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On April 12, I attempted an experiment wherein I took three frames having mostly capped brood cells, and two capped queen swarm cells, and placed them into the upper of two deep brood boxes. The...

Also, the pH of honey is between 3.2 and 4.5 -- low enough to inhibit the growth of many common bacteria.

When I find brood (almost always drone) in my supers, I consolidate these frames into one box. I then put an imirie shim on top of a queen excluder, place this combo on the hive and finally put the...

Ross,

Your comment, I believe, is more directed to comb that was cut from another frame, or comb gotten from a feral hive. I used that technique to move comb from a plastic frame that had an ear...

Waya,

I'll try the nail thingy since it's such a simple and effective sounding idea that works for you.

Thanks loads,
(The World is Your)Oyster

Michael,

>They will eventually attach it. If you want to speed things along next time, try leaving the bottom bar down 3/8" with a nail holding it (in other words nailed on but 3/8" low). Then...

Several frames of comb that were begun with starter strips have a gap of less than a inch at the bottom where the bees have not tied the comb to the bottom bar. Is there a way to encourage the bees...

I had TONS of bees under my SBB, and they even began to build comb! I thought it might be happening because the Betterbee pollen trap was restricting their ability to enter the hive too much. I...

Michael,

Thanks for clarifying the bullet shape question. Now I have no doubt when looking at the cells cappings as to what lies beneath.


skidmld,

I know what you mean about the bee clubs....

But are the caps bullet shaped to signify a drone is developing, or can the caps be any shape? If they are any shape, a beekeeper might not know if a queen is missing because flat caps would lead...

"Do you have a pollen trap on? If so, she won't be able to get back after she mates."

Michael,

I use a Betterbee pollen trap that I prop open every other day. If there was a virgin queen that...

I should have stated "emergency cells" instead of "supersedure cells"

Earlier last week I noticed that my previously strongest hive (I have 3) was not bringing in much pollen (based on a comparison of my pollen traps). That did not seem right since a robust hive would...

If the queen has been missing for an extended time and some worker bees begin to lay eggs, I assume they would lay eggs in drone cells since all resultant bees would be drones. If they ran out of...

As quoted on page 88 of Lee Valley Tools 2006 catalog:

"The Therapik is used to focus heat on an insect bite to neutralize the venom and avoid swelling and itchiness....It takes about 20 seconds...

Dovetails are stronger for the basic reason that it provides more surface area to glue than rabbets.

There are two disadvantages to dovetails:

1. Moisture absorption can warp the ends, making...

J:

I used both whole sheets of small cell foundation and starter strips, and the bees drew comb equally fast on both, so I decided not to waste money using full sheets.

If any frames have brood in them, I would move them to an upper box and add a queen excluder to ensure that no more eggs are layed in those frames. Moving frames to the edges of the brood box won't...

Do you have wedged or slotted top bars?

If wedged, remove the old comb, remove the wedge, add a starter strip, and reinstall the wedge. I use small cell wax foundation that I cut into 3/4 inch...

Dick,

I'm just collecting the pollen for family use, so two tablespoons a day per hive is quite adequate for me. I wouldn't want to deprive the hives of the pollen which is essential for them,...

I used two Betterbee pollen traps this past summer. It mounts on two L hooks that are screwed into the front of the hive, so it can be installed or removed in seconds.

I haven't noticed any dead...

Althea was trying to make a different point from yours, but both of you are correct from your individual perspectives.

Your point was that honey bees are necessary to the success of much of the...

The Betterbee Pollen Trap ($14.95) has a drone hole on each side that would allow a mating queen to exit/enter. To be on the safe side when using this trap, the screen can be lifted and kept open...

power napper,

I also empty the pollen trays at night, and few, if any, bees are out on the trap at that time. Even for the few that are there, it only takes one second to remove the tray, and...

I installed two Betterbee pollen traps about two weeks ago. On one, I collect about 1 tablespoon per day, and on the other, about double that.

I leave the trap operational all the time, since...