Tag Archives: austin

February 25, 2012 · 6:26 PM

Spring Time = Sting Time

In my defense, we’ve had an abundance of rainy weekends this winter which has prevented me from getting out to check the hives as often as I would like. This early spring has also thrown off my timing, and when I showed up to inspect the hives today, I really thought I would have a nice easy inspection.

Boy was I wrong.

Both hives were busting out at the seams which made them super aggressive during the inspection. I checked Knives’ hive first and the top super was still all honey. I had a heck of a time getting it off because the girls had built comb between the frames of the two supers and used them to raise brood. I ended up ripping up the comb to remove the super killing the poor brood in the process.

This was my first giant fail as a beekeeper. Poor Knives had to overcome so much last summer from the drought, a supersedure, and a pesticide incident, and now I don’t add an extra super early enough.

Instead of sulking, I need to repair the situation because Austin will be in full blown nectar flow in a few weeks if we don’t get a freak late freeze. I added the bee escape to take off a super full of honey and also added an extra box of empty frames. I’ll harvest the honey tomorrow and put the super back on for them to clean up the leftovers.

I then moved on to Marge’s hive, and it was a good thing I did her second. I honestly had a “I may get stung to death” moment after I got down a few supers. She also built comb between the frames for brood which made it extremely difficult to remove the frames and the supers. I was just covered in angry bees and got stung twice on the neck through my veil. Even though I couldn’t go all the way down, I feel that the bottom supers may be empty as they moved up the hive during the winter. I’m going to try and check tomorrow morning when the temperature is closer to 50 degrees. I’m hoping the colder temperature will prevent as many bees from taking to the air, but not be too cold to get chilled brood. Any advice on dealing with a hive gone completely bonkers would be much appreciated.

I’ll end this post with a macro shot of what a stinger looks like after it is removed from your neck.

Venom sac + stinger on tweezers

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February 11, 2012 · 10:20 PM

Bee Starvation

It is not a very fun topic, but starvation is a major killer of managed bee hives each winter. Austin has experienced a very mild winter, which ironically, can put more of a strain on the hive’s resources than a cold one. We’ve had plenty of days where it is warm enough for the bees to go forage, but the energy expended finding food is no where near equal to what is available as most of the plants are dormant for the winter months. They would actually spend less energy clustered together in the hive if the temperatures were lower.

Luckily, most of the plants in Austin seem just as screwed up as well, and we are seeing a bloom cycle 3-4 weeks earlier than normal. The roses in my garden are about to go into full bloom when normally February 14th is the day in Central Texas where gardeners recommend pruning them.

This is why it is important to check your hives in the winter months on those mild days to ensure adequate foods stores still remain in the hive. If not, beekeepers usually recommend feeding granulated dry sugar as opposed to syrup during the winter as it is hard to keep the syrup over 50 F. If you find yourself in a situation where you have to feed in the winter, you will need to continue feeding until enough is blooming in the spring for the bees to become self-sufficient.

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January 19, 2012 · 4:59 PM

Austin City Ordinance Meeting

Last evening, I got to participate in a review of a section of the City of Austin’s Beekeeping Ordinance. A resolution was passed last November basically stating Austin wanted to be more bee-friendly and prioritize removal and relocation of bees whenever possible over extermination.

The current language reads as follows under a section entitled DESTRUCTION OF WILD OR ABANDONED BEES:

Without notice and a hearing, the health authority may destroy:
(A) a colony not residing in a hive;
(B) a swarm of bees; or
(C) a colony residing in an abandoned standard or man-made hive.

The proposed language would add this language to the section:

Wherever reasonably possible, the City shall prioritize the removal and relocation of wild or abandoned bees over destruction.

It is not a large change, but at least Austin is attempting to update their codes in the recognition of the plight bees are facing in this day and age.

Perhaps the best change, in my opinion, is updating the contact list 311 uses when people call in with bee swarms or wild hives on their property. The list currently has extermination services first with bee removal services near the bottom. The new updated list will have removal services first with those that only provide extermination services at the bottom. Priority on the list will also be given to beekeepers and services that will come get swarms free of charge. The hope is to encourage people to use relocation services as opposed to killing the bees.

One of the local news stations was out covering the story that you can watch by clicking the link below.

KEYE TV :: News – Top Stories – Participants abuzz at meeting to decide how Austin can be bee friendly.

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January 2, 2012 · 9:11 PM

Final Check of the Season (one month later than I planned)

Austin had an unseasonably warm weekend to ring in 2012 so I took the opportunity to get in one last inspection of the hives. Between rainy weekends, Thanksgiving, our trip to Kauai and the holidays, it was later in the season than I would have preferred, but sometimes you just have to roll with the punches.

My main goals were to verify honey stores, remove any unneeded supers, and flip over the inner covers for better ventilation. The girls were not very happy to have their cozy hives opened up. This was the first and last closeup from the unsuited photographer.

Marge’s hive looked good with the top super still having 6 out of the 8 frames filled with honey. Knives’ hive was another story.

The late nectar flow we had in October was enough to fill two supers full of honey, but the fifth was asking too much. I ended up taking the top super off as there was minimal wax drawn out. Knives had a rough 2011 so I’m hoping 2 supers of brood and 2 supers of honey will get her through the winter and let her kick some butt next spring.

Happy New Year to all my readers and may 2012 bring you good health and happiness.

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November 28, 2011 · 9:58 PM

Winter is Coming

Sunday night saw our first dip near freezing since last winter. While Central Texas temperatures can fluctuate greatly in December from freezing to high in the 70’s, Austin beekeepers should be making their final preparations for the upcoming winter months.

I’d recommend having 4-5 medium supers on your hive to maximize your chances for a successful over-wintering with two of those mostly being honey stores. It is not too late to get some last minute feeding in if you feel the hive does not have enough socked away.

Ventilation is also extremely important. As bees warm the hive, condensation can form on the inner cover and then drip down cold water back into the hive. Flipping over the standard inner cover or propping open the cover with some popsicle sticks allows the warmer humid air to escape. It also allows the girls to add or remove propolis as they see fit to regulate the temperature.

I’ve never been one to wrap my hives for winter. It just doesn’t get that cold for that long here in Austin, and if my bees can’t survive a Texas winter without a wrapped hive, they don’t need to be part of the genetic pool.

That’s about it. Don’t forget to order new equipment and bees if you are starting new hives next year, and enjoy the next few months off before the Spring craziness starts.

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November 6, 2011 · 2:39 PM

Fall Blooms

Knives’ hive has really been packing it away for winter. She now has two 8-frame supers full of the stuff and has started working on the third.

I had a really hard time getting the top most super off during this morning’s inspection. Not only does it weigh 50+ pounds, but the girls had also built a lot of comb filled with honey in between the two honey supers.

After a visit to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center last weekend, I thought I would collect as many photos as I could of bees collecting nectar and pollen.

Antique roses are a great source of pollen. Here is a Perle D’Or Rose:

This is a Louis Phillipe antique rose with a hoverfly:

Rock Rose isn’t a true rose, but it is in full bloom right now.

Prostrate Rosemary grows like a weed in Austin, and has very small blue blooms:

Fall Aster, crazily enough, blooms in the fall and the bees love it:

Kidney Wood is a native tree and the blooms actually smell like honey. I can see why the bees love it.

Even the hoverflies are getting in on the action.

The great thing about Central Texas is the prolific number of trees and flowers that bloom in the fall. Even after a terrible summer of drought, the number of fall blooms available gives the bees a chance to catch up and get ready for the winter.

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October 16, 2011 · 3:35 PM

Just Add Water

A mere one week after the 2-3 inches of rain in the Austin area, we are experiencing a fall nectar flow that the girls are loving. Both of my hives have completely drawn out an 8 frame super each and have started filling them up with honey. Pollen is also plentiful and bees are returning to the hives filled to the brim with bright yellow pollen.

Full Pollen Sacs

This is a picture perfect frame from Knives’ hive of brood in the middle with capped honey on the outer edges of the frame.

Beautiful Frame of Brood and Honey

I encourage all my fellow Central Texas beekeepers to check their hives this week as you may be surprised by the amount of activity in your hives. It always amazes me how quickly bees can fill up a super with a good nectar flow so don’t be caught off guard and make sure your hive has plenty of room to accommodate this boon.

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October 13, 2011 · 8:31 AM

Saturday Beekeeping Meetup

This Saturday the Austin Urban Beekeeping Group will be meeting at the North Village Branch of the Austin Public Library from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. We will be discussing fall tasks for the Central Texas Area as well as preparing for winter. I hope to see ya’ll out there.

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October 9, 2011 · 2:10 PM

Texas Barometer Bush FTW!

Leucophyllum frutescens, most commonly known as the Texas Barometer Bush, is said to bloom before a rainfall. This bush in my front yard burst into bloom in the middle of one of the worst droughts Texas has ever seen about a week before the rains finally came to Central Texas.

The bees in my neighborhood definitely appreciated the pollen and nectar and were all over this plant.

Bee on Texas Barometer Bush

Bee in Texas Barometer Bush

Texas is finally getting some much needed rain, and we are expected to get up to 3 inches through Tuesday. Hopefully this is the start of better weather for Austin and perhaps a fall nectar flow is now not a distant dream.

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October 1, 2011 · 3:04 PM

Tale of Two Honeys

My wife and I spent a lovely few days in Albuquerque, NM last week where we had the pleasure of meeting Chantal Foster and her husband Alex for dinner. Chantal is a local beekeeper in the Duke City, and her blog is chock full of good information, and is one I used extensively when I first started out.

In addition to talking shop, we exchanged honey from our hives. Now that we are back in Austin, Gitanjali and I decided to make a lunch of delicious meats, cheeses, and fruit paired with honey.

Tale of Two Honeys

Just from the picture alone, you can see the two honeys are very different in color. Chantal’s honey is also much thicker than ours most likely due to the arid climate in New Mexico. We feel her honey has a more fruity and floral taste, and we even get a hint of pineapple in the finish. It paired very nicely with a La Tur from Alta Langa, Italy.

Our honey on the other hand has a bolder deeper flavor that paired well with blue cheese particularly a Rogue River Blue from Rogue Creamery in Oregon.

Both honeys are completely different in taste which just goes to show how the local environment and native flora influence the final product. We had a great time in Albuquerque and were happy to bring a taste of New Mexico back to Texas with us.

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