Time really does fly!

My daddy used to say that "the days drag by and the years fly by"
....I cannot believe it has been  more than 2.5 years since I posted. Who would be reading this anyway? Since no one has missed it, and no lives (or livelihood)  were dependent on my posting, I'm not so worried anyway {insert smiley face.}

I STILL have only one hive--still in my driveway--still only minimally managing it...if that is what you want to call it.
Since my move from bedside nursing (3 X 12hr shifts per week) to a role I'm in that requires a 5-day (sometimes more) work-week, I don't have so much free time for my beloved honeybees.

The SOWEGA BEEKEEPERS CLUB that Dick Grebel & I started almost 7 years ago is doing well, and serves as a resource to area beekeepers--both beginners and experienced folks alike. I regret I am unable to be an active part of the club anymore because of my schedule, but love that there are reports of 'goodness' from the members.

I harvested honey in June of this year--but it is all in a 5-gallon bucket in my house, yet to be bottled. There are still people at work who ask if I have any for sale, but the last 2 seasons of harvest brought me honey that crystallized very quickly--not a very "pretty" product, but still tastes good to me, so I have been selfishly using it. I haven't even checked my harvest to see if it is still liquid or not. Maybe there will be time before Christmas so my very favorite folks will benefit. ({You know who you are}).

I DID try to split my hive at the appropriate time this year, but the effort was not successful. So....I still have the one..my Justin hive....strapped with a ratchet and tie leftover from the Irma threat in September.

I will start feeding soon. We have an abundance of Golden Rod blooming now, and temps in the 80's & much humidity. Still, my active hive is a "welcome home" sign to me each day I get in from my real job....

Basically just checking in.

Until next time,
bee kind,
kb

A new season......a new leaf.......

well......I have been absent from this blog a year and half..........I am still very present and extremely busy, and enjoying life just the same.
I only have one hive left---it is the "Justin" hive that is in my driveway (so named because it is a swarm I captured on Justin's birthday year before last.)
"......a swarm in June is worth a silver spoon......"
I am ready to split this hive, when the weather warms up a bit.....perhaps tomorrow.  I removed all my equipment from my mentor's farm last autumn, as the last of 3 hives died.......
So I am ready to 'manage ' 2 hives in my little yard in the city! I'll let you know how it goes!
Only 19 days till the first day of Spring! Yippee!

Variations..........

Liquid gold

Where has the summer gone?

It is hard to believe the last post I published was way back in January.....as I was imagining my four hives were snuggled close in cluster, and NOT dying...I was so hopeful.
And they DID survive the winter, and we had a wet spring and summer---and my hives survived......
Started the spring with one hive in my backyard, and three in "the country" (at my mentor's place).
Sometime during the year, I lost one hive in the country----but the hive in my yard swarmed 3 times. I was able to collect 2 of the swarms.....one of them on my son, Justin's birthday. Is my Justin hive, and it is doing well...queen right, will not get honey off of it, and hoping it makes it through the winter.
The other swarm is in the fancy nuc hive. It is doing so well that I bought 4 nuc-sized honey supers to just keep stacking. It was queen- right this past weekend, too. ( seems like thousands of small hive beetles in it-- bought a gimmick piece to dissuade beetles from climbing in...called bee baffle..I'll let you know how that goes!)
In the mean time, my 'mother" hive in the back yard was overcome with small hive beetle larvae. I mean creepy-crawling with larvae. I had 4 honey supers on it, all wasted. Made me sick, but I learned a valuable lesson. Just because there is 'bee activity' in and out of the front of the hive does not mean the hive is healthy...I waited much too long to inspect it, and suffered the consequences.
I dismantled it. Cleaned it well. Keeping it on hand, ready for the spring, when I split my  strong country hive. I requeened  my weak (queen less) country hive last Wednesday (9/11).  By Sunday (9/15) she was out of the cage.  I pulled a super of honey off the strong country hive, but left 2 supers on. On previous inspection, moved my queen excluder up to the top of the second deep, and the queen had moved into it. Very excited.!!  (2!!=very excited!)
So, technically, I have 3 1/2 hives......I've harvested honey twice already, and have one more super to extract. One pound of honey is $8.00...I might break even before I can no longer 'keep' these bees, but the sheer joy from doing it is worth something!!
This post is so dry and boing, but it was really for me to document/catch up what's going on in my bee yard(s).

What's Happening...early 2013...

It is almost the middle of January, and the honeybee hives I have "manged" going into the fall are still very full and active.  With unseasonably warm temps, I was allowed to go into each hiave yesterday, and am confirming their strong STRONG presence....even have brood in the hive in my yard.

I removed the queen excluders on 2 of the hives..the ones I left 2 supers of honey on through the winter, and put a pail of sugar-syrup on 2 of the hives.  All bees are bringing in lots of pollen!!

I lost 100% (3hives) of my hives last year, but hopefully am going into Spring with 4 full, happy hives of bees.

Will keep you posted!! ;0)

remember to always be kind...which is only slightly different from being nice....

kb

Good news, bad news.....

Eleven days ago I treated my green hive with Formic acid, at the suggestion of Jennifer Berry......(she actually suggested Formic acid or Apilife Var). When I went back into day, they look great!! Two supers of honey, that I am leaving for the winter.

The 3 hives at the Grebels' are looking good too!  I did move a full super from Genesis to blue, and put the half drawn out one onto Genesis.  Exodus hive seems to be weakest, but has full super waiting for winter.  My fingers are crossed that they will survive the winter.

Good news is that all hives look good......bad news--- no more harvesting of Honey this year!!
Bee kind!
K B