Bee Chronicles

October 2017

We are a little more than just the watching mode right now. But what beautiful weather to be watching in.

We are having a good fall bloom with lots of golden rod, 5 types of asters, and white snake root blooming. The bees are bringing lots of pollen but just enough honey. They need more nectar. This balance will keep the queens laying eggs at the maximum rate. Sugar water syrup is the way to go. Feeders are being emptied rapidly. No matter what style of feeder you use don’t over feed. If they empty the feeder in one day or less wait one full calendar day to refill the feeder. If it takes three days to empty a gallon feeder wait 3 days to refill it.

If the nectar is coming in faster than the queen is laying eggs the bees will back fill the brood area with honey to keep it in the center of the hive where the cluster will be. This will flood the cells that the queen wants to lay eggs in at the center of the brood area. There will be no empty dry cells for the queen so she will stop laying eggs. This is bad. You want egg laying to go on as long as you can. Even into January if possible.

A little pollen patty food won’t hurt either. As long as there are larvae pollen patties are a good idea. If no brood they won’t eat the pollen patties. Don’t put more pollen patty in the hive than can be consumed in one week. Hive beetles love pollen patties to lay eggs in. The hive beetle larvae hatch out in 11 days. You want the bees to eat the pollen patty with the hive beetle eggs (pure protein) before the eggs hatch.

If you loose a queen this time of the year just combine the bees with a mediocre hive to strengthen the weak hive with a queen. I like the newspaper between the two hive body trick. Place one sheet of newspaper on the top bars of the strong hive. Cut 4-5 ¾ inch slits in the newspaper with your hive tool. Place the week hive on top of the newspaper. Replace the inner cover and telescoping cover. In 3-4 days the bees will have enlarged the slits into holes and joined up with the other hive.

Make sure your entrance reducers are in place. They are to keep the mice out of the hive.

Close up the bottoms of your hives that have screen bottoms. This keeps the wind from swirling up into the hive and the bees can keep it warmer more easily. This also helps the queen to keep laying eggs. My solid bottom board hives always seem to do better during the fall.

One of my mottoes is “Feed for the Spring in the Fall”. Have the food in the hive before it is needed.

Don’t forget to get your spring sugar stored up now. You don’t know when spring will come or if sugar will be available to purchase when it does.

I am ready to take orders for spring replacement bees any time now. I already have 500 nucs on order. You just have to make sure you get yours. It is easier to cancel in the spring than to order late. There will always be someone that need your turn backs. They will cost about $85 if last years price is an indicator. Money won’t be due until February 2018.