Bee tempers, rants, and other things.

[Kemper]

I've had my bees for a few years now, as long as I've been reading this forum. I read a lot of posts from other saying their bees are aggresive and chase them, or they smoke the bees everytime they get near the hives, or they suit up just to mow near them. I'm the fourth generation (that we have record of) of beekeeper in my family and my dad has said basically the same thing.

I guess I've always had very gentle bees. I mow right next to the hives with a push mower. I move the hives around. I even do complete tear downs without smoke, wearing only shorts and a t-shirt. They rarly even notice me, much less try to sting me. I've used my smoker twice this year and that was just to get the bees to move out of the while placing a feeder. I'm not making an "I'm better than you because I don't use smoke or a veil" statement here. Surly I can't be this blissfully unaware of the real "danger". I think it's possible to mess with them too much. As an aside, our culture seems to be one full of hypochondriacs, looking for a miracle pill or herb to substitue common sense, responsibility, and old fashioned hard work or to prevent the natural aging process. People and animals get old, get sick and die. That's nature. I get the feeling that many beekeepers project these obsessive personal traits onto the bees. I leave them alone and let them be as God created them(I know, human selective breeding...I'm speaking generally here.), giving a little help here and there when they encounter the problems that humans have given them. I think the bees and the beekeepers would be much happier if we all just step back and stop all this irrationa,l obsessive behavior. Look at the big picture. I hope I'm not too far out of line here. If I had someone coming into my house all the time, moving things around, and asking if I felt OK, I'd be angry (angrier, I guess) too! I feel that it's OK to ask questions, but I sometimes wonder about the overall state of a person's affairs when I read some of these posts. Relax (that goes for me too) the bees are animals, not machines. They don't always do what you want or think they should do. It doesn't mean the sky is falling. This isn't directed at anyone or any topic. It been seething for a while. I apologise in advance for this post, but I think these reminders need to be said from time to time.

[Terri]

Nothing takes the place of experience. I have found that the bees RARELY get upset if I move slowly and gently.

Unless it is chilly, of course.

But, since I have all of 1 year of experience, I need the smoke so that I am not stung many times whenever I DO blunder! I often have no idea what I am doing that is making them angry, that is something to figure out later.

If I can figure it out at all.

I DO know that when I have the hive half open and the brood exposed, I MUST finish what I am doing and close it up. If that means smoking the bees when they start head-butting me, so be it.

I don't know if a sting still bothers you or not, but I get a red patsh 12 inches across that itches for 4 days. I don't want to risk being stung several times because I did some unknown thing to set the bees off. I may become immune in time, but I am NOT immune yet!

I don't USUALLY smoke the bees, but if they threaten be, they get smoked. I have smoked them twice this year so far.

We all start at the same place. Difference is, you started at age 10, and I started at age 48.

I like bees, they are cool and usually gentle. They are also armed. Me having a smoker protects us both.


[This message has been edited by Terri (edited May 28, 2004).]

[James Urbish]

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[Kemper]

Actually I started at 26, four years ago. The family hasn't had bees since the 80's. My dad struggled between healthy and dead bees up until last summer. Like many, he seemed to fight "nature's way" and ha ssince given up. What little I know, I learned by reading and researching and observing on my own. Before varroa it was easy. Now it takes more than many are willing to invest. I suppose people are so frightened over losing the bees that they panic over everything.

I don't like to get stung and for whatever reason my bees have never been aggressive toward me. They do bump into me, but I assume that they are returning foragers as it only happens once in a while.

I work for the Dept. of Agriculture trying to stop the invasion of the Gypsy Moth. Some of my post stems from the odd questions and assumptions people have about nature. Eating a poison ivy leaf won't make you immune to it and obsessing over a bee with a slightly more yellow body will make you crazy. People are so far removed from agriculture and nature that it's a foreign concept to them.

When I notice something I think is strange in a hive, I research and read about it. Usually it's normal. Then I ask myself, "If these bees were in a hollow tree would they survive?" Usually the answer is yes. Varroa, No. AFB, No. Eggs in the super, yes. They survived for millenia without us and only need us now because we've messed with things so much.


I'm sure my post is offensive to some, but I meant no harm. It's just a suggestion to relax.

[Daisy]

Well if you read all the posts that come in here and on the other popular message boards, you wonder if you're not getting inside the hives enough... LOL

But there's little experience gained if you don't get inside your hives and see what all the chatter is about. Sure the bees don't like it... But most of us have never seen inside a hive until we bought our bee goodies and put in our first colony. At least this was my experience. I had no idea what I was looking at.

I remember my first year... I didn't know that brood was supposed to be surround by honey and pollen. Heck I didn't know what a pollen bread looked like... Sheesh.

I would move those frames around into Goddess only Knows, places. I bet I did more to cause my bees to get sick then I'll ever realize.

But I learned a whole lot in two years.

The colonies are still kickin even through all my learnin.

Now though, I know stuff just by listening and observing from the outside. I couldn't have come to this point had it not been for getting inside my hives every couple of weeks while I was learning.

[Kemper]

I guess if you are disrupting them all the time your chances of "being taught a lesson" go up. I sit down less than two feet from the front of the hives almost everyday. From my experience they only become aggressive when you talk a lot or breathe on them. I can't see how normal bees would attack you if you simply looked inside. In my opinion, if a person has that kind of fearful/antagonistic attitude toward the bees, they may as well not have them.

[Michael Grodeman]

I know in my case, half the reason for the protective gear, the smoke and all the rest is my own fear. I know I have nothing really to fear, I know that honey bees are 'relativly' harmless. That does not make fear go away. I have been afraid of bees and other flying incects for over 30 years. Mostly from getting stung near fataly when me and my cousens drove our trikes into a beehive. Having all that protective gear helps to keep me from flinching away and doing something stupid just becuase a fly buzed past. I posted earlyer about actualy getting into my first hive earlyer, and probly wasted everyones time on saying that I did it, I actualy opened the hive and looked inside. For me, thats a major step. If I had not been so fearfull, I probly could have done the whole thing without even a veil. I do not know if anyone else is dealing with a fear factor in working with bees, but, I am glad to be working to make my fear go away. For now, I have to have the smoke, and the rest, because it alows me to be more comfortable with the bees. In time, I will need it less and less, but, we must allways give the little ladys there due, and the respect thay have earned.

[James Urbish]

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[Kemper]

I just wanted to chime in one last time to clear up a few things.

I think fear is a common, healthy emotion...for beginners. Smoke and clothing are necessary items to have for everyone. I have my great grandfather's smoker and it was in use until last summer. When I started, I used to wear Kevlar and ballistic steel. This is the fear that drives you to understand and learn. This fear implies respect, which is a critical part of being a responsible person, in my opinion. My wife thinks if the bees are flying near her, they are trying to sting her. Many people are like that, maybe not to that degree. Many of these people are beekeepers. Primarily, I was commenting on the irrational fear that prompts the desperate measures that people take to "keep the bees healthy" and the immediate assumption of the worst case scenario.

I also think asking questions is important and necessary. However, I think you should observe, hypothesize, research, and then question. I think much of the fear and misinformation is due to the lack of self education through research.



[This message has been edited by Kemper (edited May 28, 2004).]

[Rooster4473]

I have just started with bees this year, and I am facinated, but it in the same respects I will freely admit it is confusing.

I check my hive every week cuz thats what the book I read suggests, but mainly cuz it is interesting to see their work. But I am still unsure if this often is nessary.

The book also suggested that I smoke the hive, but for some reason my bees seem more pissed with the smoke then with out it, so I only smoke a tiny bit here and there, mainly so I don't squish them when I put everything back togeather.

Right now my bees are friendly enough you can ride the ATV right by the hive, and mow right by the hive. I am unsure if once the hive gets going good this will still be true, but for now I will enjoy their clamness.

I am not afraid to get stung, I have never been stung, and I do not know if I am allergic to bee stings. If you speak to my cardiologist he thinks I'm nutz for having the bees, because of my breathing problems if I am alergic to the bees I guess it is more risky, and the Dr. assures me that the Epipen would be detromental to my health. So I wear "full body armor" when I open the hive to inspect. Although I don't really feel it is necessary.

And to top it off I don't like honey, I have no idea what I'm going to do with it if I get any. I don't even know if I need a permit or be inspected to sell it. I may try mead, although I'm not allowed to drink, I have some buds who do.

Basically the bees just interest me, If I can keep them alive and they don't run away I'm gonna be thrilled with just watching them live.

[James Urbish]

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[Rooster4473]

Bee killing hornet ? Does PA have a bee killing hornet ? Please say no. I'm already worried enough about me killing my bees with out worrying about a bee killing hornet.

[James Urbish]

http://www.beesource.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/001604.html Check this out

[Rooster4473]

WOW !!! Very impressive, yet heart wrenching at the same time.

This should probabbly be a seperate post, I noticed reading the other posts about those wasps that someone mentioned using the "old queen excluder that go on the outside of the hive" I have a few of those, does anyone still use them, and why or why not?

[Michael Bush]

>This should probabbly be a seperate post, I noticed reading the other posts about those wasps that someone mentioned using the "old queen excluder that go on the outside of the hive" I have a few of those, does anyone still use them, and why or why not?

Basically you can accomplish almost the same thing with an exluder on the bottom board but it takes more work to remove it.

It's a great thing when you just hived a package or a swarm and you want to keep them in place for a day or so to get settled in.

The problem in the long run is the drones can't get out so they pile up and die at the entrance.

[James Urbish]

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