Beekeeping

[CloverKnollFarms]

Gorgeous looking comb!

On the subject of new comb, or rather comb in general, when you decide to harvest honey from a hive, how do you choose the comb(s)? Do you have queen excluders?

All the best,

Peter

I never use queen excluders. The queen chooses to raise brood where temps and ventilation are optimal. I don't want to restrict that.

We harvest in early October, when the last nectar flow is over.

Bees will store excess honey in combs that do not contain brood. Any frame that has open cells for brood, are left in the box. After that, we leave additional frames of honey to equal about 30 pounds per hive for winter stores.

Our bees only eat honey, never sugar. They live in these hives just like they would in nature.

 

[ponytug]

Thanks!

Sorry for all the questions: how do you estimate the 30lbs? Eyeball the frames for brood vs honey areas and go from there?

All the best,

Peter

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Thanks!

Sorry for all the questions: how do you estimate the 30lbs? Eyeball the frames for brood vs honey areas and go from there?

All the best,

Peter

An average full honey frame has 8 pounds of honey in it. Each winter nest frame has about a 2lb band at the top. I've learned this over the years. So I multiply the brood nest frames by (2)... Then leave full frames of honey until I reach 30 pounds

 

[Torvy]

I'm not sure why, but apparently July is when we will extract honey. Depending on production, she may take more in late fall.

The goal is to let them feed themselves, but she has given them sugar. It makes no sense to me, but bees are her thing.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

I'm not sure why, but apparently July is when we will extract honey. Depending on production, she may take more in late fall.

The goal is to let them feed themselves, but she has given them sugar. It makes no sense to me, but bees are her thing.

That is how Langstroth beekeepers are mentored. It was a practice started wayyyback by commercial beekeepers to make more profit. Take the honey, feed them sugar. Langstroth beehives themselves were created for commercial/profit beekeeping. The cultural practices followed into non commercial beekeeping.
Bees also store sugar they are fed, so, the honey extracted isn’t pure honey, but some amalgamation of honey and refined sugar.
There are reasons I have never been to a local beekeepers meeting, they don’t like our kind, we ask too many questions.

 

[drumminj]

There are reasons I have never been to a local beekeepers meeting, they don’t like our kind, we ask too many questions.

This is also why I haven't sought a mentor. I suspect I would be 'fired' as a mentee pretty quickly as I'm not very good at being dogmatic.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

This is also why I haven't sought a mentor. I suspect I would be 'fired' as a mentee pretty quickly as I'm not very good at being dogmatic.

I have a couple friends that go... But I don't know why. All of the cultural practices they tout run contrary to what the bees do naturally... And these friends of mine don't use those practices. I suppose, it's a good way to introduce a different view point that some never consider. Like... Why do you harvest before a dearth? . That's like emptying your silo before a famine comes, and choosing to eat crickets instead. But millions of people never ask "why".
Lots of curious things. Yes. Dogma. I learn a lot from my bees... They are not learning anything from me, for sure.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Most beekeepers used to use skeps, which allowed the bees to draw comb naturally. Like they do in the wild.

They are now outlawed in most states because you can't inspect the comb on removable frames.

Did you know that bees live in trees without removable frames? . They are never inspected?

The bees must comply! We said so.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Folks near here are still catching swarms...

I stop June 1st. Anything after that is just a problem in the making

 

[ponytug]

Folks near here are still catching swarms...

I stop June 1st. Anything after that is just a problem in the making

Because they don't have enough time to put in a good store for winter?

All the best,

Peter