Working On Next Year

I've built another three medium supers with foundation filled frames for next spring when we'll hopefully split the hive, and maybe into three hives, so I'll be busy over the winter building more hive parts. This new base is a little different than the others, that the front is sloped away to keep water off the deck, which can be a problem for the girls. As well the bottom is screened for ventilation in the summer, and I can put in the bottom board in the winter. I constructed the bottom board so it can be reversible, one side with poly to protect the wood and the other has a grid on it for mite counting in the fall.

With the weather starting to remain about 5° C during the day we thought it's time to put on the winter wrap, and once we started the last pail of sugar syrup was not fully drawn down, this is an indication they have filled all the remaining cells with food and are ready for winter. The cut outs are positioned over vent holes in each super and well back from the top vent, this will help reduce carbon dioxide build up which can be dangerous for a colony over the winter. The inside cover has three layers of two sided thermal bubble wrap to keep the heat in, and with 48 mil rubber membrane covering the hole hive it should be dry. We'll be keeping an eye on them throughout the winter, after all it's our first colony.

New hive with stand ready for next year.

A new design base and bottom board.

Mite inspection grid showing.

Winter wrap on and ready.

Coming out the top vent, very good.

Entrance accessible with wire mesh to help keep out shrews. 

Getting Ready For Winter

Last month we took out the Apivar strips and the girls were a bit agitated, as this time of the year robbing goes on so they are always on guard and when we took of the inner cover to remove the strips well lets just say they showed they weren't too happy. On the plus side the colony did look very strong.

I recently got a hold of some heavy duty rubber, that was used a s pool/pond liner that did work, so I made my own version of a winter wrap. Basically we are just trying to keep them dry, they'll take care of the keeping themselves warm. I also put vent holes in each super so they can get out for a cleansing flight and let out deadly carbon dioxide, which can build up in the winter as they are covered. I also made an new entrance reducer with a wire mesh that has ¼ grid, the bees can get out and mice and shrews should not be able to get in and cause havoc. I constructed a new outer cover a bit large to accommodate the rubber wrap.

Strong colony.

They look healthy.

New entrance reducer.

Fitting the wrap.

Positioning opening for the vent holes.

Glued together and a board inside, with screws for strength.

New outer cover fits snug.

Ready for when the time is right.

Feeding Time With Meds

We started feeding the colony sugar syrup, a 2 -1 sugar to water ratio, when I "cook" it up I use 5 cups of water and dissolve 10 cups of sugar at a medium heat, and this makes about 2.5 liters of sugar syrup. As well the first two feedings we added Fuagilian-B, an antibiotic used overwintering colonies for Nosema apis infection, which can kill a colony, they will get one more application in the spring. Now we just keep feeding them because there isn't much out there for them. They will get as much as they can take and then we'll cover them up for the winter, after we take out the Apivar strips on the 25th.

A little high, the top super covers the sugar pail.

Checking for mites.

Outer cover comes off.

Inner cover, and I'm covered just in case.

Feeder pail and a thermal liner to keep heat in.

Oct 10th, not much activity.

This was the afternoon of the 7th, changing feeder pails.
A little activity.

This is the 10th, not much movement, they are keeping
warm and conserving energy.

Medicine

The other day we did a quick check on the hive and added Apivar strips, a medicine to help combat Verroa Mites, a killer pest. These strips will be there for 42 days, which is two full growing cycles of worker bees, this will help keep them under control. They are hard to see but we have taken many pictures lately and after looking at them close up we haven't seen any. After the strips come out we'll be feeding them for winter and getting ready to cover them up. I also removed the shallow super I put on earlier to see if they would start drawing it out but they didn't. I'll try next spring to see if we can get some early honey.

Lots of them, looks healthy. You can see the two strips.

A cloudy day, they are still in the hive.

Busy drawing comb, covering brood and making honey.

You can see the honey in the cells.

Just walking about.

They are easy to handle, like a cat.

Getting Ready For Spring

I thought I'd get a head start on making more hive bodies (supers) and frames, so next year when it comes time to split the hive we'll have the parts to start another colony. I still have to make the bottom board, inner and outer covers, along with a stand. I still have time, but for now I made 20 frames and 3 medium supers, we still have 4 frames from before so now we can fill the three supers. Once everything was cut I just used the assembly jig for the frames, add a little glue and nails and then I put in the new permanent foundations. The supers were easy to construct, I applied a primer/sealer coat and then three coats of exterior grade paint, on the outside only.

Supers are done, frames next.

Add a little paint.

Frames glued and nailed together.

Foundations are in and we're ready to go.

IPM

IPM - Integrated Pest Management, trying to keep them healthy and reduce Varroa Mite problem in hives.
I inspected the colony today and replaced the old bottom board with a screened bottom board that has an opening to add a board for cooler months and winter. As well it's designed to be put in place over a set period of time to count how many mites fall off the bees and this way I'll know if I have a big problem. I'll be adding medicated strips soon to combat the problem but a screen bottom board helps as the mites fall to the ground and don't make it back up into the hive. Needles to say today's inspection got the girls rather stressed out and at one point I decided to put on gloves to take the last super off and replace the bottom board, they were a little pissed, to put it politely. I took out one frame full of honey and moved a few around to see if I can get them to draw it out and make more. I didn't see the Queen today but did see early Larva stage and I thought I saw a couple of eggs, so she's there but hiding.

Screen bottom board.

Removable solid board.

Closing off the bottom.

Painted and a grid helps counting Mites.

The screened inner cover helps with ventilation.

A frame full of honey.

A little agitated to say the least.

The Bee Escape

What is the bee escape, well it isn't the name of a new Ford SUV, it lets the bees leave the honey super and helps prevent them from returning and consuming all the honey. It is used when the honey super is full and you want to harvest the honey, and that is hard to do when it's full of bees. This little board goes between the brood chamber and the honey super and in the evening the bees will go down the hole, make there way through to the end of the triangles and out into the brood chamber. It is only on there for 24 - 48 hours, any longer and they will figure out how to get back in. The space is only 3/8 inch wide as is the end at the end of the triangle and the wire is 1/8 inch (#8 gauge) squares. after that off comes the super, the escape board and another super put in place to make more honey. For us this won't happen until next year and maybe some in the spring.

The bee escape board.

Three small exits only.

A Little Ventilation

With the temperatures climbing into the 30's and feel like around 39° C and very humid it's very hard for the bees to cool down or even try to evaporate the nectar to aid in making honey with the inner cover mostly wood. There is another type of inner cover with screen material that I made to help them out with ventilation. As well I made a frame for the Queen excluder, the holes are too small for the Queen to get through and is used between the Brood chamber and the honey super to keep her from laying any eggs in the open cells. We won't use it this year as we want them to build up their numbers and they are already making honey for the winter. When I went and put on the new inner cover they were very active coming and going. I think this is a good sign. Last week the Provincial Chief Apiary Inspector stopped in to see our hive and all looks great. We meet him and his wife a while ago and they have been a great source of information and are very willing to share their knowledge.

Double screen inner cover.

Queen excluder.

The Girls are busy.

Looking In On The Girls

After a couple of weeks we thought it would be a good time to check up on the girls, it is very hot, 24 °C with a fell like temp of 29°C at 10:30 in the morning. The bees weren't to active, they were busy at the front of the hive, lined up pushing air in to help cool it down, and most of them were still home, not out getting more food. At least that is what it seemed. We didn't see the Queen this time but there were Larva in the new drawn out foundation and they cap the Larva at day 9 so we know she was still there, because it has been 18 days since our last inspection. At first I thought they filled the new super with honey like the previous one, but ReBecca thought it might be capped brood. I though honey because the capping's were yellow in color and ReBecca mentioned then it could be golden rod honey. When I scarped away some extra combs to clean things up a bit I looked and they were capped Pupa. This is great because the colony is growing like we wanted. Things are looking up.

Pushing air into the hive to cool it down.

Our new foundation, drawn out and filled with brood.

A broken cell with Pupa exposed, a small loss.

A large comb that gets in the way, needs to be cleaned up.

It left a little hole in the foundation, they'll fix it quickly.

Lots of bees, to hot for doing anything today.