========================================================================= Date: Mon, 28 Jul 1997 23:20:13 -0600 Reply-To: dehenry@mb.sympatico.ca Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Doug Henry Subject: Re: Alfalfa cultivars??? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Brett D Bannon wrote: > > "Research to select alfalfa plants with increased nectar production has > Sorry I don't have any info on alfalfa. I do have a question though about Birdsfoot Trefoil. Does anyone on the list have any experience with it as a honey production source? Also will honey from trefoil crystalize like canola honey. Most of the honey from my nine hives will be from trefoil this year. thanks doug henry Lockport Mb ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 28 Jul 1997 23:56:07 -0500 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: The Bankses Subject: Re: Bee removal and other things i had to laugh when i read your comment about how "nice" the bees are to you. i felt that same way when i started beekeeping five years ago, so i asked the same question at our beekeeping meeting at the university. one experienced beekeeper laughed and asked if i was disappointed!!!! it was very funny. actually, i understand that younger bees tend to be gentler (guess their stinging apparatus is not fully developed), and also the time of the season can make a difference in their aggression. my "gentle" bees that first year didn't disappoint me - it wasn't too long before i got my first bee sting! Wahkon On Mon, 28 Jul 1997 09:47:24 -0400 JRmintin@AOL.COM writes: >as a new bee keeper here in Wisconsin with 2 hives that i started >may1st. >should i expect to retreive any honey this first year? i ordered a >italian >queen and 6000 bees there seems to be a lot of action. to my dismay >when i >lift the cover there are a lot of earwigs on top of the frames. what >can i do >to get rid of them buggers i hate em.. i never had bees before and is >it >common for them to be so nice to me. when i am around them or open the >cover >they really dont go after me have i got tame bees or just lucky? thank >you >kindly regards Jerry > ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 08:31:20 +0100 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Computer Software Solutions Ltd Subject: Vaseline Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" I am a beginner beekeeper. I am having difficulties in working quietly and with slow deliberate movements when handling the bees. Recently I had a problem in breaking the propolis seal between the frames and the hive. I read somewhere that if vaseline is smeared on the surfaces that the bees are unable to propolise. If that is true and if there are no bad side effects this seems like a good idea as it would mean that frames could be moved in and out more easily, not to speak of the ease in removing supers and crown boards. I would be most interested in comments. Sincerely Tom Barrett 49 South Park Foxrock Dublin 18 Ireland ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 04:53:53 -0400 Reply-To: dronebee@norfolk.infi.net Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: "\\Dr. Pedro P. Rodriguez" Organization: Independent non-profit research Subject: Re: Vaseline MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Computer Software Solutions Ltd wrote: Dear Tom: I do not know for certain about propolization v. vaseline use but I do know that vaseline will definitely work as an acaricide (from actual testing; unpublished). Best regards. Dr. Rodriguez Virginia Beach, VA ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 12:48:27 BST Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: QUB Subject: Re: Vaseline MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Tom, I sometimes use vaseline on the frame runners of my brood boxes when I'm setting up a new hive or changing boxes over in the spring. It helps to reduce jerky movements esp. if the runners are made of timber. I just use a light smear so as to reduce friction when sliding frames. Keep it well away from the frame lugs or else it makes holding the frames by the lug too slippy. If you want to you can smear some around the edges of the crown board or excluder to reduce attachment but again too much will make to frame lugs too slippy to hold. By the way, did you manage to get hold of WBC/CDB plans ?. If you are still looking i may be able to get you some if you e-mail me direct. Have you been getting much honey? Dr. Philip Earle N. Ireland j.a.p.earle@qub.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 07:55:44 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Wesley A Voigt Jr Subject: Hendersonville, NC I would like to talk with someone who keeps bees in North Carolina - Hendersonville to be exact. My father is moving there and would like me to keep a hive there for him and I would like to know if I can move one of mine from South Carolina, What are the rules and regulations in North Carolina, and what are the rules in Hendersonville - if anyone is from there. I thought I would try you guys first - you are fast and eliminate alot of wasted time of hit and miss searching on my part. you can email me at WesVoigtJr@AOL.COM to avoid wasting other people's time. Thanks for your help Wesley A Voigt ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 22:18:55 +0900 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: j h & e mcadam Subject: Re: Raising Queens Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >My question: Why graft the eggs into new cells? It seems like an >awfully delicate operation, with plenty of opportunity to damage the egg. > Why not just put the frame she laid them in into the nuc and let them >draw out queen cells from that, cutting out the area around the cell to >introduce it? > Can do. I think the difference is between the professional approach where a standard technique is advocated as against the hobbyist who can be more flexible with 1 or 2 hives. Betty McAdam HOG BAY APIARY Penneshaw, Kangaroo Island j.h. & e. mcadam Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Frank & Phronsie Humphrey Subject: Re: walnut toxicity MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ---------- > From: Jennifer Louise Pehanich > To: BEE-L@CNSIBM.ALBANY.EDU > Subject: walnut toxicity > Date: Monday, July 28, 1997 1:48 PM > > Hello. My name is Jenn Pehanich, I am a senior at the Penn State > University majoring in Forest Science. This summer I am working at our > Forest Resources Lab and agriculture extension office. We received a > call from the regional honey bee inspector who had an interesting > question we are trying to find information on. This gentleman has found > a colony that appears to be free of mites, he is currently checking to > be positive. But the interesting thing is the colony is in a black > walnut tree. We were wondering if the toxins in the walnut have some > effect of why the mites haven't got to the bees yet. If you have an > information it would be greatly appreciated. Maybe some ideas could be > tossed around also. Thank you for your time. > > Jenn > When I was a child, my mother and grandmother treat ringworm and other minor skin diseases with juice squeezed from green walnuts. I don't remember if it worked. It's been more than 50 summers ago. Frank Humphrey beekeepr@cdc.net ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 10:48:38 -0500 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: "P. Aras et M. Boily" Subject: Re: walnut toxicity MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Hello. My name is Jenn Pehanich, I am a senior at the Penn State > University majoring in Forest Science. This summer I am working at our > Forest Resources Lab and agriculture extension office. We received a > call from the regional honey bee inspector who had an interesting > question we are trying to find information on. This gentleman has found > a colony that appears to be free of mites, he is currently checking to > be positive. But the interesting thing is the colony is in a black > walnut tree. We were wondering if the toxins in the walnut have some > effect of why the mites haven't got to the bees yet. If you have an > information it would be greatly appreciated. Maybe some ideas could be > tossed around also. Thank you for your time. Hi Jenn, My father was a cabinet maker from the old world. One substance he used extensively was called "brou de noix" (it's french) which is essentially a water based stain made with the roasted husks of walnuts. When diluted enough so that it would hardly color bare wood, it was used as a disinfectant for the inside of drawers, chests, wardrobes etc. Not much about bees but it is a small piece of info about old methods that can maybe help you. Philippe ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 29 Jul 1997 14:15:53 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: "(Thomas) (Cornick)" Subject: Re: walnut toxicity In a message dated 97-07-29 10:55:15 EDT, you write: << My father was a cabinet maker from the old world. One substance he used extensively was called "brou de noix" (it's french) which is essentially a water based stain made with the roasted husks of walnuts. When diluted enough so that it would hardly color bare wood, it was used as a disinfectant for the inside of drawers, chests, wardrobes etc. Not much about bees but it is a small piece of info about old methods that can maybe help you. >> I make stain from black walnuts soaked in household ammonia. As most walnut commercially available is steamed in the lumber kiln to equalize wood stresses it comes out looking rather washed out. It is also used to color streaks of sapwood. The active principle is I believe called Juglone and protects the wood while it is growing. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 09:10:01 +0000 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology Comments: Authenticated sender is From: Seppo Korpela Subject: Re: Hot air decapping In-Reply-To: MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT > I have recently tried de-capping comb using an electrically powered, > hand held, hot air blower originally designed for paint stripping. The > device has two heat settings and is rated at 1600 W. According to the > manufacturer's literature it delivers air at 300-560 Deg.C ( 570 - 1040 > Deg. F ). I use the lower heat setting so the temperature used is > probably around the lower end of the temperature range quoted. I tried the method also but used the higher heat setting (1500 W). As I see it the uncapping of a cell results from both temperature and time: at higher setting you can uncap faster as cell cappings get the heat required to melt them faster. It is easy to learn the correct way to move the nozzle over the comb face. If you do it too slowly the result will be a diaphragm of wax over the cells. > The decapping results are excellent; the wax melts on the tops of the > cells and is then pulled by the surface tension of the liquid wax onto > the tops of the cell walls, leaving the honey free for extraction. In the first lot of honey combs I uncapped with hot air blower the results were excellent, too. However, uncapping the second lot caused some problems and I had to complement the hot air uncapping with a fork. In this lot most combs had dark cappings (honey touches the cappings without an air space under cappings) and these combs don't uncap well enough with hot air as the heat is transferred into the honey. (By the way, does somebody have an answer what determines the capping style with or without air space: the bees or the nectar source?). Similarly, if there is honey spilled onto the comb face, this also binds the heat and prevents the melting of the wax below. > The technique is so quick and easy that I am a convert, Me too, despite the incomplete results seen with the dark capped combs. By the way, the method itself to uncap the cells with heat is not new. There is at least an article in the finnish beekeeping magazine 'Mehilaishoitaja' in 1983 (Vol 17, p. 14-18) by Kauko Ahonen, who used a propane torch for the purpose. ============================================================================= * Seppo Korpela Agricultural Research Center of Finland * Phone INT + 358 3 4188 576 Institute of Plant Protection * FAX INT + 358 3 4188 584 FIN-31600 Jokioinen * E-mail seppo.korpela@mtt.fi Finland ============================================================================= ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 09:35:31 CST Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Vladimir Ptacek Subject: Re: Trefoil On Tue, 29 Jul 1997 05:52:13 -0500, Excerpts from BEE-L wrote: >From: Doug Henry >Reply-To: BEE-L@CNSIBM.ALBANY.EDU > >Does anyone on the list have any experience >with it as a honey production source? Also will honey from trefoil >crystalize like canola honey. Most of the honey from my nine hives will be >from trefoil this year. > >thanks > >doug henry >Lockport MB In our country Kropacova (prof. Kubisova,today, Agric. Univ., Brno,) did some research with this plant species and found it to be only moderately important honey source for honey bees because of the wery low nectar concentration. I observed mostly Bombus lapidarius workers on it. (For details, quotation or so, write directly on my e-mail address.) Would it be possible to know the honey yield you obtained from your bees? Best regards, Vladimir Ptacek ---------------------------------------------------------------- Fac. Sci., Dept. Anim. Physiol. E.mail: ptacek@sci.muni.cz Masaryk University phone: ..420/5/41129 562 611 37 Brno, Czech Republic fax: ..420/5/41211 214 ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 05:48:37 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Trevor Weatherhead Subject: Re: Alfalfa nectar secretion Re the question about some plants yielding more nectar than others. There is research in Australia and Canada and probably the USA that shows that different varieties of alfalfa (lucerene in Australia) yield different amounts of nectar. There is a sizeable variation between some varieties. Probably your State Extension officers should have access to the research. Trevor Weatherhead AUSTRALIA ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 05:58:29 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Trevor Weatherhead Subject: Overseas visitor and field day. I have just come back from our New South Wales (a State in Australia) Beekeeper's Conference. They had Professor Rob Currie from the University of Manitoba, Canada out as the guest speaker. Rob was very well received and it was good to be able to catch up with him again. New South Wales usually invite an overseas speaker to come and talk. Previous guest speakers have been also well received. This is a very worthwhile exercise as it gets to expose beekeepers to ideas from the other side of the world. Nothing like cross pollination of ideas and research. It could also work in reverse. There was a field day last Saturday and there were over 750 come through the gate. Despite the drizzling rain, it was a great success. They came from all States of Australia. We are all looking forward to spring (not that we have really had any winter) but do not know what it holds as they are predicting another El Nino. Last time we had one we ended up with three years of drought. Hope they are wrong this time. Trevor Weatherhead ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 21:19:45 +0900 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: j h & e mcadam Subject: Re: Alfalfa cultivars??? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 05:01 PM 7/28/97 -0600, you wrote: >"Research to select alfalfa plants with increased nectar production has >been successful, thereby suggesting the possibility of someday producing >cultivars specifically for use as be pasture (Teuber and Barnes >1979)."-----from Forages the Science of Grassland Agriculture. Forth >Edition. Iowa State University Press. > >Dear List Members: > > Does anyone know of alfalfa varieties available that are really good >for nectar production. Thank you. > I don't know about nectar production but I was interested to read some 2 years ago a newspaper report of a prostrate alfalfa developed for road verges in Australia. It was hoped local government would consider this a blessing as it did not require mowing or other maintenance.. Have never heard anything more about it. Betty McAdam HOG BAY APIARY Penneshaw, Kangaroo Island j.h. & e. mcadam Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Aaron Morris Subject: Hot air decapping MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7BIT > From: Seppo Korpela > Subject: Re: Hot air decapping > > ... In this lot most combs had dark cappings (honey touches > the cappings without an air space under cappings) and these combs > don't uncap well enough with hot air as the heat is transferred into > the honey. (By the way, does somebody have an answer what determines > the capping style with or without air space: the bees or the nectar > source?).... In his book _Honey_in_the-Comb_ Killion states that this is a genetic trait. He would work to cull the bees who left no air pocket between honey and cappings from his breeding stock. I highly recommend Killion's book for all beekeepers, whether they intend to produce comb honey or not. Above and beyond comb honey tips, the book is full of valuable general beekeeping tips, including a nice section on raising your own queens. _Honey_in_the_Comb_ is available from Dadant Press. Aaron Morris - I think, therefore I bee! ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 10:14:18 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: John A Skinner Subject: Re: Nassenheider Evaporators In-Reply-To: <199707281039_MC2-1BB7-8DBF@compuserve.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Mon, 28 Jul 1997, Rory Stenerson wrote: > Bob Rolfness wrote: > > "Is the acid legal now in the USA?" Rory, No. Using Formic Acid is not legal in the USA. It is legal to use in Canada following the label instructions only. I realize there are people using and experimenting with formic acid, however I cannot recommend it's use. Formic acid is extremely hazardous due to being a highly corrosive acid- it burns quickly any skin it touches - Vapors from the acid will burn lungs and other mucous membranes, causing damage. Extreme caution is needed. It requires a respirator, acid apron, plastic gloves and boots. Doesn't all this protection give a hint that the material should be used with care. We are continuing experiments to develope application methods and formulations that will reduce exposure to the applicator require less applications. When we have reproducable data the results will shared. At this stage we need additional miticides desparately, however, experimenting with dangerous materials before we confirm whether they work or not, in a safe manner, is like gambling. Is it worth the risk? As a beekeeper I get more impatient than most that we need thorough testing of new materials and this takes too much time for research and registration and labelling. I certainly hope the process could be sped up but until this happens we keep working. Live long and pollinate, Grins, John John A. Skinner 218 Ellington Hall Extension Apiculturist University of Tennessee jskinner@utk.edu Knoxville, TN 37901 (423)974-7138 > I'm not a lawyer so this is not an informed legal opinion, however here is > my limited understanding of the situation. > > Formic acid is a hazardous material and since the USDA/EPA doesn't want > anyone to get hurt they are not allowing it to be sold to the general > public, i.e. to an untrained beekeeper. There is some work being done on > creating a "child proof" application which involves using an evaporative > gel mechanism. > However, I do not believe that it's a controlled substance nor does it pose > an environmental threat. > > You probably noticed that I didn't answer your question, "is it legal in > the U.S.?" > > Rory Stenerson, > Member - Centre County Beekeepers Association > State College, PA USA > 71762.1664@compuserve.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 14:44:34 -0500 Reply-To: beeworks@muskoka.net Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology Comments: Authenticated sender is From: David Eyre Organization: The Bee Works Subject: Re: Hot air decapping In-Reply-To: <970730.075839.EDT.SYSAM@cnsibm.albany.edu> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT On 30 Jul 97 at 7:58, Aaron Morris wrote: > > into the honey. (By the way, does somebody have an answer what > > determines the capping style with or without air space: the bees > > or the nectar source?).... > > In his book _Honey_in_the-Comb_ Killion states that this is a > genetic trait. He would work to cull the bees who left no air > pocket between honey and cappings from his breeding stock. I highly I try hard not to get on a high horse too often. But with the above statement I have to. What a load of twaddle!!! All bees leave an air space when capping over stores. It's only the passage of time and millions of tiny feet which compresses those cappings down. Try adding a frame of foundation close to the brood, they will draw, fill and cap, leaving air gaps. Then in a few months it will be dark and flattened like the rest of the frames. ******************************************* The Bee Works, 9 Progress Dr, Unit 2, Orillia, Ontario, L3V 6H1 Phone/fax 705-326-7171 David Eyre, Owner. http://www.muskoka.net/~beeworks ******************************************** ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 20:06:30 0100 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: "luichart.woollens@virgin.net" Subject: Re: Foulbrood MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I have no personal experience of foulbrood but seem to remember being taught that this was a disease of the brood and it did not effect the bees which remained healthy. The treatment as I recall was to shake all the bees into a box and shut them in allowing sufficient ventilation and to starve them for a given period ( I remember asking how long they had to be starved and was told "Until they begin to die!!"). The bees are then hived on fresh foundation. The old frames have to be burned and all the exposed hive parts scorched . Harry ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 16:03:30 -0500 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Midnite Bee Subject: honey supplier MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit www.cybertours.com/~midnitebee Greetings! I have just received this message. For your review. Herb(Midnitebee) Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 10:09:45 -0700 From: Marian Dan To: midnitebee@cybertours.com CC: midnitebee@hotmail.com Subject: Import of honey ------------------------------------------------------------------ Hello, My name is Marian Dan and I would appreciate if you can tell me where I can get some details on importing honey from Europe. I have a brother-in-law in Romania and he produced about four metric tons of honey this year and he wants to sell some of it on the American market. Do you know of anybody who wants to buy? I realize that our producers here are not very happy with outside competition, but I would really like to help this family because of the hardship they go through in Romania. God bless you. Dan. P.S. I really like your internet site. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 21:13:42 +0000 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology Comments: Authenticated sender is From: Joe Hemmens Subject: Re: Hot air decapping (Honey cappings) In-Reply-To: <199707301850.OAA03014@segwun.muskoka.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT David Eyre wrote: > > > into the honey. (By the way, does somebody have an answer what > > > determines the capping style with or without air space: the bees > > > or the nectar source?).... > > > > In his book _Honey_in_the-Comb_ Killion states that this is a > > genetic trait. He would work to cull the bees who left no air > > pocket between honey and cappings from his breeding stock. I highly > > I try hard not to get on a high horse too often. But with the above > statement I have to. What a load of twaddle!!! > All bees leave an air space when capping over stores. It's only the > passage of time and millions of tiny feet which compresses > those cappings down. > Try adding a frame of foundation close to the brood, they will > draw, fill and cap, leaving air gaps. Then in a few months it will be > dark and flattened like the rest of the frames. -------------------------------------------------------------------- From 'Breeding the Honeybee' by Brother Adam. Honey Cappings In countries such as England, where there is a demand for section honey, the art of capping is of great importance. The list of patterns and shapes is almost without end. The Old-English bee offered an unparalled example of the most perfect and artistic cappings. No other race can show the same form of cappings; they were pure white, raised and dome shaped, and the outline of each cell was clearly delineated. The form of the cappings, their design and colour are racially determined. This is so with the way the brood is capped. The genuine Carniolan produces snow-white cappings but they are completely flat and lack any shape; the Italian produces mainly white cappings but they are rather crude in their form; the Anatolian's are also white but the lower third is characteristically greyish, and the outline of each cell is only vague; the majority of the Eastern races cap the honey with dark grey cappings. Wherever white cappings occur, there is always a space between the honey and the wax capping. It is possible by a close study of the basic features of honey cappings to determine to which race a bee belongs, in my opinion, one of the most attractive sides of our breeding work... and 'Beekeeping in Britain' by R.O.B Manley ...There are strains that make a bad job of sealing their honey: I mean that it does not look nice because they fill the cells right up to the wax cap, and the comb honey from such strains is nothing like so attractive to the consumer as that from some of the other varieties. Joe Hemmens ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 20:47:48 -0500 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Richard E Leber Subject: Re: Taranov Board Stewart Beattie, Cumbria, UK. writes; >I use my Tarnoff board quite a lot it is a useful tool to have for >splitting young bees and the queen from old bees. Its easy to make a >board the width of the hive, fixed at an angle on a base board sloped as you >would hive a swarm. Set it back from the hive entrance by about 100mm >(4 inches ) shake the bees of the frames on to the board. The old bees >will fly into the hive leaving a cluster under the board of old bees and >the queen. Easy way to artificially swarm a stock that has queen cells. >also I use it to obtain young bees to stock mini-nuc boxes ... Stewart, please say that again. I can't imagine how this Tarnoff board is fitted to the hive? or bottom board? The board sounds like a quick method to 'shake' bees for early spring splits. Rick Leber, Beekeeping Since 1987 Mobile, Alabama U.S.A. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 21:55:46 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Beverly Ellen Stanley Subject: Re: sweet clover seed Me too! ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 22:05:19 -0400 Reply-To: aa2363@lcfn.org Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: "Kevin R. Palm" Subject: BEE-L Digest: 26 July 1997 - 27 July 1997 Hello, all!! I have a big favor to ask. My ISP went down for about 3 days this week and I'm missing the 26/27 July Digests. Rather than having to get a large file from the archives, could some wonderful soul send me a copy? I'd be eternally gratefull!! Thanks, Kevin Palm -- Kevin R. Palm <*> OSBA Certified Beekeeper (3rd year) Grafton, Ohio USA (41.2N, 82.0W) <*> 5 hives (4 Langstroth, 1 tbh) (25 miles SW of Cleveland) <*> RED DWARF/B5/J. Herriot/P. O'Brian fan aa2363@lcfn.org <*> USN Veteran (1981-1993) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 30 Jul 1997 19:33:05 +0100 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Paul Walton Subject: Re: Foulbrood In-Reply-To: <970728131128_-2110934830@emout08.mail.aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 In article <970728131128_-2110934830@emout08.mail.aol.com>, Faith Andrews Bedford writes >In a message dated 97-07-26 15:57:32 EDT, you write: > ><< A heaping tablespoon of the dust should be applied to the top bars of > frames in each brood chamber and the dusting repeated weekly until all > traces of AFB are gone. >> > >I was undert the impression that any hive with AFB had to reported to a state >bee inspector, the bees killed and the hives either burned, scorched or >treated in a "gas" chamber. Am I wrong? Is that info outddated? > >Faith Andrews Bedford, Tampa and Ivy, VA In the UK, AFB is a notifiable disease under the Bee diseases Control order 1982. The hives must be scorched with a blow-lamp and the frames of bees destroyed by burning in a pit - all under the supervision of a regional bee inspector. -- Paul Walton Email : Paul@adrem.demon.co.uk Toddington, Bedfordshire, England. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 10:19:21 CST Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Vladimir Ptacek Subject: Re: alfalfa varieties On Thu, 24 Jul 1997 23:54:25 -0500, Excerpts from BEE-L wrote: >Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology >From: Brett D Bannon > >Have raised alfalfa in the past and have noted that at different times >honey bees like certain varieties better (or they like different blooming >periods better??). Are there varieties that produce better for honeybees >and are more attractive to them? > >Brett D. Bannon >bbannon@juno.com In the past I did some research on alfalfa attractiveness for pollinators and could see differences among individual plants. Using the clone material we were able to find plants attractive and nonattractive for honey bees and simillarly attractive and nonattractive for solitary bees (Rophites canus). The main attractant for honey bees was nectar and I was not able to find what attracted the solitary bees because of limited extend of the trials. In the material originated from different varieties we were able to find origins more or less attractive for honey bees and solitary bees. In all observations the seed production was highly correlated with visits of solitary bees. In our country Kropacova (Kubisova) did some research earlier, too, and found some differences in attractiveness of alfalfa varieties for honey bees. I alwaus foud negative correlations between numbers of honey bees and solitary bees on alfalfa flowers. I suppose the cause of this consists in the fact that solitary bees collecting both, pollen and nectar, open (and pollinate) most of the visited flowers which stop the nectar secretion then and became unatractive for honey bees. Consequently, honey bees as nectar collectors can be found in higher numbers on the parts of the field where solitary bees are less abundant. If solitary bees are not present, flowers remain unppollinated for longer time the field looks pretty flowering with a pleasant smell, honey yield can be succesfull in such cases, but the seed production will be ussually low. Best regards, Vladimir Ptacek ---------------------------------------------------------------- Fac. Sci., Dept. Anim. Physiol. E.mail: ptacek@sci.muni.cz Masaryk University phone: ..420/5/41129 562 611 37 Brno, Czech Republic fax: ..420/5/41211 214 ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 13:51:07 +0100 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Computer Software Solutions Ltd Subject: Taranov Board Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Fellow Beekeepers, I originated the recent discussion on the Taranov Board and a lot of information on it has now come into my possession from different sources, the salient points of which I am showing below. I take this opportunity of thanking all those who contributed to my little knowledge of beekeeping. The Taranov Board is named after its inventor G F Taranov a Russian Beekeeper. The following article was published by him in the Russian Magazine entitled 'Pchelovdstvo' in 1947. 'The artificial separation of the swarming bees from the parent colony' Taranov found the consecutive links leading to swarming were: 1. Excess of nurse bees (idle bees which hang together in free spaces). 2. Active swarming bees. 3. Reduction in egg laying. 4. (Leading to) accumulation of swarming bees. 5. Issue of swarm. The 'swarm' bees may be from 1 to 21 days old, but physiologically they are all young bees which have not fed brood nor secreted wax. The question was how to separate the swarming bees from the others?. For this, Taranov devised a special hiving board. It consisted of two boards 50 cm long and the width of the alighting board. They are fashioned together at one end, and at the other there are two supports of a height to bring the top edge of the upper board level with the front edge of the alighting board. A rounded piece of wood is fixed under the upper board at the open end of the board and another somewhat lower down. These help to keep the swarm steady when the cluster is moved. A rope is tied to the supports, by which one can lift the bees and board, and hang in the shade until hived in early evening. The board is placed with the upper end of the slope 10cm away from the front edge of the alighting board. A sack or cloth is placed on the ground at the other (lower) end. This has been found to speed up the process. The first comb of bees is shaken on to the lower end of the board - some falling on the cloth. Successive combs are shaken gradually further and further from the board. The bees move up the board and on reaching its limits, the 'swarm' bees go under the board accompanied by the queen. The 'non-swarmers' fly across the 10cm gap and enter the hive. It goes without saying that a comb with a single selected queen cell is left to provide a new queen and this must not be shaken. The bees are carefully removed by brushing with a bee brush or goose feather. There is a slight variation of this system advocated by Donald Sims in his book 'Sixty Years with Bees'. This is it. 'Select and set aside e.g. in a nucleus box, a comb covered with bees on which there is a good advanced queen cell. Make certain that the queen is not on this comb. One way to be certain of this, if one cannot otherwise be sure, is to brush (not shake) the bees off the comb back into the hive and put the comb temporarily in a box above an excluder (on any colony) and wait a short while for young bees to come up and cover it. Next move the brood chamber to one side, and in its place set a floorboard and an empty brood box. Then put the Taranov board in position and spread a cloth over it or put the cloth down first. (The cloth is merely to increase the area on to which bees may be safely shaken by covering the ground on each side of the board). Now shake all of the bees including the queen, on to the board. Destroy all queen cells on each comb as shaken, and place the shaken combs in the new box on the old stand in the same order and facing the same way as before. Repeat with the combs in the second brood box if there are two, using the first brood box (now empty), as the upper brood box of the new hive for the reception of the shaken combs. Leave a space in the middle for the comb first taken (which will by now be covered with bees if it has been put over another colony), and put this comb with its queen cell and bees in its place. Add the excluder and supers if any, that were on the colony, plus inner cover and roof. Then leave the bees to sort themselves out. A Taranov swarm, just like a natural swarm, will be in good condition to draw foundation if fed.' If anyone can further add to or comment on the above, I would be most grateful. I am only a beginner, and have not yet used the Taranov system, but I am anxious to try it next year. Best wishes to all Tom Barrett 49 South Park Foxrock Dublin 18 Ireland e mail cssl@iol.ie fax + 353 1 289 9940 ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 22:58:01 +0900 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: j h & e mcadam Subject: Re: Hot air decapping Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > >In his book _Honey_in_the-Comb_ Killion states that this is a genetic >trait. He would work to cull the bees who left no air pocket between >honey and cappings from his breeding stock. I highly recommend >Killion's book for all beekeepers, whether they intend to produce comb >honey or not. Above and beyond comb honey tips, the book is full of >valuable general beekeeping tips, including a nice section on raising >your own queens. _Honey_in_the_Comb_ is available from Dadant Press. > I understand from my research that Caucasian bees leave air space resulting in white comb whereas the Italian race does not. I have no choice about using Ligurians for comb honey as no other race of bees is permitted on Kangaroo Island as this is a sanctuary for the pure Ligurian and find that the comb honey still gets good customer acceptance - perhaps because comb honey is so scarce there are no standards of perfection. Betty McAdam HOG BAY APIARY Penneshaw, Kangaroo Island j.h. & e. mcadam Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Rett Thorpe Subject: Weight of Honey MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Everyone reports their honey collection in pounds. Could someone please tell me how many pounds of honey there are in a gallon. Thanks in advance Rett Thorpe ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 10:18:05 EDT Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Aaron Morris Subject: Pounds of honey in a gallon MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7BIT 12 ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 10:59:48 -0500 Reply-To: bkeep200@concentric.net Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: JTroyer Subject: Smoker Story MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit To all who are firing up your smokers: I heard a firetruck siren this am. and saw the truck coming down our rural road. I ran to the window wondering where it was going when it stopped at my house. Seems our neighbors saw clouds of smoke over here and thought our house was burning down. My husband was just starting his bee smoker!!!!! I think we should run over to the fire department and drop off some honey and crackers..... Take care!! JT ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 12:03:28 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Ted Wout Subject: Peaches for Pollination MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Hello Everyone! My wife called a local(sort of - less than an hour away) peach orchard about picking peaches. While she was on the phone she struck up a conversation with the lady at the orchard. They talked about all sorts o= f things and got around to bees. The lady at the orchard said they haven't= seen many bees since the mites came and she thinks it's hurting their fru= it set. She asked that my wife bring me to the orchard so that we could discuss pollination for peaches. Questions: 1)Do peaches benefit from bee pollination? I've heard yes and no. 2)If so, what concentration per tree should I put in an orchard? 3)What is the longest manageable distance for taking care of bees for a hobbyist/sideliner? I have almost reached what I think is the maximum numbers of hives for my= only real bee yard. I've been thinking that I need to find another suitable site. So I'm not just looking for free peaches. I want another= palce to keep bees. Hopefully there are other plants and trees that offe= r nectar in the area. Ted Wout Red Oak, TX, USA ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 11:39:58 -0600 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Peter Wilson Subject: Re: Pounds of honey in a gallon In-Reply-To: <970731.101812.EDT.SYSAM@cnsibm.albany.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Imperial or US gallons? Moisture content of honey? Temperature of honey?( in fahrenheit or celsius degrees) e mail pjwilson@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 13:53:08 -0600 Reply-To: Charles Harper Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Charles Harper Subject: Re: Weight of Honey MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Thu, 31 Jul 1997 08:18:37 -0600, Rett Thorpe wrote: >Everyone reports their honey collection in pounds. Could someone please >tell me how many pounds of honey there are in a gallon. >Thanks in advance >Rett Thorpe > 11.6 Pounds in a gallon of 18.5% water honey. Charles Harper Harper's Honey farm 1000 + Colonies ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 17:50:05 -0400 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: John A Skinner Subject: Re: Smoker Story Comments: To: JTroyer In-Reply-To: <33E0B671.30DB@concentric.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII On Thu, 31 Jul 1997, JTroyer wrote: > To all who are firing up your smokers: > > I heard a firetruck siren this am. and saw the truck coming down our > rural road. I ran to the window wondering where it was going when it > stopped at my house. Seems our neighbors saw clouds of smoke over here > and thought our house was burning down. My husband was just starting > his bee smoker!!!!! I think we should run over to the fire department > and drop off some honey and crackers..... Take care!! JT > Howdy JT. Couldn't resist a quick related story for a grin or two One year during a smoker lighting contest at a meeting in Tennessee in a hotel parking lot, someone saw clouds of smoke and sent out a firetruck to investigate. I can't remember if the firefighters judged the winner in the contest or not, but it was a hoot. I do seem to remember the truck left with a few jars of sweetness for their trouble. Grins, John John A. Skinner 218 Ellington Hall Extension Apiculturist University of Tennessee jskinner@utk.edu Knoxville, TN 37901 (423)974-7138 ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 21:14:23 -0600 Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Martin Braunstein Subject: Bee equipment preservation with PARAFFIN MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Hi all, I am an Argentine queen breeder. I would appreciate any details about the use of paraffin to preserve beekeeping woodenware by means of dipping hive bodies, supers, bottom boards and lids into a hot bath of this stuff. I know this is a common practice among large scale beekeeping operations = in New Zealand who avoid the time and labor consuming painting of bee equipment. I am aware that in the December 1980 issue of a magazine entitled "The Ne= w Zealand beekeeper" there was an extensive article about this matter. Woul= d anyone be so kind as to fax me either a copy of this article or let me kn= ow the fax and/or e-mail address of this bee journal? Thanks for your support. With best regards. Mart=EDn Braunstein Malka Caba=F1a Ap=EDcola e-mail: malka@webnet.com.ar Fax (54+322)87564 Ph (54+1)446-8350 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 1 Aug 1997 00:46:48 UT Reply-To: Discussion of Bee Biology Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Garry Libby Subject: Chewy Honey Hello Everyone, I've recently extracted about 70 lbs of honey.The honey is delicious but is very thick,it has been described by a friend as being "chewy".Is this acceptable ? Is there a way to add moisture to it ? Or should I just bottle it as is? I live in the Boston,USA area and We are experiencing a drought,which must be the reason for the low moisture content.If I decided to show this at a fair would points be taken off for the low moisture?Thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions. Garry Libby Boston,USA LibBEE@msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 20:49:39 -0700 Reply-To: cspacek@flash.net Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Curtis Spacek Subject: Re: Bee equipment preservation with PARAFFIN MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit IN response to your inquiry,I have seen this done by a comercial beekeeper whom I purchased my first Italian bees from.He had built a fairly large vat(2'x6'x3'deep) which was raised off the ground about 12" off the ground to provide room for the fire.Parafin wax was brought to a slight boil and the hive bodies were submerged using a steel weight made of a length of pipe (2") with a cross made of angle iron.While this hive soaked a second hive was submerged in the same manner.The hives soaked for just over a minute each and by alternating in this way a large number of hives can be waterproofed in a short period of time. Hive boxes treated in this fashion will last in excess of 10 years without painting or any further maintenance.A couple of hives which i purchased as used held a paint job pretty well after the excess wax was scraped from the bottom edges where it had accumulated while cooling.A word of caution,sink the boxes gently!!! Hot wax splashed on bare skin burns!!!!!!This works equally well on new, used,or really old hives.The wax permeates all cracks and joints and fills in slightly rotted spots.We live in texas along the Gulf coast where the climate is always very humid.normally woodenware will last 5yrs.if painted regularly.Hope this helped. Curtis,Pasadena,Texas ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997 21:42:52 -0700 Reply-To: cspacek@flash.net Sender: Discussion of Bee Biology From: Curtis Spacek Subject: Re: Feeders and Drowned Bees MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I use 3 small pieces of balsa wood in lengths sufficient to nearly cover all of the surface area of the liquid in the feeder.The feeder holds 1 gal.I have yet to find any dead bees at the bottom of the feeder.