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Definitely the bees vote in drives for Joe Pye Weed. Last summer I saw four different types of bees on it at once. I collected seed and will be trying to propagate it this coming season.

Rob

Hi all. I am planning to set a few swarm traps out this year.

Has anyone ever had an issue being challenged by another beekeeper that you have trapped their bees (and maybe they want them back)? ...

Wearing a hat/veil and keeping all the hair inside probably would, though? :)

Further to the question about the potentially troublesome alkaloids in echium pollen, nectar and honey, this advisory comes from the Aus/NZ food standards people, where they have whole paddocks miles...

Well this is very interesting. Having determined that I still have viable colonies after winter (well, it's not really over, but getting there) I have been planning out this year's bee pasture...

Interesting thread....I tried some different bee plantings last summer, one that was very successful was coriander...I have never seen the bees so frenetic as when they were working it, kind of like...

Thanks to all for the replies.

It seems as if 'dysentery' is a rather imprecise term, which may or may not mean disease is present. I would be surprised if my bees had nosema, as they were on new...

I made mine of eastern hemlock. There is some wastage due to ring shake (internal delamination) but it's cheap and weather resistant and pretty light. May try some eastern white cedar , it's nice...

Hi all.
Just cleaned up one of my three hives that did not make it through winter (the two others did, thankfully).

There was quite a bit of brown spotting on top of the frames of the top box...

Although the deeps stay out in the yard you still have to lift off the top one and put it somewhere every time you do an inspection of the bottom box, no? and this is heavy lifting. After my first...

Stephen, if you are still in Beesource, (did you get the seed shipped in from Texas? I am planning to plant some next year - my land is on Keswick Ridge outside Fredericton. Can't find any local...

Interesting. Any northeasterners use the candy board method? Quite a few people seems to advocate the multiple benefits of this, including the moisture-absorbing properties. Some sort of...

Many thanks for the feedback, everyone. I will plan on some wrapping, I may vary the method to compare results. A medium super of sawdust on top appeals, as opposed to styrofoam. The silt fence...

Approaching my first over-wintering season. Maine is the closest to our conditions. Wondering if there is any consensus (perhaps that is being a bit too optimistic :)) on winter prep in these...

I wonder if the hive may have been partially robbed out. Sounds a bit like my home hive a few weeeks ago. I noticed a bunch of totally empty comb in the lower sections. I assumed that they were...

thanks to all for the ideas.

I 'm thinking I may reduce the protection in stages, by modifying my robber screen, which has two cross-baffles with a one-bee wide space (+/-) in each, to just one...

Last weekend I was watching my home-based hive from my living room window with binocs, as usual. Lots of bees - but one or two were darting at others as they came in. Watched closely. There were a...

Looks like a kind of smartweed. Sometimes lumped in with the buckwheat family.

Rob

[QUOTE=lazy shooter;850649]

I usually smoke a wee bit in the hive opening, then take the telescoping cover off and smoke a puff or two into the inner cover hole. Then I slowly remove the inner...

First season with bees - so lots of learnings.

-learned not to worry to much about intervening when things look a bit of a concern - give the bees time and they often work things out. ...

I think this is the main reason for regional differences. My Audubon plant guide says there are 125 species of goldenrod in N America. Here (46N) 'goldenrod' has been blooming for several weeks, and...

I am considering adding top entrances on my hives soon. If I do this, I'm wondering if I should phase out the bottom entrance at the same time, or soon after. It's still pretty hot here, so the...

Hi there,

I tried planting all sorts of nectar plants this year, sweet white and yellow clover, buckwheat, dutch clover, alfalfa, trefoil, vetch on an acre scale, and other stuff around my house. ...

A sad event. What are your bees feeding on? It looks like a bee desert with those bare fields.

Rob

Hi, What about the "non drowsy" types of anti-histamine medication, are they just as effective? For example I have some cetirizine hydrochloride tabs. And in terms of benadryl, is there just one type...