"Build a better mouse trap and the world will beat a path to your door." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
Then I made cage around it with #8 hardware cloth and placed a cue-tip inside. I used a syringe to put apple cider vinegar on the cue-tips for beetle bait (BTW it got in my eye and it burned like hell).I only had time to make 9 Sticky Traps, so I put them in the 9 weakest hives - that being said, all of my hives seem very strong.
It should rain for the next week, so I'll check on the traps after that.
Other Hive Notes:
It was a very hot day (95F) . To be honest, at 400lbs, I was a little worried about the heat but I made it a point to take it slow. Much to my delight, I never got overheated and I was able to check all 20 hives and place a Swiffer Sheet in each one.
A word on my bee jacket: I bought a Ventilated Bee Jacket from Bushy Mountain. I've had 4 other cotton jackets and suits and I got stung through them all! However, this jacket is like Kevlar for bees. I got a little rough with one of my hives and the bees went nuts... but not one of them stung me through my jacket.
I pulled 24 frames of honey from 4 different supers. I found that using a bee brush to remove the bees from each frame works really well. It's not much of a solution for large harvests but while I am just pulling 15 or 20 supers, it works great.
Also, by pulling one frame at a time, I was able to spot the brood and leave it behind - as well as the uncapped frames.
I'm now up to 35 gallons of honey. I plan to reinvest all of the money into building more hives.
I also finally got out to the Old Farm. That one hive is still alive. It was dry out there that day but it is usually very wet (ankle deep). So I think I'll just bring it to my house this winter and never go back to the Old Farm after that.
Final Hive Count: 20-Hives & 1-Five Frame Nuc
No comments:
Post a Comment