Swarm Season

One of three swarms picked up on the same day. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

Swarm Season

Mother’s Day weekend in Missouri usually kicks off the honeybee swarming season. Swarming is the honeybees way to reproduce and is not something to be feared. In most cases, a swarm is at its most docile, worker bees full of honey as scout bees go looking for a new home.

To beekeepers, the swarming season is either something to look forward to or something they try to avoid. Some experienced beekeepers prefer to make their own “swarms” by splitting colonies, which ensures the new colonies have room to grow and are not prompted to split.

Other beekeepers like the excitement of a swarm call and “catch.” Although I split some of my colonies earlier I also enjoy the periodic swarm call, it’s a great opportunity to talk to non-beekeepers about what the bees are doing. And we usually manage to snag a potential new beekeeper or two.

This particular day I had three swarm calls. I passed one on and took two of them, one literally at dusk and this one late in the afternoon. Swarms tend to be on the move as they look for a new home so the call has to be answered quickly if you want to find the bees in the first spot.

The bees in the first call were 5 feet off the ground hanging from a tree branch so it was easy to move them into a hive box.

I had the hive box half full of sugar syrup-coated wax frames in case they were hungry. To entice them to stay. I left the branch in the open space until they settled back in my apiary. One can tell if they are settling in by the sound they are making inside the hive box.

Sneak peek at the inside of the hive box where the bees are settling in. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

These are the bees later that same evening, apparently accepting their new home.

The next morning I found the bees doing orientation flights in front of their temporary home so that’s a good sign they like their new accommodations.

I also removed the tree branch and added two more sugar syrup-infused wax frames in the empty space. To make sure they were making the transition, I draped the branch over the top hive entrance.

Once the queen starts laying the swarm will move into the yellow bee hive. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

Swarms have a 5-day lifespan to find a new home. In the process, they’ve left their original home full of honey and are ready to build new wax. The tree branch I cut down was covered in pristine white wax, made while the worker bees waited for scout bees to come back with possible new home locations.

Loaded up with honey, swarm worker bees like to build wax. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

Swarms have their own management challenges. The queen bee is usually the old queen so it may need a new queen before the season is over. Varroa mites and small hive beetles also travel with the colony so they are not pest free. And no one knows the genetic background of the bees.

In addition, more than half of all swarms don’t make it through their first winter in a hive so they need extra attention to make sure they are strong going into winter with adequate stored honey.

The basics of catching a swarm are in A Beekeeper’s Diary, Self-Guide to Beekeeping.

Although splitting colonies is easier, there’s still a thrill about going out on a swarm call. I hope I never tire of doing it!

For more beekeeping, gardening, cooking and easy home decor tips, subscribe to Garden Notes.

Charlotte

April Beekeeping Jobs

A hive lifter, and a second set of hands, makes moving a hive easier. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo

April Beekeeping Tasks

Depending on weather, April can be an anxious time for beekeepers in USDA Hardiness Zone 6b where I live. Bees got an early start in February and aren’t waiting on beekeepers.

There are many traditional spring beekeeping chores including moving hives. The colonies are small so they are easier to relocate than later when there are significant higher numbers of bees. To safely relocate hives, beekeepers can use a hive lifter. It does take a second set of hands but saves the beekeeper’s back.

If you are interested in keeping bees, this is a good time to start, you may be able to find beekeepers who could use a hand and that’s the best way to learn. Start by reading a book such as A Beekeeper’s Diary Self-Guide to Beekeeping to get the terms down and understand the biology basics.

Some of the other typical April beekeeping jobs include:

1. Inspect colonies. Add small hive beetle traps with fresh lure in hive body corners opposite of each other. Then switch corners in the next box.

2. Pull together swarm-catching equipment.

3. Prepare nucleus colonies before getting new queens. Use these smaller hives to house your old queen in case the new queen is not accepted.

4. Have new boxes with frames ready to add to existing colonies.

5. Monitor weather for best conditions to split. If you want honey, split after the honey flow.

6. Blooming blackberry plants mark the beginning of the spring nectar flow. Do you have enough woodenware and frames on hand to add space?

   For more beekeeping, gardening, cooking and easy home decor tips, subscribe to Garden Notes.

   Charlotte

May Beekeeping Jobs

Introducing a new queen bee can be among May beekeeping jobs. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

May Beekeeping Jobs

Oh, my, how busy May can be for beekeepers. Usually the month when the nectar flow kicks into high gear, May can also be a very busy month helping bees get ready for the three months of flower nectar collection.

1. Beekeepers should have completed at least one full inspection to determine how well the bees came out of winter; how well the queen is laying and benchmarking Varroa mite levels with either an alcohol or sugar shake.

2. Colonies also need to have added space in the brood both so the queen has room to lay. Lack of space prompts the colony to build swarm cells.

3. Adding hive space is also helpful this time of year. As the colony grows, it will need space not only for brood but for storing pollen and nectar.

4. Wintered-over wax frames need to be checked and aired. Especially frames stored in ParaMoth crystals, those frames should be exposed to sun and air for a good week. ParaMoth crystals deter wax moths but will also kill bees.

5. Frames getting repurposed can be refreshed by replacing the foundation with new foundation.

6. Wax frames in use for more than 3 years should be replaced with fresh frames.

7. Old wax frames can be used in swarm traps to entice colonies looking for a new home.

8. Beekeepers will be doing an inventory of existing equipment to make sure they have enough woodenware for the nectar-collecting season.

9. Varroa mite management plans this time of year may include splitting colonies, removing drone comb and re-queening with varroa sensitive queens.

10. Planting native trees, shrubs and perennials are also added this time of year.

Charlotte

April Beekeeping Jobs

A hive lifter, and a second set of hands, makes moving a hive easier. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo

April Beekeeping Tasks

Depending on weather, April can be an anxious time for beekeepers in USDA Hardiness Zone 5 where I live. Beekeepers are biding their time to determine how soon they can get inside their hives to see how their bees are doing. This year, spring arrived early but I did not jump the gun and get into my colonies yet. I am waiting until daytime temperatures are over 70F and evening temperatures are above 45F.

Good thing I waited. March left us with snow and winter-like temperatures.

There are many traditional spring beekeeping chores including moving hives. The colonies are small so they are easier to relocate than later when there are significant higher numbers of bees. To safely relocate hives, beekeepers can use a hive lifter. It does take a second set of hands but saves the beekeeper’s back.

If you are interested in keeping bees, this is a good time to start, you may be able to find beekeepers who could use a hand and that’s the best way to learn. Start by reading a book such as A Beekeeper’s Diary Self-Guide to Beekeeping to get the terms down and understand the biology basics.

Some of the other typical April beekeeping jobs include:

1. Inspect colonies. Add small hive beetle traps with fresh lure in hive body corners opposite of each other. Then switch corners in the next box.

2. Pull together swarm-catching equipment.

3. Prepare nucleus colonies before getting new queens. Use these smaller hives to house your old queen in case the new queen is not accepted.

4. Have new boxes with frames ready to add to existing colonies.

5. Monitor weather for best conditions to split. If you want honey, split after the honey flow.

6. Blooming blackberry plants mark the beginning of the spring nectar flow. Do you have enough woodenware and frames on hand to add space?

   Charlotte

Goodbye to a Fellow Beekeeper

Our local bee club planning committee with Tom Miller, second from right.

Goodbye to a Fellow Beekeeper

Our local bee club lost one of its founding members and all around good guy earlier this month. Tom Miller, a Navy veteran, grandfather, gardener and beekeeper died March 9, 2022.

Tom Miller demonstrating how to build a bee hive at a beginning class. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

When one starts an educational non-profit, a group like that depends on volunteers like Tom Miller.. Tom would volunteer to get whatever needed done, from making sample equipment to vacuuming the meeting hall after a class or meeting.

In between, he loved his dogs and cared for grandchildren over summer. He also loved to read, the more obscure gardening and beekeeping books the better.

Demonstrating how to use a refractometer at a honey extracting demo. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

If there was a gadget nearby, he would either know how to use it or figure it out on the spot. And shortly thereafter make one that he would try to improve.

I met Tom in one of my first beginning beekeeping classes. He was very excited to add bees to his lovely hillside garden, across a valley from mine. Once we toured each other’s garden, the race was on. We often would try to beat each other to plant sales and often shared garden bounty.

When I lost my cat Margaret a few years back, it was Tom who was thoughtful enough to make a head stone for her grave. He understood my attachment to my cats; he felt the same about his rescue dogs.

In keeping with Tom’s generous spirit, his family has donated his beekeeping equipment to our club. We’ve already expanded one teaching apiary in southeast Missouri with some of the equipment and are planning to develop a second teaching apiary in Rolla.

We were lucky to know you, Tom. You will be dearly missed.

Charlotte

December Beekeeping Chores

Homemade bee-themed ornaments are a fun family project. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

December Beekeeping Chores

Usually by this time of the year my bees are clustered in their hives and I’m tucked in my home staying warm against cold, soon to be wintery days. This year, it’s hard to believe it’s December when daytime temperatures are in the 70s and bees are checking out what plants I’m still getting into the ground.

• With these warmer temperatures, bees are working quickly through their food stores so this is a good time to monitor their honey stores. If they are running low, time to make sugar cakes to add to the top of the hive.

• If you haven’t already, store frames with wax in totes with ParaMoth crystals to protect the wax frames against wax moths.

• If you need to order bees, start canvasing your area for beekeepers who may have nucs for sale next spring. Best to buy your bees locally if you can.

• Remember you can also store empty hive bodies outside to cut down on storage area.

• If you have kids, have fun making cookies and tree ornaments with bees on them.

• And if you were lucky enough to get some honey this year, make sure to enjoy it over the holidays, it’s a delicious perk of keeping bees.

Happy holidays!

Charlotte

Getting Bees Winter Ready

Homemade sugar cakes ready to place inside at the hive tops. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Getting Bees Winter Ready

Even though the temperatures are a bit warm for fall in USDA Hardiness zone 5, it’s time to get my honey bees ready for winter.

Bees don’t hibernate; they cluster inside the hive keeping the queen bee, and stored honey, warm. They maintain the 90F temperature by shivering or moving their flight muscles, to generate the heat. The warmth makes it easier for them to work through the wax cappings on the stored honey. Honey itself is their version of canning so they have winter food.

The first step in getting my hives ready for winter is closing down the hive front. The entrance reducer offers two options, a half opening and a two bee width. Winter is a good time to turn the reducer to the smallest size to cut down on incoming cold wind.

Hive entrances are closed down to a two-bee width. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Same thing with the top of the hive. I change the screened inner covers for solid ones. The screened inner cover help bees to ventilate the hive during hot weather.

The inner cover of the hive is changed from a screen one to a solid one. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Underneath the now solid inner cover, I keep a feeding shim or an addition where I can place the homemade sugar cakes over where the bees are clustering. The feeding shim also has holes so bees can use it as an alternate entrance in case the bottom one gets covered in snow and ice.

Since the weather is still warm, I am also feeding the bees a thick sugar syrup they can store in the wax foundation as well as consume for flight fuel.

Thick sugar syrup and sugar cakes keep bees fed through fall. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Finally I wrap the hives with an insulated wrap to help keep wind out.

Insulated black wrap helps to keep wind out of the hive. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

This is the back of a wrapped hive. I make sure the wrap doesn’t cover the front of the hive.

Supplemental sugar cakes are back up winter food. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Bees use the homemade sugar cakes for backup food when they run out of honey.

It’s easy to think a mild winter is better for bees but it’s not. During mild winters, bees need more honey to fuel their flights and moving around. More on keeping honey bees here.

Let’s hope these girls make it through this winter!

Charlotte

November Beekeeping Chores

Feeding bees thick sugar water inside the hive to help them get ready for winter. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

November Beekeeping Chores

The beekeeping season is winding down in mid-Missouri but there are still some important things for beekeepers to do.

Since our fall nectar flow was poor and my bees consumed some of their stored spring nectar, I am feeding a couple of colonies sugar water so they can save their honey for winter. Because it is so late in the season, I am giving them two parts sugar to one part water, a thicker syrup than I would feed in spring.

All entrance reducers have been turned to the smallest entrance, more to keep mice out of the hives as temperatures fall.

They will also get an insulated wrap to help cut any winter winds that may hit our hillside.

Once we have our first hard frost, I will have a small window of about 2 months where I can apply oxalic acid vapor to the colonies to knock down Varroa mite levels. This is a period when the queen is not laying so there’s a bigger chance to kill off Varroa mites that don’t have nursery cells where they can reproduce.

This is also the time of year to add supplemental food at the top of the hive. I make sugar cakes to provide my bees with emergency food in case they run out of their stores. A lot can happen to my bees I have little control over but I can make sure they don’t die of starvation.

And for beekeepers this is the beginning of the reading season, catching up on all off those magazines they didn’t read earlier.

If you are a new or imminent beekeeper, this is a good time to read A Beekeeper’s Diary Self-Guide to Beekeeping. It includes a first and second year calendar so beginning beekeepers have a better idea of what to expect month to month.

Charlotte

Radial Extractors

A radial honey extractor spins honey out of both sides of the frame at the same time. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Radial Extractors

August in North America is when beekeepers start sharing capped honey frames among their bee colonies and extracting the extra frames to bottle for use and/or selling.

One of the tools beekeepers use is a honey extractor, a barrel-shaped gadget with a basket where honey frames sit before spinning to easily remove the stored honey.

Over the years, I’ve observed beekeepers have a hard time distinguishing between the two major types of honey extractors: tangential and radial.

Here’s an easy way to distinguish between the two. Radial, in the photo, is like the spokes of a wheel with the frame edges facing outward. When the frames are spun, honey is quickly removed from both sides.

A tangential extractor has the foundation facing outwards. To extract honey from both sides, the frames have to be turned once so that the honey will be spun out of both frame sides.

These honey extractors come as small as two frame extractors up to huge commercial ones that handle dozens of frames at the same time.

They also offer the hand-cranked versus the motorized options.

What you purchase depends on how many honey frames you expect to extract every year.

Charlotte

August Beekeeping Chores

August is a good time to photograph bees collecting nectar and pollen. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

August Beekeeping Chores

Actually I love photographing my bees all year around but my garden seems to be their playground in August. Most established colonies have their highest populations this time of year and my garden is at its peak in blossoms, it’s the best time to find bees on flowers.

For me, August is also the beginning of winter preparations.

1. Assess how much nectar each colony collected during the nectar flow. I plan on leaving two medium honey supers on each colony going into winter so they don’t starve if it’s a mild winter.

2. If I then have extra honey, I make plans to extract.

3. Depending on Varroa mite levels through monitoring, I also identify Varroa mite treatment options. I don’t use chemicals but I do use formic acid and oxalic acid at the right times of the year.

4. If the colonies are new, feed sugar syrup to stimulate wax glands to produce wax comb.

5. Monitor for robbing.

6. If food supplies, such as nectar, in nature are low, the colonies may kick out drones and consume some of their honey stores.

7. If food supplies, such as protein, in nature are low, the queen may also be laying but appear to have stopped. The colony will consume eggs for protein.

8. If you need to make repairs, do them now so cold weather doesn’t catch you unprepared.

9. Inventory what plants you have growing and which ones you want to add in fall. How do you tell? Follow the bees!

Charlotte

Beekeeping Today Podcasts

We taped the June 14, 2021 podcast on May 20, 2021. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Beekeeping Today Podcasts

The podcasts “Beekeeping Today” happen to be a personal favorite so imagine my delight to be invited to be a guest. Mark your calendars for Monday, June 14, 2021 and make sure to check it out for their other guests including Dr. Samuel Ramsey, who discovered how Varroa mites impact bees.

Kim Flotum and Jeff Ott host a conversation that reaches more than 5,000 listeners and is considered one of the top 10 beekeeping podcasts available today.

Kim was the first to reach out to me after seeing a copy of “A Beekeeper’s Diary Self-Guide to Beekeeping.” Jeff Ott followed up with the details of how the podcast is taped for later broadcast. Even though this is only an audio production, the three of us could see each other via Zoom, which helped make the discussion much more conversational.

It was interesting to hear what parts of the book Kim and Jeff enjoyed and why. We all agreed “A Beekeeper’s Diary Self-Guide to Beekeeping” is uniquely different from beginning beekeeping books.

Both Kim and Jeff are beekeepers themselves with impressive professional backgrounds. If you’ve read “Bee Culture Magazine” you may know Kim as their editor in chief. Kim also hosts a podcast with Jim Tew that is very interesting, the Kim and Jim Show covers an eclectic list of topics including major changes in beekeeping.

As a beekeeper one of the challenges is to stay on top of current information and developments, and both of these podcasts makes that easier.

And if you enjoy podcasts. Dr. Kirsten Traynor just launched her podcasts on pollinators.

Charlotte

Swarm Season

One of three swarms picked up on the same day. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Swarm Season

Mother’s Day weekend in Missouri usually kicks off the honeybee swarming season. Swarming is the honeybees way to reproduce and is not something to be feared. In most cases, a swarm is at its most docile, worker bees full of honey as scout bees go looking for a new home.

To beekeepers, the swarming season is either something to look forward to or something they try to avoid. Some experienced beekeepers prefer to make their own “swarms” by splitting colonies, which ensures the new colonies have room to grow and are not prompted to split.

Other beekeepers like the excitement of a swarm call and “catch.” Although I split some of my colonies earlier I also enjoy the periodic swarm call, it’s a great opportunity to talk to non-beekeepers about what the bees are doing. And we usually manage to snag a potential new beekeeper or two.

This particular day I had three swarm calls. I passed one on and took two of them, one literally at dusk and this one late in the afternoon. Swarms tend to be on the move as they look for a new home so the call has to be answered quickly if you want to find the bees in the first spot.

The bees in the first call were 5 feet off the ground hanging from a tree branch so it was easy to move them into a hive box.

I had the hive box half full of sugar syrup-coated wax frames in case they were hungry. To entice them to stay. I left the branch in the open space until they settled back in my apiary. One can tell if they are settling in by the sound they are making inside the hive box.

Sneak peek at the inside of the hive box where the bees are settling in. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

These are the bees later that same evening, apparently accepting their new home.

The next morning I found the bees doing orientation flights in front of their temporary home so that’s a good sign they like their new accommodations.

I also removed the tree branch and added two more sugar syrup-infused wax frames in the empty space. To make sure they were making the transition, I draped the branch over the top hive entrance.

Once the queen starts laying the swarm will move into the yellow bee hive. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Swarms have a 5-day lifespan to find a new home. In the process, they’ve left their original home full of honey and are ready to build new wax. The tree branch I cut down was covered in pristine white wax, made while the worker bees waited for scout bees to come back with possible new home locations.

Loaded up with honey, swarm worker bees like to build wax. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Swarms have their own management challenges. The queen bee is usually the old queen so it may need a new queen before the season is over. Varroa mites and small hive beetles also travel with the colony so they are not pest free. And no one knows the genetic background of the bees.

In addition, more than half of all swarms don’t make it through their first winter in a hive so they need extra attention to make sure they are strong going into winter with adequate stored honey.

The basics of catching a swarm are in A Beekeeper’s Diary, Self-Guide to Beekeeping.

Although splitting colonies is easier, there’s still a thrill about going out on a swarm call. I hope I never tire of doing it!

Charlotte

Superorganisms Are Family

A sweet Christmas gift from a friend got me thinking about families. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Superorganisms Are Family

One of the concepts beginning beekeepers struggle with is the idea of a bee colony as a superorganism. According to Wikipedia, a superorganism is “a group of synergistically interacting organisms of the same species.” an important concept for a new beekeeper to understand as they learn how bees interact and work together.

Scientists will argue that only a few species meet this inter-dependent and supportive criteria. Ants, for example, work together for the benefit of the colony. So do honey bees. And in a sense, so do we as healthy functioning countries, communities and families.

I can think of a number of times my parents made decisions that were in the best interests of the family and not necessarily them as individuals. Bees also make similar decisions. Sick bees will leave the hive to die away from the colony. Guard bees will sting, and loose their lives in the process, to protect the colony.

Bees, like families, also work together for the benefit of the whole colony. They store flower nectar, then dehydrate it, to store food for winter consumption. They will groom each other, share water and pollen, and communicate the location of food sources.

As we continue to navigate the unknown challenges of a pandemic, getting vaccinated is a step we can all take to benefit the rest of our neighbors. As we get vaccinated, we are creating a superorganism to combat COVID and its associated, and newly-mutating viruses.

i suppose calling a family a superorganism may sound silly but that’s what it is, a group of people living together and making decisions for the benefit of everyone. We can use a little of that today.

Charlotte

April Beekeeping Chores

Sunny warm days bring out the bees to collect pollen and nectar. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

April Beekeeping Chores

Depending on weather, April can be an anxious time for beekeepers in USDA Hardiness Zone 5 where I live, especially how soon they can get inside their hives to see how their bees are doing. This year, spring arrived relatively on schedule so there were periods of warm days to check colonies for size as well as provide room in the bee nursery.

Not only was I surprised at how well they were doing but one colony wanted more room so they decided to build wax comb under the inner cover.

If you are interested in keeping bees, this is a good time to start, you may be able to find beekeepers who could use a hand and that’s the best way to learn. Start by reading a book such as A Beekeeper’s Diary Self-Guide to Beekeeping to get the terms down and understand the biology basics.

Some of the other typical April beekeeping chores include:

1. Inspect colonies. Add small hive beetle traps with lure.

2. Pull together swarm-catching equipment.

3. Prepare nucleus colonies before getting new queens. Use these smaller hives to house your old queen in case the new queen is not accepted.

4. Have new boxes with frames ready to add to existing colonies.

5. Monitor weather for best conditions to split. If you want honey, split after the honey flow.

6. Blooming blackberry plants mark the beginning of the spring nectar flow. Do you have enough woodenware and frames on hand to add space?

   Charlotte

Bee Hive Registration

Some of the hive locations on BeeWatch’s website. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Bee Hive Registration

One of the challenges as a beekeeper is how to keep bees safe from pesticides. In Missouri, there are 8,000 commercial pesticide applicators and 18,000 private pesticide applicators juggling when to apply products that can kill honey bees.

There is a current tool available that tries to bridge beekeepers and pesticide applicators. BeeCheck, formerly called Field Watch, provides an online application where beekeepers can register their hive locations. The idea is that then pesticide applicators can check the map to determine where hives are located and contact, and otherwise work, around impacting bees.

Beekeepers have the option to restrict who sees their hive locations. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Some Missouri beekeepers have had second thoughts about registering their hives. With the value of bees on the increase as well as hive thefts, some have been reluctant to share their hive locations.

To accommodate that concern, BeeCheck now has two mapping options; one for the public and the second one that is only for pesticide applicators. Restricting the information to just pesticide applicators may increase the map use.

Charlotte

Sharing Honey Bounty

This Little Red Riding Hood-look alike basket has honey for my neighbors. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Sharing Honey Bounty

When I first started beekeeping in 2010, I had no interest in the honey, I wanted the bees to pollinate my one acre hillside full of dwarf fruit trees.

Since then, I have developed an appreciation not only for the honey but for how much others appreciate it. I now consider a honey devoid year a bad one because then I don’t have honey to give as gifts. Some of the favorite gifts I have given over the years have included honey.

Honey is an amazing product in many ways. Besides a sweetener twice as sweet as cane sugar, honey can be used to treat scrapes and cuts. A friend who has horses said her vet told her to find a local honey source to treat a laceration on one of her horse’s legs. You bet I replaced the gift honey she used, there’s nothing quite comforting in the middle of a cold gray winter day that a hot cup of tea with honey.

Besides family, I share my apiary bounty with my neighbors. They all live uphill from my apiary and periodically they will report seeing my bees on their flowers. One even rescued a bedraggled delivery driver who had the poor sense of driving down my one lane driveway when I was working on a nearby colony. He wasn’t stung but he was rattled enough that he asked me to drive his truck back out of the driveway.

Some people don’t know much about honey so I have business cards with my contact information one one side and honey facts on the other one. Several years ago I made up a business card with a honey recipe. It’s helpful to give people who don’t know what to do with honey some ideas.

These honey jars are packaged and labelled as I do my honey jars for sale. I also add how many flowers it took to make that particular jar of honey. It takes 2 million blossoms to make one pound of honey. I don’t know about you but that gives me pause every time I think about that number.

The ice and snow have melted enough so I can now safely deliver these honey jars to my neighbors. Enjoy!

Charlotte

Winter Feeding Check

Wait, what? Why are the bees now on the other side of the hive! (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Winter Feeding Check

Normally it takes a colony about 50-70 lbs of honey to make it through a typical mid-Missouri winter.

Our weather, however, is anything but typical any more. For the past three years, we’ve had longer falls and springs and barely cold winters. A nice change for those who don’t like cold but bad news for bees. When temperatures are 50F plus they are out looking for flowers amid a desolate winter landscape.

This past year, my colonies had extra honey on all hives so I left it for them. I thought if we have another mild winter, they are going to need the extra food supplies since there will be nothing in nature.

Sure enough, when Christmas was 70F and I was checking - not inspecting - my colonies, they had worked through most of their honey supplies. Time to give them supplemental sugar cakes to help them make it through winter.

Now sugar cakes cannot feed bees full time, it just supplements them until they can find new flowers and food sources in nature. When temperatures are record warm, it also gives colonies a chance to move stored honey to areas in the hive where they can better reach it. The challenge is that temperatures can get cold very fast, leaving them separated from honey sources. That’s where the supplemental sugar cakes comes in handy, it gives them food until they can find their own.

As I opened this particular colony, I was struck by the location of the bees, on the right, and the placement of the supplemental sugar cake, on the left. When I added the sugar cakes, it was right over where the bees were clustered.

Seeing the bees had moved to the right told me they must have baby bees now. If worker bees have to decide between keeping brood warm or eating, they will die of starvation to keep the baby bees warm.

Another winter storm was heading our way so I moved the white sugar cake over the cluster. I also added a second supplemental sugar cake with pollen so the bees will have a source of protein.

Bee cluster now has food over it while it keeps brood warm. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

It will be interesting to see if there is any honey leftover come spring. If I had to guess, I will say there won’t be any.

Charlotte

Beekeeping Classes 2020

Launching one of Missouri’s, if not the first Great Plains Master Beekeeping certified beginning beekeeping class, for a local bee club. Great way to spend a winter Saturday, talking bees! (Photo by Lorri Thurman)

Beekeeping Classes 2020

Let’s see, I have been teaching beginning beekeeping classes since 2012. Launched first at the request of our local extension office, this year’s classes mark a new milestone in Missouri beekeeping history. The Rolla Bee Club beginning beekeeping classes this year have been certified through Great Plains Master Beekeeping Program, which means students are getting the most current best management practices.

Students from the historic first Great Plains Master Beekeeping Apprentice level classes at Rolla Bee Club for 2020. Several attendees told me this was their last attempt to be successful at keeping bees after trying for several years. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

It’s a big deal for several reasons.

Some beekeepers enjoy making their own hives as well as new associated contraptions. We say learn the basics, then branch out into whatever catches your interest. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

First, most beekeeping questions tend to be answered with “it depends.” In other words, there can be many answers to a beginning beekeeper’s questions, making it challenging to make critical, expensive decisions as one buys and scouts hive locations. By focusing on best management practices, the answers are narrowed down to the ones that lead to success.

Secondly, beekeepers like to tinker. They’re either making something for their hives or trying something new with their bees. Not an issue if you understand bee biology but it you’re starting, this can be confusing. Our beginning beekeeping classes focus on what a beginning beekeeper needs to know to pull their honey bees through their first winter. It can take a couple to three years so this is also a lesson in patience.

The symbol that a course is approved by Great Plains Master Beekeeping out of University of Nevada at Lincoln.

As a member of the Great Plains Master Beekeeping program, these beginning beekeeping classes qualify for the entire first Apprentice Level. Although several students suggested in their class survey that the class should be divided into two sessions, we spend a good 8 hours on the basics including providing a diary with check lists that can be referred to later on.

Jessie Scrivner-Gunn, left, and David Draker demonstrating January 25, 2020 how to carefully inspect a hive. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

The thing is, even if we could go over everything, we’re only coaches, the honey bees are the real teachers. And they don’t read beekeeping books, as we like to tell everyone so as much as we try to provide most likely scenarios, no two years of beekeeping are the same.

Did I mention beekeeping can be a lifelong adventure?

The bottom line is Rolla Bee Club’s beginning beekeeping classes in 2020 mark a new era. Considering the bee club was launched February 2014, this is a good way to mark our sixth year introducing people to beekeeping. And supporting them as well through our monthly meetings and associated events.

Rolla Bee Club January 26, 2020 club meeting included a discussion of the pros and cons of various hive designs besides a Langstroth, the current industry standard. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Two more beginning beekeeping classes are scheduled for this year. We hold the classes in winter when the bees are supposed to be clustered inside hives consuming honey. When temperatures sneak above 50F, though, I find my bees sneaking into my garage looking for something to eat.

My Bee Buddy and Club co-founder David Draker welcoming students to our January 25, 2020 beginning beekeeping class. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

The next beginning beekeeping class will be Saturday, February 15, 2020 at Doolittle Community Hall, 380 Eisenhower, Doolittle, Missouri. Deadline to register is February 1, 2020. Cost is $75 and includes a beginning beekeeping book, calendar, refreshments and catered lunch. Register online.

Doolittle Community Hall is located off Interstate 44, exit 179.

For those who help their bees make it through winter, we have a Second Year Beekeeping Class Saturday, March 14, 2020 also at Doolittle Community Hall. This class will focus more on basic techniques including how to merge colonies and how to make a split. Deadline to register is Friday, February 28, 2020. Register here.
So let’s talk bees, shall we?

Charlotte

Apologizing to Wind Blown Bee Colony

My wind blown colony settling on winter sugar cakes under the hive lid. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Apologizing to Wind Blown Bee Colony

As a beekeeping coach, I am pretty insistent about not opening up a hive over winter. Honey bees have worked diligently to seal up the hive cracks with propolis, or bee glue. We now also know propolis has antibacterial qualities, so we want to keep as much of the propolis in the hive as possible.

So it was with great trepidation that I saw one of my hives knocked over. We had had 65+ mph winds the night before. Although I had checked and secured all straps around hives the day before, this one hive was apparently in the perfect spot to get hit.

Another hive 10 feet to the left and forward of this poor colony was untouched.

The wind blown colony as I found it after 65 mph winds hit our hillside. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

A mad dash out to the apiary confirmed the bees had made it, they were gathered in the bottom two boxes. Which originally were the top two hive boxes full of stored honey.

I removed the empty bottom two boxes to shorten the hive and gently, slowly, carefully - settled the bees back in.

Once I moved the frames back into boxes, I found several clumps of bees among the dried leaves. I took those to be young, nurse bees that couldn’t orient themselves. An empty box with drawn comb settled over them for a few minutes and they got a comb ride back into the hive.

I rewrapped the hive since the wind had broken their propolis seals. The wrap should help keep them dry from incoming rain and wind.

The hive back together with a couple of empty boxes removed. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

I frankly did the least amount of rearranging frames to minimize stress on the bees. While I was in there, though, I did take the opportunity to do a quick inventory of how much honey they had stored. They were well stocked for winter with two honey-filled supers. I tried to be as quick as I could without rushing the introduction of the frames, I didn’t want to squish the queen. Most settled in; a few left a few stings.

I understood. It was a bad situation all around. The best outcome was to get them back into the hive.

As I watched bees flying back in, I decided to make them supplemental winter sugar cakes. I had added some to a couple of my smaller colonies earlier in case the smaller bee clusters ran out of honey. There are a number of stressors bee face but starvation - and well, falling over in a windstorm - should not be among them.

Once the sugar cakes were ready, I suited up with my beekeeping jacket and headed out to the hive to place the sugar cakes. i leave a feeding shim on top of all my hives so the bees have a back up entrance in case the lower front door is clogged with rain and ice. It was 62F and sunny so bees were out flying. To no surprise, NONE were too happy to see me and let me know. I made quick work of adding the sugar cakes to the top feeding shim and left.

A week later, when temperatures were warm again, I approached the hive. Not a bee in sight. Usually when temperatures are over 50F, bees will out in the garden flying.

When I carefully lifted the hive lid, a few bees peered calmly out at me. Ok, so they made it. And were calm. Good signs, they had settled back in. Whew.

Bees under the lid taking a peek at the hive visitor - me! (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Bees under the top inner cover on their supplemental sugar cakes. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

I spent only a few seconds under the inner cover, long enough to take these photos. Bees were working the supplemental sugar cakes, which is what they should have been doing. I closed up the hive with nary a sting.

Yes, it was a good idea to give them the supplemental sugar cakes as insurance against starving. I monitor my bees throughout winter to make sure they have food.

Part of me was also a bit relieved. Apology accepted!

Charlotte

Bucket Stool

Now I have a safe place to haul my smoker, this metal recycled pail. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Bucket Stool

I’m back from Missouri State Beekeepers Association fall conference in Moberly, a great opportunity to meet beekeepers from around the state, update my beekeeping knowledge and go shopping. Every beekeeping conference features a number of vendors who bring the latest beekeeping, and sometimes cooking, tools although I have yet to see something as cute as our Honeybees Dish Towel sets.

The reason I bring up cooking is that one of our beekeeping students was also shopping and a vendor mistook her for a spouse, trying to sell her a bundt pan instead of the multipurpose hive tool that had caught her eye. Yes, beekeeping may still be primarily a male hobby but there are a few of us ladies who enjoy it, too.

This year I was enticed to bring something not quite brand new home. It is a metal bucket the same size as my plastic 5 gallon paint buckets with a handy lid that turns into a stool. The metal bucket makes it safer for me to carry a hot smoker around the apiary without fear that it’s going to roll down my limestone hillside and the bucket stool doubles as a lid.

The metal bucket was repurposed, which to me was even better. Crooked Hills Beekeeping also added a tool skirt with pockets for beekeeping tools.

After a little remedial training, I learned how to edge the bucket stool upside down on top of the bucket to use it as a lid.

The bucket stool turns my bucket into a garden seat. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Beekeepers are engineers at heart, quite resourceful when it comes to making equipment they need. This is a perfect example of that ingenuity and one I plan to enjoy for many years to come!

Charlotte