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What I've done this summer - Beekeeping
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 12:44 pm Post subject: What I've done this summer - Beekeeping |
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I got started keeping bees because of a tree that was home to some. I was lucky in finding a beekeeper over the internet that helped me a lot. Then I joined a new club started localy and discovered more friends who have helped a lot. Since I have devloped this love of honey bees I read every thing I can get my hands on and try new things as one old beekeeper told me.
It is a long story that can be read here
> http://oldgrumpy.fanspace.com
For the free bees it is some thing I love to do. Catch swarms and thank the people who called profussly and tell them all I can about honey bees in hopes they pass it on.
Removing bees from all buildings except homes is I found a lot of fun. My first removal job was 3 1/2 hours from home. They had been in a grarage for about 5 years I was told. I wanted to do this removal for the queen as I felt she had some trait of mite resantance.
A new paper article was written on it also.
The pictures.
Remove as many from the out side first. Smoke them and remove from the outside again.
go inside and open the colony up.
Here is what you then see.
Removing the inside bees.
We got the queen from this job. She has given us 3 daughters so far. All our removal bees are kept in our back yard where we can watch over them for any signs of diseses. It also makes it eaiser to pull frames of 2 & 3 day old larva and placeing them in nucs with the nurse bees and some extra shaken in to make the new queen.
 Al
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 12:57 pm Post subject: |
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The below barn bees were going to be killed if we didn't remove them due to a person not wanting them on the property any more.
Most of the honey we feed back to the bees to build comb with. This barn job we did get close to 160 pounds of new honey from that we have kept for human use.
Main entrance to barn.
Brood banded into a frame. Bands made from old tractor tire 10"x24" tube.
Removing the barn boards for access to bees. area behing boards was about 5'x7'.
Removing bees from the brood.
Like in a hive the honey is usally seprate from the brood. This comb was about 4 inches thick and in some spots even thicker.
We are doing another removal from a barn on Tuesday. the barn is going to be torn down to make way for a subdivision.
All these removal bees are our queen breeder stock. In each case the bees have been there for at least 3 years with no treatments.
OH and my eyes can not see any differance in the cell size from the trees and barns than from our hives.
Al
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Garden View Apiaries. Where the view is as sweet as the honey.
Last edited by alleyyooper on Tue Sep 26, 2006 1:02 pm; edited 2 times in total
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 12:59 pm Post subject: |
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Last Honey pictures.
 Al
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:00 pm Post subject: |
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I know how to get the bees out.
 Al
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Frank
Happy Gardening
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Joined: 25 Jan 2005
Location: Malmö, Sweden
Posts: 9182
PlantStew: 1561 |
| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:01 pm Post subject: |
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Free bees, what a reward for doing a job for someone else  We missed your bee tales around here Al but glad to hear you were busy doing something you love.
Photo are superb as always. Please keep us updated on your bee removal missions 
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:03 pm Post subject: |
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I was called to remove some bees from a falling down shed on the 2nd. I went and did the job on the Saturday 5th. What a surprize!! The shed had at one time been a honey house and the new owner never knew it. There was an old Walter Kelly wax melter, in there and a old 4 frame Woodman extractor and a few old skep shaped jars. Both waxmelter and extractor were given to me. The Woodman extractor had dirt and shingles in it from the fallen down roof. After removing all the dirt and giving the insides a good hoseing I found the bottom full of holes.
I figure a tin knocker will charge the price of a new extractor to make me a new bottom.
So what would ya'll do with it? Clean it up and keep it as an antique? Try to find a tin knocker who will repair it, Dam the cost? Or just keep it for parts for some one some day?
Or Think of a good cheap way to repair it?
Al
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Garden View Apiaries. Where the view is as sweet as the honey.
Last edited by alleyyooper on Sun Sep 24, 2006 12:55 am; edited 2 times in total
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:06 pm Post subject: |
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Removing bees from a tree August 17th.
Al
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:09 pm Post subject: |
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Bee removal pictures of August 19th.
:)Al
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:12 pm Post subject: |
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Start of cleaning them up.
Not just a pretty face that attends bee meetings with me. Kare makes pollen patties, mixes syrup, cleans jars and pails for the syrup feeding and also honey storage and sale, keeps the records on our colonies {she could use a lap top} Cuts rubber bands to tie brood in frames with and also vacums bees. There are other things she does in the honey house, to much to list. She even took most of these pictures.
She caught the queen on this removal as well as got stung.
:)Al
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Garden View Apiaries. Where the view is as sweet as the honey.
Last edited by alleyyooper on Sun Sep 24, 2006 1:12 pm; edited 1 time in total
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:14 pm Post subject: |
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We got 7 deep frames of brood on this removal. About 10 pounds of bees and I bet less than a quart of honey.
Tighter than this even.
Another of Kares jobs, staining the hives, bottom boards,intercovers and outercovers.
Al
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cajunbelle
Daylily Diva
Joined: 04 Jun 2006
Location: zone 8b Louisiana (Map)
Posts: 3011
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:20 pm Post subject: |
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Wow you have been busy. Those are some really amazing and interesting pictures.
How long will a colony live in the wild. DH grew up in a small town in La. that had the worlds largest sawmill at the time. When they were kids, after the demise of the mill, they found a colony in one of the support columns. The column was about 7 ft. tall and 10 ft deep. He was wondering if the colony could possibly still be there.
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Sharon
Phil. 4:13
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eileen
Moderator & Resident Taxonomist
Moderator
Joined: 07 Feb 2005
Location: Scotland (Map)
Posts: 11169
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:20 pm Post subject: |
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Good heavens you too work sooooo hard!!! Do you have anyone to help you both out at all or do the two of you do everything all by yourselves?!!! 
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:22 pm Post subject: |
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I have also did several swarm capture jobs this summer, like the one below.
Getting ready to shake a swarm in the bucket. Buckets with the lid fastened to the pail with in handy reach works real well to shake a high swarm into.
Shook.
This type of helmit is to hot for summer work. Kept telling Kare I was going to take my 4" hole saw and drilla couple holes in it and screen it over so she got me a new white mesh one.
Al
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alleyyooper
Showing Great Promise
Joined: 18 Jul 2005
Location: Michigan (Map)
Posts: 358
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:25 pm Post subject: |
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Yes our hobby is no longer a hobby. We made the decistion last July that due to fuel cost and the price of everything raiseing as a result we needed to find jobs.
After doing a bunch of talking we decided to spend some of our savings on a honey house and increase the amount of hives we have instead of working for other people. and it is some thing we enjoy and once they are put to bed in the fall we have the winter to ourselves.
I am not sure just where we will decide enough is enough. Maybe in the 150 colony range?
Al
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Garden View Apiaries. Where the view is as sweet as the honey.
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Frank
Happy Gardening
Administrator
Joined: 25 Jan 2005
Location: Malmö, Sweden
Posts: 9182
PlantStew: 1561 |
| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:28 pm Post subject: |
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I think it's wonderful that you are working with what you love. That's always the best way
Oh yeah and not to forget... free bees!
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