CA ag check stations

[MTINAZ]

I am bringing 150 hives through from MS in January for my first trip to almonds. Anything I should do or have or watch out for to make sure getting in goes smoothly?

[pahvantpiper]

Make sure that your bottom tier of pallets are as clean as possible. No plants, dirt, cocoons, insects, etc. Those bottom pallets are generally the only ones they look at. Good luck.

[jim lyon]

All you can really do is make sure they are as clean of ANY debris or any living creature other than honeybees as you possibly can and make sure you are there during a week day, if there are any questions approval will have to come from Sacramento and they operate weekdays 9 to 5 (I think). It dosent hurt to be standing over the shoulder of the inspector as well. Needles has been notorious for being a difficult entry point but last year it seemed that other places were starting to get more difficult as well. That's about all you can really do, after that you are at the mercy of the whims of the inspector.

[Keith Jarrett]

..... or it really helps to have the RIGHT truck drivers at times. Not that anybody on this thread would know.

[MTINAZ]

Well I will be the driver. Thanks for the reply's I will see if we can get a hose when loading and spray the bottoms down good. Anyone leave the net partially open so there are bees flying around? seems like most ppl want to stay as far away as possible.

[jim lyon]

Don't do that. These folks deal with lots and lots of bees. Keep your load as tight and as neat and visible to them as possible. They are going to want a physical address for their destination and a contact number to call. Dont be surprised if they pull the nets loose on the bottom for a better look. If you are clean and neat you will, most likely, be just fine.

[Chip Euliss]

I lift the bottom pallet to a comfortable working height with a forklift and use a stiff hand brush to remove the debris. Quick and never any problems--been doing it for 10 years now.

[jim lyon]

That will probably work if they are coming directly from North Dakota but if they are coming from down south you need to make sure there are no ants (or anything else) between the hives. We had a load held up once for almost three days over a larvae from a common pine beetle found in all 50 states they found it by using a knife to dig in some rotten wood in a pallet. Since then we handle each hive and place them on cleaned pallets with no visible rot, it is probably overkill but I dont want any phone calls from a port of entry. We thought that a RIFA certification from a Texas inspector might help but the California folks ignore the papers and do what they please. All the silliness that goes on there costs us days and days of really hard work.

[MTINAZ]

I have heard stories like that and want to do what I can to avoid them.

[bhfury]

Use the secret back roads

[Chip Euliss]

I brush what is on the outside of the wood off; never thought about what might be "in" the wood! Expertise identifying insects and other invertebrates is hard to find and it tends to be highly specialized when you do find it.

[RAK]

I brought in some hives with no problem. No netting was used and they ushered us though real quick. All the hives were on new pallets.

[suttonbeeman]

Had a load get held three days because they took that long to figure out the larva was a wax moth larva from a empty super we put on a strong hive. 40 hives died in thd heat. Two years ago with all hives on new pallets we were refused entry when two sugar ants were found at the reno station in 45 degree weather. I had a rifta inspection in Florida and were suppose to be able to enter with 5 ants and two could be fire ants. They informed me I could take the truck south 500 miles and get it washed or return to Florida as they had changed the rules since I left Florida. I was talking to head guy in Sacramento..asked how much a kickback he was getting and didn't they have sugar ants in CA. After I used very colorful language of any word you have heard and some you may not gave heard I can't put here and then I told him I was going to be on a plane and at his office the next day and some more things I cant replete here my truck was across the birder in 5 minutes. i firmly believe its a money racket...and a political red tape to justify jobs. 6 years ago a load was being held next to me because of beetles. When I infromed them they wete in all hived and wete flying thru the net into other loads they informed me that beetles dont fly. How do you regulate something you know nothing about? This was the head guy. They are a joke and money racket! All a political game and hardship on us. Yep I'm politically incorrect a d a rebel...but I got my bees in!

[suttonbeeman]

I still think they are getting kickbacks from the pressure wash guys there. i haveca long pist pn here about my experiences and being refused entry with NEW pallets and after telling head guy in sacremento that I was flyi g to CA andcwould probably be in jail i his county and he in hospital the next day eithkn 5 minutes my loadcwad released and let in. So why do I have to loose temper and go off the deep end to get what was the right thing in the first place accomplished? They didnt even know hive beetles flew...how do you regulate anything when you know nothing about it! Oh my what a mess they are!

[EastSideBuzz]

We did three inspections ourselves with three different people looking at the bottom pallets which were new looking for snails and slugs with a flash light just like they do. Those are what get you sent back real quick. We did not have any problems getting through the AG. Sorry that others did.

[loggermike]

Snails and slugs??!! California is over run with snails and slugs!
Just look at our state legislature.

[Honey-4-All]

Snails and slugs??!! California is over run with snails and slugs!
Just look at our state legislature.

Logger, You must have placed all your bees in the almonds, gotten paid, and had a full Sundays rest to be so kind as to use such innocuous terms in describing the "domeheads" in Sacto. Lets not fail to mention their minions at the DMV and other trough operating agencies who are about as indigestible as their "superiors."

[loggermike]

Whats a Sundays rest? I dont even sleep well at this time of year.