Kalamazoo Bee Club

Mites, Robbing, Feeding

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Saturday, August 19, is National Honeybee Day.

For non-beekeepers, it’s great there is a day to focus on this essential pollinator. For we beekeepers, it’s another day for us to focus on our favorite insect during a very critical month. Much of what happens with bees in August sets them up for overwintering success. August’s honeybees are building the bees that need to make it through winter; August’s honeybees need to be in peak physical condition.

That powder-dusted reddish spot is a mite. You younger folks would’ve been able to see its legs wiggling.

The best and most effective step toward hive health is Varroa mite control. I recently heard Dr. Zachary Huang speak about dead colonies; he estimates 90% of all hive deaths may be traced to Varroa mites. Varroa mites vector diseases that shorten bees’ lives—resulting in fewer bees to fill up the cupboards for winter, fewer bees to keep the queen warm and soften honey for consumption in January, fewer bees to nurture brood when snow is flying in February.Continue Reading

Robbing & Other Fall Events

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A fellow beekeeper recently summarized it well: “It’s a bee-itch to love a bug.” So so so true, especially this time of year.

Bottom board view of a robbed-out colony

Bottom board view of a robbed-out colony

Mite counts are soaring–are you testing, and treating if need bee? A count can go out of control real quickly in a strong colony, because it may be robbing from weaker colonies (who have counts way out of control.) And there’s plenty of robbing going on, with the thieves not only wasps and hornets, but also friendly turned frenzied honeybees.Continue Reading

What You Mite Want To Do (if you want to keep your bees alive)

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This time of year is one of the most enjoyable times of beekeeping. Colonies are hopefully strong and productive. If you’re a newbee, you’ve figured out drone versus worker brood, what capped honey looks like, and how to keep the smoker going more than five minutes (salute!) You love your bees; they’re loving you back. You can just coast into fall, right?

WRONG.

Dr. Marla Spivak, recipient of a Genius Grant for her work with honeybees (among other impressive credentials) summarizes it well: “Left untreated, varroa mites kill most bee colonies within one to two years.”

All colonies have varroa mites; some (very few) have the genetic traits to keep them under control. Unless you are monitoring your bees to determine their level of infestation … and treating if it exceeds threshold, the little winged darlings are going to die a painful death. Lots of people have bees … but really keeping bees requires active and appropriate management, including knowing your mite level, and keeping it under control.

Beyond being able to call yourself a true beekeeper (instead of being a bee-haver), you probably got bees because you wanted to help them and the planet. You’ve put a lot of time, money and sweat into your bees and are emotionally invested in them. Don’t let them down now.

So let’s try and keep them from dying. Here’s what you do:

  1. Now – August — test your infestation level with a powdered sugar roll. It’s simple, takes about five minutes, and it is almost sort of fun (for you, not necessarily the bees, but it isn’t destructive to them.) I can’t get the video to upload on this site, but you can find it on my site, sorry! Detailed instructions are found in the HBHC Guide_Varroa_Interactive_23Sep, page 7.
  2. As described in the guide, determine the level, and see if it is OK for August (what’s acceptable varies by time of year; colonies in SW Michigan are generally at population peak in early August.) Page 8 of the guide tells you what is acceptable when.
  3. React to the number of mites appropriately:
  • If the test revealed more than 15 mites, you’ve got “dead hive walking” unless you do something immediately. Review the guide to determine the best option for you … and treat. And then check again after the prescribed amount of time to ensure treating did what it was supposed to do.
  • More than 6? You’ve got a week or so before you need to test again to see if your beloved insects are definitely in danger or not. Schedule to test again in a week or so.
  • Less than 6? Awesome. Kick back until September, when you’ll test again.

“Denial is not a strategy”

When you were first learning about beekeeping, you might have missed the part about varroa monitoring and having a strategy for how you’re going to deal with this devastating parasite that all colonies have. The beekeeping learning curve is broad and steep, and includes understanding the very real varroa threat and strategizing what you’re going to do about them.

If you’ve read this far, you can’t claim ignorance any longer. As Dr. Meghan Milbrath said, “denial is not a strategy.” ALL colonies have mites; the issue is whether your bees can keep them under control or not, and unfortunately – most cannot as we go into fall. There’s an excellent blog here that explains why.

Assuming your bees are fine also doesn’t help the planet (one of the reasons you wanted bees, right?) Uncontrolled varroa in your hive not only dooms them, but as your colony declines from the undeniable, life-shortening impact of varroa, it can no longer defend itself. Strong colonies in the area, with varroa under control, will raid its stores. Mites are smart. They’ll hop on the back of the raiding bees and leave the sinking ship for more the healthy bee colonies of responsible beekeepers and wild colonies, starting them on a parallel march toward death.

But but but …

I know you wanted to keep bees chemical free. Most of us do … but first you have to keep them alive. And, “left untreated, varroa mites kill most bee colonies …”

Just do it

Monitor. Treat if need bee, and then monitor again to make sure it worked.

And then monitor again in September, and maybe even October depending upon your counts.

Meanwhile, study natural ways to help bees combat mites, like splits and drone trapping.

We desperately need bees …. And beekeepers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Want further motivation? Think about your spouse. Your Honey is perhaps already a little miffed about how the time and money your honeybee hobby has consumed. (And if you’re like most beekeepers, well, we’ve kept Honey in the dark about some of the costs.) It won’t be that fun explaining to Honey that you need to drop another $125 next spring to replace dead bees.

 

Tucking in Tidbits

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The forecast this week is full of more unseasonably warm temperatures.  If you haven’t “put your bees to bed” yet, my blog ‘Honey, Bear in Mind’ at www.hubbardhive.com outlines part of what we do when weather allows you to still get in the hive.  There are lots of other opinions and options out there of course, but we generally have better survival than local averages so we must be doing something right.  We also had many years of doing things wrong …

On sunny days, our bees are frantic for this sweet stuff.

On sunny days, our bees are frantic for this sweet stuff.

We’ve had killing frosts, so there’s little forage available.  Our bees are consuming their winter stores, which causes me to wonder what they’re going to eat come February and March.  We’re open feeding 2:1 sugar syrup, but far away from the hives to try to avoid setting off raiding.

Many people have asked how long they should feed.  Bees will slow down or stop when it is cold; we like to have feed available as long as there’s a chance they’ll take it.  And at 2:1, you don’t have to worry about the syrup freezing until we’re consistently well below freezing.Continue Reading

They Aren’t Watching Football in There

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Many of us are all ready suffering from bee withdrawal.  The weather is such that we can no longer check things in the hive (whether or not they ever really needed to be checked!) …. or even watch bees go in and out.  I miss my bees.

October will hopefully bring some delightfully sunny days when the winged darlings can still secure stores from the remaining asters, goldenrod and any enduring annuals.  (Recently I spied a dandelion in our yard.  I wanted to put a flag next to it to help them find it.)  But because food sources are fading, my light-by-weight colonies continue to receive 2:1 sugar syrup, mixed heavily with honey we obtained from honeybee extractions, to help them fill their cupboards.

My zinnias are slowing down, but on sunny days, they're still well visited.

My zinnias are slowing down, but on sunny days, they’re still well visited.

I will so miss interacting with my bees.  Missing them however will be dwarfed by my worrying about them.  (Not that that does much good.)  If you’re joining me in worrying about your bees, or are simply curious about what goes on in the winter cluster, here’s an excerpt from two bee experts that is enlightening.Continue Reading

It’s *Almost* Time to Start Reflecting on Your Summer

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Well it’s the third week of August which, in beekeeping time, is kind of the beginning of a wind down. Sure we have several months before snow and cold (thank goodness), but as a beekeeper, it’s never too early to start thinking ahead; that’s one thing I wish we would have done more often as novice keepers. Our first two years we were so stuck in the now and pretty focused on honey collection as a gauge of success. The reality is, bees will make honey. Yes, some will make more than others and yes, there are things you can do to affect this, but it’s similar to how chickens will lay eggs. No matter what, a chicken is going to lay an egg most days. Sure you can feed superior food and run a light when the days shorten, but much of the egg-laying business is really just nature. Another analogy I’m fond of is two-year-olds and tantrums: they’ll have one, almost everyday, it’s just nature. But back to beekeeping….

Bee on Knapweed2 w name

This time of year I find a lot of beekeepers bragging on forums and Facebook groups. A lot pictures of tall hives and admissions of “8, 12, 16, 18 frames of honey!” as if you’ve worked all summer for only that: honey.  Now don’t get me wrong, if you’ve ever worked a hive in 90 degree heat and humidity (which most of you have), then you’ve earned that honey, but let’s hold ourselves to higher standards and, more importantly, keep in mind that there is more to beekeeping than honey.Continue Reading

Creating a New Apiary

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I know this is strange blog posting. But I am working with a local school to set up an apiary. They want to have some basic information for planning. So I worked up the ideas below. I did not get real specific, but would like to know from readers if I have left anything out. Please comment.

Considerations for apiary location

  • Avoid damp or low spots.
  • Provide a windbreak.
  • Position hive to receive the morning sun and some shade in the afternoon.
  • Avoid spraying insecticides in the area.
  • Provide a security fence of at least 6′ so bees fly over peoples’ heads.
  • Provide physical security with a locking gate.
  • Put up a sign to warn people with allergies to avoid the apiary.
  • Build a sturdy weather-proof table to set hive bodies on when working the hives.
  • Provide a locker or storage for equipment, such as bee suits. hive tools, smokers.
  • Arrange hives so they can be worked from the back.

Considerations for apiary managementContinue Reading

Where’s the Honey?

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Where’s the Honey?

 

My husband and I have been keeping bees for about four years and I like to think that every year we know less about bees than we did the year before. Oh sure, we’ve learned a lot, but in each new thing we learn, 100 more questions are raised. This year we faced a problem that I never knew could happen. I mean, now looking back, it makes sense that it could happen, but prior to this fall, it was not on my radar of “things to worry about.” Our bees didn’t make enough honey. I don’t mean, “didn’t make enough honey for me to eat or sell.” I mean, didn’t make enough honey for their own winter survival.

honey title

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Welcome to the Blog

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Back before social media was so easily and widely used, this website was used to share insights and key bee activities. The blog is no longer updated BUT — there’s some great historical information here, and thus we’re leaving the info here, although some of it may be a bit outdated.

 

There’s Never Just One

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By Charlotte Hubbard
Author of “Dronings from a Queen Bee”

The first fall I lived on my own, the gales of November had just started to blow bitterly when I found evidence that I wasn’t really living on my own. There were mouse droppings throughout my kitchen.

I purchased and baited traps, and stood ready for the critter’s return. Later that night I called my parents to proudly tell them how I’d solved that problem, all by myself.

My Dad then said something I’ve never forgotten. “You actually have two problems. The first is the mouse; the second is thinking you only have one.”

Sure enough, and as usual, Dad was right. Over the next few months, I unloaded and reset traps numerous times. Had I saved and stitched together all those little pelts I could’ve made quite the giant mouse costume.

Fast forward several decades, to early October of this year …Continue Reading