Dogma
Loving the herd life
Makes perfect sense.
Want to start raising bees in the spring. Any advice welcome!
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Dogma
Loving the herd life
Beekeeping is rather frustrating because you never get the same answer ... My favorite quote so far is " if you ask 10 bee keepers 1 question you get 11 answers!" And it's so true the varied differing opinions etc... I'm just sick over losing a second hive. Thank you all for the support. I wish I found this site sooner!!!
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manybirds
Loving the herd life
Are mites better/worse in the colder climate up here? If I do decide to do bees should I go ahead and order mite treatment right away and do it as soon as they settle in?
babsbag
Herd Master
I think that most of us on here are pretty much beginners but between all of us hopefully we have information from experience that is really worth something.
@Latestarter. That actually makes sense; it would explain a lot. I did lose a hive to starvation one year and the bees died with their heads in the comb. That was a hard one to see and that is when I was told that bees won't leave the brood nest to get to the feed. I had fed them but it was above a deep that was empty, I should have removed the deep anyways to conserve heat but it was my first year with bees and I had no clue. Hard lesson to learn, but harder for the bees.
@Latestarter. That actually makes sense; it would explain a lot. I did lose a hive to starvation one year and the bees died with their heads in the comb. That was a hard one to see and that is when I was told that bees won't leave the brood nest to get to the feed. I had fed them but it was above a deep that was empty, I should have removed the deep anyways to conserve heat but it was my first year with bees and I had no clue. Hard lesson to learn, but harder for the bees.
@Dogma you are absolutely right... there are so many answers and none are 100% accurate, and all will vary to some degree. It has to do with the type bees, the type hive, the location of the hive, weather patterns/changes, food sources, local issues, etc. All you can do is take it in as best you can, then bounce it off what you're experiencing and then make decisions based on what you think best for your particular situation. I strongly recommend that you join a local bee club as they can be a priceless asset when you need help or have questions. If there isn't one local, call the state apiarist and ask for referrals of bee keepers close to you that you can contact. Many folks are bee owners... it takes constant learning/study, experience, and trial and error to become a bee keeper. It's kinda like owning a pet dog... You don't just spur of the moment go buy a dog... You need to do your homework before purchase, but it doesn't stop there... you have to KEEP learning and training, and adapting through the entire ownership period.
Don't let the loss of 2 hives get you down! I started with 2 and lost one, I won't know till this coming spring if the one will make it or not. The average beekeeper nationwide is losing 30-50% of their hives annually. Bees are in trouble! That's why bee keepers are needed so badly. Some one has to help the bees.
@manybirds Varroa mites are everywhere... except Australia as I recall... they haven't lucked into them yet, mostly because they are so restrictive on animal imports after all the nightmares they're already dealing with due to non native, invasive species being imported.
You normally don't need to start out with a mite treatment for one reason... at the beginning of the season, the queen is an egg laying machine and the hive will be growing by leaps and bounds once the first pollen becomes available. They'll be gearing up for the nectar flows to follow. The bee production will exceed to begin with, then at least keep balance with the mites for the most part. Also, you don't want chemicals/treatments in the hive during honey gathering! So AFTER you pull the honey supers and start getting the hives ready to gear down, that's the best time to do the mite treatment. You start eliminating them as the queen laying is decreasing, so you kill them as the queen is laying her winter brood... the bees that will have to try and survive the entire winter. That's when having no varroa is most important.
Don't let the loss of 2 hives get you down! I started with 2 and lost one, I won't know till this coming spring if the one will make it or not. The average beekeeper nationwide is losing 30-50% of their hives annually. Bees are in trouble! That's why bee keepers are needed so badly. Some one has to help the bees.
@manybirds Varroa mites are everywhere... except Australia as I recall... they haven't lucked into them yet, mostly because they are so restrictive on animal imports after all the nightmares they're already dealing with due to non native, invasive species being imported.
You normally don't need to start out with a mite treatment for one reason... at the beginning of the season, the queen is an egg laying machine and the hive will be growing by leaps and bounds once the first pollen becomes available. They'll be gearing up for the nectar flows to follow. The bee production will exceed to begin with, then at least keep balance with the mites for the most part. Also, you don't want chemicals/treatments in the hive during honey gathering! So AFTER you pull the honey supers and start getting the hives ready to gear down, that's the best time to do the mite treatment. You start eliminating them as the queen laying is decreasing, so you kill them as the queen is laying her winter brood... the bees that will have to try and survive the entire winter. That's when having no varroa is most important.
babsbag
Herd Master
My package bees didn't make it until fall. I will treat with Hopguard next Spring. Here is an interesting article, I didn't read it all...no glasses...@latestarter, let me know what it says in entirety. 
But it does say that Hopguard can be used and should be used early in the year on packages.
But it does say that Hopguard can be used and should be used early in the year on packages.
no link @babsbag I'll be more than happy to read for you.
babsbag
Herd Master
Ooops. My eyes are so bad tonight that it just hurts to read and I still need to do DH travel claims for last month. 
Don't ask why I do them...they get done.
Don't ask why I do them...they get done.
Basically said that doing 3-4 treatments (max of 3 in CA; by law, max of 6 strips per deep per year allowed) was best, one in the package for min 48 hours before install with 1/4 strip size. Then basically every 2 months with the final application as the bees are slowing down for the late fall winter. But that makes sense.
"So it seems that the most effective mite knock-down was in colonies that received 3 or 4 treatments during the year and particularly important were the late season applications."
"...The suggested timing of the treatment is when there is minimal brood in the hive so the mites can’t “hide”. It sounds to me like packaged bees might be an ideal time to treat. If your bees are already in a hive try to treat early in the season when the brood is just building up or late in the fall when brood starts tapering off (BUT don’t wait too long as you don’t want your colonies to succumb to Varroa)."
And of course, one should follow IPM (Integrated Pest Management):
"...you don’t want to wait until your mite populations absolutely explode in the hives in order to treat. A possibility would be to follow an IPM approach by applying a different miticide around Hopguard® II or, if you have fewer colonies, try utilizing physical or mechanical control such as use of screened bottom boards, drone comb removal or creating a break in brood cycle by caging the queen or splitting your colonies. Going with Varroa resistant/tolerant honey bee stock is yet another possibility so think about it when you’re purchasing your next batch of queens."
It says they can be used while honey supers are on, but I wouldn't want to do that. The newest label also states that the strips are good for 30 days and should be left in the hive that long to cover the entire brood cycle. This article alludes to another article that says the strips should be placed in the hive 3 consecutive times over 3 consecutive weeks to work... I don't think this is the case. I'll let you know for sure in the spring when I open my hive...
So yes, I guess you could/should consider doing a spring treatment as they start building the brood chamber...
"So it seems that the most effective mite knock-down was in colonies that received 3 or 4 treatments during the year and particularly important were the late season applications."
"...The suggested timing of the treatment is when there is minimal brood in the hive so the mites can’t “hide”. It sounds to me like packaged bees might be an ideal time to treat. If your bees are already in a hive try to treat early in the season when the brood is just building up or late in the fall when brood starts tapering off (BUT don’t wait too long as you don’t want your colonies to succumb to Varroa)."
And of course, one should follow IPM (Integrated Pest Management):
"...you don’t want to wait until your mite populations absolutely explode in the hives in order to treat. A possibility would be to follow an IPM approach by applying a different miticide around Hopguard® II or, if you have fewer colonies, try utilizing physical or mechanical control such as use of screened bottom boards, drone comb removal or creating a break in brood cycle by caging the queen or splitting your colonies. Going with Varroa resistant/tolerant honey bee stock is yet another possibility so think about it when you’re purchasing your next batch of queens."
It says they can be used while honey supers are on, but I wouldn't want to do that. The newest label also states that the strips are good for 30 days and should be left in the hive that long to cover the entire brood cycle. This article alludes to another article that says the strips should be placed in the hive 3 consecutive times over 3 consecutive weeks to work... I don't think this is the case. I'll let you know for sure in the spring when I open my hive...
So yes, I guess you could/should consider doing a spring treatment as they start building the brood chamber...
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Happy Chooks
Loving the herd life
After losing my hive the first year, I reinstalled in the spring the next year and I treat for mites every fall. (late August) I've been using Apiguard (thymol based) and have been happy with the results. I have not tried Hopguard yet. It's always surprising to see the number of mites that fall when your hive looks so strong. Latestarter is correct, Australia does not have mite issues as of yet. We didn't either until the last 10-15 years or so.
I learn something every time I open my hive, so there is no set way of dealing with bees, you just read and take what you think will work for your area. Some people have a heck of a time with small hive beetles, but so far, I haven't even seen one. I've killed a couple of wax moth larva. (2 in 4 years) Even in speaking with the beekeeper that I buy my bees from, he says after 20+ years with bees, he is still learning. Just when you think you know everything, the bees surprise you. They are fascinating insects.
I learn something every time I open my hive, so there is no set way of dealing with bees, you just read and take what you think will work for your area. Some people have a heck of a time with small hive beetles, but so far, I haven't even seen one. I've killed a couple of wax moth larva. (2 in 4 years) Even in speaking with the beekeeper that I buy my bees from, he says after 20+ years with bees, he is still learning. Just when you think you know everything, the bees surprise you. They are fascinating insects.
