« previous next »
Pages: [1]   Go Down

Author Topic: Hot Hives  (Read 4635 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline brooksbeefarm

  • Gold Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 2566
  • Thanked: 89 times
  • Location: fair grove, mo.
Hot Hives
« on: July 12, 2016, 12:52:30 am »
Been taking off honey in this 90+F with high humidity and it's not pleasant :no: Not much for the girls the gather right now, the sumac is just about ready to bloom and most of the hives are packed and the girls are not happy when i crack the lid. :no: Been getting lots of honey to extract and comb honey also, BUT i pay for it :o these girls are mean. When i remove the fume board and remove the super, they are on top of the next one and come at you as you lift the top one off :yes: The temp is so hot that i will only load 10 to 12 supers and start back home before they start melting. Eight supers is all i want to do at one time with the hot knife, my arm starts to give out, guess i'm getting old :-X Any of you having hives that are normally nice, but are mean this year??? Jack
Logged

Offline Jen

  • Platinum Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10175
  • Thanked: 240 times
  • Gender: Female
  • Location: Upper California
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #1 on: July 12, 2016, 01:44:26 am »
YUP! But Jack, you and I are different in how we handle mean bees. You are more tolerant than I of mean bees. I have a nuc now, that has been so pleasant. Today I went in to see if a transplanted queen cell had hatched yet, that's all I wanted to check on. I didn't even get the lid up 1/2 inch and they boiled out and were on me. I put the lid back down and will wait until tomorrow to suit up good and tight, and I'll go in and see what the heck is going on. Then I will make a decision  ;)

You know what? You must have suited up real good this time, because you didn't mention any stings  ;) 8)
Logged
There Is Peace In The Queendom

Offline vvand111

  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 287
  • Thanked: 17 times
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: atlanta GA
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #2 on: July 12, 2016, 01:48:36 am »
Do not know about that Jack  I look forward to when I might
Logged

Offline Jen

  • Platinum Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10175
  • Thanked: 240 times
  • Gender: Female
  • Location: Upper California
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #3 on: July 12, 2016, 01:52:21 am »
VV, you mean all the honey Jack collected? or meeting up with a hot hive?
Logged
There Is Peace In The Queendom

Offline Bakersdozen

  • Global Moderator
  • Gold Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 4635
  • Thanked: 500 times
  • Gender: Female
  • Location: Olathe, Kansas
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #4 on: July 12, 2016, 04:37:46 am »
I don't have much of an issue yet.  I haven't tried to pull any honey yet though.  My colony that I caught in the swarm lure is easily excited though.  I see a new queen in their future this fall.  The smoker works well on them. 
Jack, when you pull honey, do you use the smoker or just fume board?  I don't use the smoker because I don't want the honey to smell like smoke.
Logged

Offline vvand111

  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 287
  • Thanked: 17 times
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: atlanta GA
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #5 on: July 12, 2016, 08:28:03 am »
Jen,  I just hope I can think about Honey one day. Probably next year. I do not have a hot hive and I am not planning on honey just want to get my girls through the winter this year. Up until now the girls are very laid back. Hope they stay that way.
Logged

Offline brooksbeefarm

  • Gold Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 2566
  • Thanked: 89 times
  • Location: fair grove, mo.
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #6 on: July 12, 2016, 10:02:49 am »
B12, yes i use a smoker with the fume board,i always give a few puff of smoke when i crack the lid and wait a bit before i take it off. I then drive as many down with the smoker as i can and then put the fume board on, i've never had a problem with the honey smelling like smoke? Jen, yes i took several hits, but it was in the 90's F and i just kept working at a steady pace so i could start back home (60 miles). I drove by two other bee yards to see if they were still standing after some of the storms they've had up there, the bees were all over there front bearding, some had 5 supers on them, not bragging just a good year. Jack
Logged

Offline Jen

  • Platinum Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10175
  • Thanked: 240 times
  • Gender: Female
  • Location: Upper California
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #7 on: July 12, 2016, 11:31:52 am »
What is a fume board?

Logged
There Is Peace In The Queendom

Offline brooksbeefarm

  • Gold Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 2566
  • Thanked: 89 times
  • Location: fair grove, mo.
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #8 on: July 12, 2016, 11:47:22 am »
Here lately it's making the girls fume when i put it on. :D It looks like a lid with felt on the bottom of it that keeps spray Bee Go and other products on to put on top of a hive you want to rob and it will remove the bees from that super (drives them down ) so you can take it off bee free. Well most of the time, if there is a small patch of brood in the honey super you will have bees stay in that area.Works great for me and saves work and time. Jack
Logged

Offline tecumseh

  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 856
  • Thanked: 71 times
  • Location: College Station, Tx.
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #9 on: July 13, 2016, 07:16:15 am »
Jen... products like Fischer's Bee Quick (which smells like almonds) is a much more pleasant to use than Bee Go (which smells a bit like vomit).  Each of the bee repellants is temperature sensitive.
Logged

Offline Jen

  • Platinum Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10175
  • Thanked: 240 times
  • Gender: Female
  • Location: Upper California
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #10 on: July 13, 2016, 02:14:33 pm »
Interesting that the bee's don't like the scent of almonds ...
Logged
There Is Peace In The Queendom

Offline Woody Roberts

  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 387
  • Thanked: 2 times
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: Ash Grove MO.
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #11 on: July 17, 2016, 05:40:01 pm »
Hey Jack
It's been a good honey year for me also but I've worked some of the meanest bees I've ever seen. I've started wearing an extra pair of pants and thin cotton gloves under my bee gloves. I'll still get a few stings but the stingers hanging out of my gloves and pants will number in the high hundreds and maybe more.

These are all 3 deeps that are boiling with bees. My smaller hives are just slightly meaner than normal. We are working a lot of overtime and it seems when I can work my bees it's thundering.

At the best I would describe my bees as "testy". Add in the fact that they have honey to protect and a thunderstorm approaching and I can expect them to be ready to repel boarders.

I've found smoke with hives like this to be a waste of time. I still use it just in case but if the smoker dies it doesn't make a difference. When I tear into these big hives I look like I'm going after plutonium. Then I just wade in amongst them like Sampson among the Phillistines.

I usually only pick up about 100 stings a year. I'm way past that this year!
Logged

Offline brooksbeefarm

  • Gold Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 2566
  • Thanked: 89 times
  • Location: fair grove, mo.
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #12 on: July 17, 2016, 05:55:59 pm »
Woody, seems like i get one nice hive out of three and the nice one doesn't stay nice for very long :no:I past my annual rate of stings back in May, i expect to get stung now every time i go into a hive, but don't know how many times :o  The honey makes it worth it, :yes: Jack
Logged

Offline Woody Roberts

  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 387
  • Thanked: 2 times
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: Ash Grove MO.
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #13 on: July 17, 2016, 06:03:01 pm »
It seems every time I get a nice hive they either turn mean after a couple supersedures or the die out for one reason or another.
My meanest hives just keep on going. I remarked to the guy at the feed store the other day that I was going home to gather a little honey. He said don't get stung. I assured him I would get stung. It's not a matter of if only of how many.
Logged

Offline Bakersdozen

  • Global Moderator
  • Gold Member
  • *******
  • Posts: 4635
  • Thanked: 500 times
  • Gender: Female
  • Location: Olathe, Kansas
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #14 on: July 17, 2016, 06:32:29 pm »
I requeened two colonies out in the country today.  I checked on them Friday, one was docile and the other was meaner that any hive I have ever had.  No brood or signs of queen in either one.  They had back filled the brood frames with honey.  I am not sure what has happened to make them cranky, but maybe it's the sudden dearth.  Today the mean hive was fierce.  They followed me back to the car.  I had to get into the car with veil still on and drive a few feet to get them to give up.  One girl insisted on coming home with me.  I stopped about a mile away and booted her out. 
Logged

Offline vvand111

  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 287
  • Thanked: 17 times
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: atlanta GA
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #15 on: July 17, 2016, 11:06:12 pm »
WOW  mine are still docile. I only have 2 but learning from you guys. Have you heard about the Hypothesis of the queen mating with African drones. ? do you think there could be anything to that in your case????
Logged

Offline Jen

  • Platinum Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10175
  • Thanked: 240 times
  • Gender: Female
  • Location: Upper California
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #16 on: July 18, 2016, 12:59:06 am »
VV, I live in upper northern Calif and there have been african bees spotted in central Calif this year. Last year and this year I had two very mean hives. The kind where I just step out my back door and they are in my face. I'm worried.
Logged
There Is Peace In The Queendom

Offline brooksbeefarm

  • Gold Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 2566
  • Thanked: 89 times
  • Location: fair grove, mo.
Re: Hot Hives
« Reply #17 on: July 18, 2016, 09:10:03 am »
VV, no we don't have AHB here YET, but i have heard they have made it too southern Arkansas.Jack
Logged
Pages: [1]   Go Up
« previous next »