Bad advise

[Bsweet]

Kill swarm cells
Trap outs don't work
Figured the first out for myself, Studied under the same professor as Perry for the second. Jim

[Jen]

See I don't think that's bad advice to put bees where they will have some shade in the afternoon. My bees get full sun up to about 3:00pm and then they get dappled sunlight. What's the big deal about some shade?

[Riverrat]

See I don't think that's bad advice to put bees where they will have some shade in the afternoon. My bees get full sun up to about 3:00pm and then they get dappled sunlight. What's the big deal about some shade?

SHB loves shade. When they came on the scene it changed the thought of having some shade for the hives

[DMLinton]

"Shade" is open to interpretation.  The number of interprations equals the number of people interpreting it.

[Slowmodem]

"Shade" is open to interpretation.  The number of interprations equals the number of people interpreting it.

And shady characters, too.   

[Jen]

Ooooh Okay, makes sense then, I haven't spotted the hive beetle yet, knock on my head 

[brooksbeefarm]

In one outyard i had one hive that was in the shad most of the day, it was the meanest hive i had, a SHB wouldn't make it through the front door . It even run my old mentor( Howard) off a couple of times, Howard said if we move it out of the shad into the sunlight it won't be that mean. We did and we never had anymore trouble with it being mean?? Jack

[blueblood]

Jack, I have noticed nicer bees since moving all of them in the full sun.

As for bad advice, I was lucky to have a ton of folks in this form as a plumb line and didn't get sucked into to any crud-ola out on the interweb.

[Jen]

I'll second that 

[brooksbeefarm]

This will start a fight , but the bad advice i had was how great and easy plastic foundation was to use . I bought several sheets of it and still have some that i try to get hives to draw out and have tried everything that i've read on the forum, but my bees won't touch it. It's the deep white plastic sheets that first came out, it's so bad it doesn't even burn good.   Jack

[kebee]

 To each his own Jack, by the way how did you garden make out the last frost you had.

Ken

[Jen]

Well Jack    if you want a fight, I can give you a fight, but be warned that I'm a ruthless opponent..... except in beekeeping. I believe that beekeepers need to nurture the utmost cooperation for our bees in this world   

Now back to the subject of plastic in the hive. Unfortunately, I have plastic left in my hives as well. My hives tell me that "Yes' the bees do prefer wood and wax. Over time, like you, I will have all plastic out of my hives. Not only that, I am on a mission to illiminate most plastic out of my own home. It's a bit of a predicament when packing lunches, but I'm working on it ~

[CpnObvious]

My two cents, for what it's worth (probably not the two-cents I'm trying to offer):

1)  If it weren't for bad advice, how would we learn or know what "good" advice is?
2)  I've most definitely declared this to bee the bee forum for me, until I get kicked out... Then I'll just peer in the windows .  But this particular forum was just formed in December 2013.  We haven't even been through an entire bee season...  How would you know you haven't received any bad advice here yet?

With as much information as I'm soaking in here, I, personally, recommend taking it all in with a grain of salt... Err on the side of caution...  But, then again, I feel I'm pretty good at weeding through the trash (which I really haven't found here).

My thoughts are a little scattered...  But my point is, as many people have said here, learn what works for YOU and YOUR bees.

Sorry, I have a tendency to play "Devil's Advocate">. 

[Jen]

Jeff- ""Sorry, I have a tendency to play "Devil's Advocate">.""

   Not any more than me my friend, how do you think I made the 2,000 posts in less than 6 months. I ask A LOT of questions, and question A LOT of posts. The reason why I still play on this playground IS because the last three years I was steered in so many wrong ways, and didn't have anyone close to help me.

Through watching and listening on this forum, I have witnessed that the only way you get kicked off is if you're being disrespectful and inconsiderate, Iddee, the admins, and mods, will just not stand for it.

I Love This Forum 

[DMLinton]

This will start a fight , but the bad advice i had was how great and easy plastic foundation was to use . ..  Jack

It should not start a fight.  It should start folks questioning why plastic foundation (or plastic frames) does not work at all for some, works very well for some and many folks are in between.  One local beek loves the stuff, another local guy doesn't like it (plastic frames) because it flexs when handled and another local fellow cannot get bees to draw it out but there is no apparent reason for the differences. 

[LazyBkpr]

But this particular forum was just formed in December 2013.  We haven't even been through an entire bee season...  How would you know you haven't received any bad advice here yet?

   Just addressing this one question...
   I think if you ever see anyone hand out advice that is outright wrong, there will be a plethora of people who will step in and question that advice.
   Most, if not ALL of the experienced beekeepers who hang out here have quite a few years of beekeeping behind them, so "NEW" is a matter of perspective. There is likely hundreds of years in combined experience at your fingertips right here.
   The bonus, is that if someone DOES give out bad advice, they too will learn from the responses, WITHOUT being flamed. Hard to find that combination anywhere.
 

[Jen]

Ditto Dennis and Scott 

[Slowmodem]

This will start a fight , but the bad advice i had was how great and easy plastic foundation was to use . ..  Jack

It should not start a fight.  It should start folks questioning why plastic foundation (or plastic frames) does not work at all for some, works very well for some and many folks are in between.  One local beek loves the stuff, another local guy doesn't like it (plastic frames) because it flexs when handled and another local fellow cannot get bees to draw it out but there is no apparent reason for the differences.

Plastic is all I've ever used.  It seems to me that if that's all there is in the hive, the bees have no choice but to use it.   Perhaps they would use a different material better.  But they're going to do what they have to to survive.

Although my screen name doesn't contain lazy, I am.  I like taking frames out of the box and putting them in the hive.  Some people like building things out of wood.  Wood frame option is good for them.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion.  I don't see a right or wrong, only different opinions. 

[DMLinton]

 

I don't see a right or wrong, only different opinions. 

I think good or bad advice is not so much a matter of correct or incorrect information as it is either incomplete information or information that does not, or may not, apply under the advisee's circumstances. 

Identifying those circumstances is sometimes challenging.  There was a thread, here I think, that I commented on a bit the other day where a beek had found 75% of his colonies with loads of swarm cells.  Initial advice, which was good in general, was to split them up.  After several posts, it became apparent that the OP's primary objective was to make some honey and, moreover, that the main nectar flow was about to start..  Hence, splitting any more than necessary, which would be pulling one small nuc and the old queen from each colony in question, would compromise the main objective.  So, there was nothing incorrect about any of the advice offered but, rather, that some of it did not fit the circumstances .... once we figured out what the circumstances were. 

Shade might be another example.  Putting hives in full sunlight in areas where SHB is present is good advice.  However, in areas where SHB has not yet turned up, some shade for the bees might be better advice.

[iddee]