled the honey ourselves, and struck up a deal with the Made in Virginia store here in Fredericksburg. Because our honey was local, they could sell it as a souveneir. We put a cool tag on it, wrapped some raffia around it, and we were in business.
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Ah, we are doing better in the Midwest, then. There aren't many beekeepers selling local honey here. We did very well last year, selling on a whim, so we have Goals for this year. The cork tops sound cool. Our Farmer's Market demands locally produced products, and I happen to be friends with the Market Master!
Posted by Achilles (Member # 7741) on :
Right on.
Posted by Nighthawk (Member # 4176) on :
quote:Originally posted by Sean Monahan: More importantly, will the Covenant be there?
I have to ask: how many people here know that reference?
Posted by Samprimary (Member # 8561) on :
quote:Originally posted by Jenny Gardener: Yeah, we split, but maybe too late? And we did feed the hives. I'm wondering if we perhaps fed for too long. Thanks for the great link! I'm sorry to hear your bees had trouble in the winter. We found that feeding really helped. We have a feeder that takes up 2 frames' worth of space in the hive, and fill it with sugar water. I am amazed at how aggressively the bees swarmed this year. They seem to be done now, at least for the time being. We now have bees everywhere! I am trying to be patient for the honey. We are planning to sell at the Farm Market this year.
Scott, do you sell comb honey? I'd buy from you.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
I don't sell honey at all, anymore, alas.
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
We are going to start selling at the Kokomo Farmer's Market in July. The market is open every Saturday into October. So if you are interested in Dragonwood honey, and want to make a road trip, stop on by!
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Also, I lost one of my captured-swarm hives. Back to 9 hives. The rest are pretty healthy, and starting to cap honey. It's going to be a delicious year.
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