Beebeard

**beemandan** · 07-08-2011, 05:36 AM

It's that time of year.

**Solomon Parker** · 07-08-2011, 06:30 AM

That's a pretty manly beard you got going there. Maybe add a box or two?

**beemandan** · 07-08-2011, 07:32 AM

It's really too late in the season to add another super. Our nectar flow has pretty much ended. It's a long story but suffice it to say that this hive is in the shade. If I open the top, the inner cover will have hundreds of shb. Adding empty boxes will only give the beetles a better foothold. As soon as the weather cools, this hive is being relocated into a full sun yard.

**rrussell6870** · 07-08-2011, 06:51 PM

Looks like a slimed hive. Last year we sacrificed a little over 1,000 colonies to study the process, and a dead giveaway was that the majority of the bees wouldn't go back into the hive when it was slimed... we are having some pretty impressive beards with the 100+ temps and very high humidity, so its hard to tell at times, and can usually not be seen until you actually inspect... if caught soon enough (before the bottom board is completely covered in slime), every frame can be replaced with fresh foundation and the bees will go back in and build back up quickly. Good luck.

**beemandan** · 07-09-2011, 07:12 AM

This hive is still in good shape. They've kept the shb sequestered well....there just are plenty of them. This is just plain summer bearding.

**RAK** · 07-09-2011, 02:49 PM

I bet there is a nectar flow in the Appalachians.

**HONEYDEW** · 07-09-2011, 09:13 PM

Originally Posted by beemandan

If I open the top, the inner cover will have hundreds of shb.

If this is what happens why don't you ditch your lid configuration , and just use a migratory top so there is less hiding places??

**beemandan** · 07-10-2011, 03:28 PM

Originally Posted by HONEYDEW

just use a migratory top so there is less hiding places??

I have both. I don't think its about having a place to hide. It's more about having a place that the bees can sequester the beetles away from the brood. With either cover, in my opinion, there will be similar numbers of beetles. With a migratory cover the bees can only drive the beetles to the tops of the frames....and they do. In a shady yard when I pop a migratory cover the beetles scatter across and down between the frames. With a conventional cover the bees drive many to the topside of the inner cover and I can crush those before continuing my inspection.