New beekeeper question(s)

[bosco500]

I just purchased two complete and active hives and am super excited about having and managing them. However I am confused about a couple things:

I have a hive with one Brood box and two supers on it. To access the lower super, can I just pick up the whole top one? Or do I need to remove all of the frames in the top one to access the lower one?

Also I see you can order "patties" from Mann Lake. Are these the same as feeding sugar water, or do you want to feed them sugar water sometimes and patties other times? Can you overfeed them?

Thanks for any help!

[DJS]

I am new also started in May. You can remove each supper box to gain access to the bottom brood box.

Don't think you can overfeeding them but I could be wrong.

My best suggestion for you is to find a local bee club and see if you can find someone to be your mentor. Also buy some beekeeping books and watch. You tube videos on beekeeping.

Hope this was some help

[Monica]

New this June with two hives. Remove boxes from the top down, you do not need to take out frames unless you want to see what is on them. Since I was new I looked at everything I could.
Overfeed them, don't think so. They will use it or not.
Patties (pollen patties) I believe are mostly used in the spring to promote early growth for a good start on the season. If you are unsure as I am this first winter I fed 2:1 sugar syrup to make sure that they have ample stores to last them the winter.
Join a local club. Lots of good sites and you tube videos. Michael Bush is one I rather enjoyed. and there is FatBeeMan who makes it short and simple and he is near to you I beleive.
Can you call the seller of your hives and ask questions?
Good luck to you!

[sweetas]

Instead of "new beekeeper question", put in the detail of your question ie 'access to brood". It will be a lot more meaningful.

Please take this as a positive suggestion, not as criticism

GEoff

[indypartridge]

Also I see you can order "patties" from Mann Lake. Are these the same as feeding sugar water...

No. Patties are protein, sugar is carbs.

or do you want to feed them sugar water sometimes and patties other times?

Yes. As others have noted, patties most often used in early spring. Note, however, being in the south, you'll have to be concerned about small hive beetles, which happen to love pollen patties.

Can you overfeed them?

Yes. Too much and they will fill all the comb with food and the queen won't have anywhere to lay eggs. Usually not a problem if you're doing regular inspections and staying on top of things.

Lastly, let me echo the recommendation of getting involved with a local club. Clubs are great places to find mentors and get connected to nearby beekeepers. I've heard good things about the Metro Atlanta club:
http://www.metroatlantabeekeepers.org/
http://www.gabeekeeping.com/local_clubs.html