Farm Update: Bees

Discussion in 'The Green Patch' started by Asia-Off-Grid, Oct 2, 2017.


  1. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    The last time I posted about checking on my bees (September 8th), they were in a 5 frame poly nuc and nursing a queen cell. Well, she failed to hatch. And, stupid me, made a really stupid mistake by having Chan (aka The Boss) destroy three or four other queen cells.

    We transferred them into a 10 frame full hive (the third hive right, in the photo below), and let them alone for another week or so. I will check on them again about the 8th or so, of this month.
    IMG_0249_r.
    We returned on the 29th and did a complete inspection of all hives. No queen cells - that is, no supersedure cells, no emergency cells, and no swarm cells, on any frame, in any hive. So, for the moment, they are all happy, although only the two on the left are currently queenright. We put another two frames of brood in the queenless hive, and swapped out two frames of honey they had for their stores. I will check them again in a week. I will may just buy a queen, probably two, to make sure I have two more starter hives going. If I play my cards right, I could have four to six really strong hives, by the time next honey season begins. If I do that, and let them build their stores during the honey flow that is going on now, here, they will have enough stores to support them through the next dearth. (This is the low season for bees, from April to about September, here in Cambodia.)
     
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  2. Altoidfishfins

    Altoidfishfins Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    Interesting. Don't know squat about bees, but have always been a little curious.
     
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  3. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    The more I learn about them, the more I realize I don't know about them. But, I am very happy that I began keeping bees. I'm also very thankful that mine are as docile as they are.
     
  4. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    Do you have to use the smoker and stuff? Also how expensive was it to get the whole beekeeping set up? I know you are on a different monetary system but just curious if it is pricey. Cost of honey vs. total investment and payoff....
     
  5. Seacowboys

    Seacowboys Senior Member Founding Member

    my two hives more than paid for themselves after a year, Motomom. It is kind of a fun hobby. I use about a quart of honey a week and never have to buy it any more
     
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  6. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    First, considering the temperatures here, the only way I would consider using a bee suit, would be if I had a really "hot" hive - lots of angry bees. Fortunately, mine are not "hot" at all. I would not keep them if they were, honestly. So, I don't wear anything but shorts, a t-shirt, a veil, and use a hive tool and a smoker. I use the smoker sparingly, because it causes the bees to stop whatever they are doing and go and begin gorging themselves on their honey stores.

    Although the exchange native to Cambodia is the Riel (4,000 to $1.00 USD), the USD is very widely used here, and is even drawn out of local ATMs. We often spend USD and get KHR as change, though, depending on whom we are doing business with.

    My original two colonies cost me $165 USD / each. This included 8 frames of bees and a queen, in one of the original large poly hives. We returned the hives without the frames, as they were only on loan to us. I later purchased two complete hives, with frames, for about $120 USD. Then, I purchased (I think) 8 more boxes (hive bodies), and about 50 more frames - mostly already drawn out with comb on them. That was at a cost of $140 USD. Then, I purchased two 5 frame poly nucs, at $25 each. I've lost count of how much I have spent on other parts and accessories - smoker, gloves, veils, frames, frame holders, feeders, etc., etc., etc. I'm am somewhere in the neighborhood of about $1,500 USD, I believe, though.

    I am still receiving items I ordered from a couple of different UK based beekeeping supply companies. (Shipping from the UK is considerably cheaper than from the US, to here.) I still have to get an extractor to put the frames in, which will pull (by centrifugal force) the honey from the frames. I also need to purchase another hundred frames or so, just for the hives I have now, and one or two more that are planned. Swapping out frames is a necessity, especially when dealing with honey supers that need to be replaced during nectar flow season.

    Honey here, goes for about $20 USD / liter. I have seen smaller bottles / jars being sold for higher rates, per ml, though. To date, we have not extracted, bottled, or sold any honey.
     
    Last edited: Oct 3, 2017
  7. iampablooo

    iampablooo Neophyte Monkey

    Hey Paul,

    I need to do this! Do you have any good resources to read and start?
     
  8. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    I'm on a tablet, here at the farm. If I can figure out how to copy / paste my cloud link, I will. If not, I may have to wait until I am back at the apartment in town. But, I do have a decent resource list that I started some time ago.
     
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  9. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    BeeKeeping

    Don't you just love ScrewTube, as long as they aren't trying to censor you?
     
    Last edited: Jun 22, 2018
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  10. Motomom34

    Motomom34 Monkey+++

    Awesome collection of information. Thanks for sharing @Asia-Off-Grid
     
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  11. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    Anytime! I have separate folders for every project I research, then begin. I don't like going into anything blind.
     
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  12. Wild Trapper

    Wild Trapper Pirate Biker

    How are the bees doing?
    I lost both of my hives to the winter cold - cold is all I can figure - as there was plenty of honey, but dead bees.
    A buddy that also keeps bees, caught a swarm and let me have them.
    So, at least I have a new start.
    I moved my hive to a more sheltered location, that still gets sun through the afternoon, but plenty all morning and mid day. Plan on doing some changes to protect them this coming winter. I was using screened bottom boards, those will not be used in winter again. We are in southern Ohio here, I'll be looking at how it is done in Canada from now on. Winter before last, was so warm, I saw bees some days, all winter, last winter hardly at all. Freaky weather, ya ask me.
     
    Zimmy likes this.
  13. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    Sadly, I lost all hives due to poison. I meant to (READ: I thought I had) post the update, but apparently forgot to do so. They were really gentle bees, too. The "Boss" never got stung once, while working with them.

    Going to have to start all over. But, not until some other projects have been completed here.

    I think it best to use them in warmer climates, like we have here, honestly. It just gets so hot during the days here, the hives need that extra bit of ventilation.
     
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  14. Wild Trapper

    Wild Trapper Pirate Biker

    Yes, it does get hot here in the summer as well. I had watched all the youtube videos about using screened bottom boards, never even thought about what might happen in the winter. Especially what might happen in a winter like we had - wasn't that it dipped down to sub temperatures, it just got cold and stayed cold, cold enough with those screened bottom boards that the bees could not warm themselves up enough to survive the cold.
     
  15. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    My apologies. I live in Cambodia. I meant it is probably better to use screened bottom boards for areas like this, where we have "summer" all year long, pretty much. Temperatures do drop down a bit during December / January, here. But, it is not enough to warrant putting solid bottom boards on the hives.
     
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  16. Radishman

    Radishman Monkey+

    I might pipe in here and say def get a suit. My last two stings have swollen up like a grapefruit, so it looks like an epi pen is in my future, or get rid of the hive :(.
     
    Zimmy likes this.
  17. Asia-Off-Grid

    Asia-Off-Grid RIP 11-8-2018

    In many locations around the world, I would agree with getting a suit. But, just the heat generated from wearing a suit, would cause us to pass out. We were very fortunate, though, from the day we got our bees, they were very, very docile. I once dropped three frames by mistake, all full of bees. They only flew around a bit, then settled down into their hive. Not a single sting and three of us were there, none wearing suits, only veils protecting us.

    Here in Cambodia, we do not have the luxury of epi-pens. If someone allergic is stung by a bee, the chances are they are going to die, period. Not to mention, here at the farm, we are a good 30 to 45 minutes from the nearest hospital, IF a hospital could even help. Keep in mind here, Third-World - really Third-World.

    With that said, I am happy to say that it is a very rare occasion to find someone who is allergic to bee stings here. To my knowledge, I am NKA (No Known Allergies). I have never found anything that I am allergic to, including poison oak, ivy, sumac, etc. The Boss isn't allergic to bees, either. Oddly enough, she has only been stung once, which had nothing to do with our bees. Recently, she was riding along on the motorcycle, when she had one land on her lip. She swatted at it, causing it to sting her. Aside from looking as though she had fallen into a chemical vat, she was fine after 24 hours.

    Of course, at the moment, bee stings aren't an issue. We lost all three hives to poison, a couple / few months back. After completing some other projects around here, we will start again.
     
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  18. Wild Trapper

    Wild Trapper Pirate Biker

    I suited up, fired up the smoker and checked on my bees today. They are doing fine, but I did give them a pollen patty to chew on as they have only filled out about half of a 8 frame hive body. I'll be checking them in about a week or so and see if that helped them. Soon the soybean field will be blooming and they'll have lots to keep them busy. It's just rained so much they don't get to work as much as they need to to build up their new home.
     
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    [ATTACH] Last 15-20 years and makes more every year.
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