Today I was glad the girls were on their best “beehavior” as the Derr clan came out to pay a visit. Nobody got stung, and it hopefully was an educational experience for all. I myself learned that I need to see “Bee Movie” to complete my training as a beekeeper.
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Last weekend, the prickly pears were in full bloom, and I was disappointed to see my bees were not taking full advantage of this bounty of pollen. I am happy to report the girls have figured it out.
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You know you are a beekeeper when you have a bad dream where you open up your hive and all you see are hundreds of supersedure cells.
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My beetle blaster arrived last night from Brushy Moutain, and I will install it in my hive this weekend. Per the picture below, it rests between two frames, and the small hive beetles, looking for a dark place to hide, will enter the trap. Inside the trap is a tiny sarlacc, and the beetles will then discover a new definition of pain and suffering as they are slowly digested over a thousand years. If sarlaccs are not available in your area, I hear mineral or vegetable oil also work well.
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It may not be a deluxe apartment in the sky, but Large Marge is now in the second super laying eggs. I removed the top hive feeder as there was still quite a bit of syrup from the refill last week so it appears they are finding their own sources. There were lots of small hive beetle larvae in the feeder, but I still don’t see any in the two brood supers. I took the feeder far from the hive to wash it out and also squished all the larvae I could find. Hopefully any that did make it out will be eaten by my nematode army that I spread on Saturday.
Here is a photo of a frame from the first super. There is capped honey on the upper left and right of the frame and the middle has capped brood and bee larvae in various stages of development.
I still did not add a 3rd super since the 2nd one still did not have the middle frames completely full of capped brood. Plus, I do not want to add a 3rd super with the hive beetles lurking about without enough bees to defend the empty frames. The way they are building, I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to add the extra super next week.
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Beneficial nematodes are an organic non-chemical way to control pests in your garden. For beekeepers, they can play an important part in IPM (Integrated Pest Management) for controlling the small hive beetle. I have found several of these pests in my hive, and while a strong hive can handle them, weaker hives can be taken down if the infestation gets out of control. To give my hive every chance of success, I decided to spread nematodes around my hive as the beetle larvae pupate in the soil outside the hive. Luckily today was the perfect day since a cold front moved through Austin last night, and the weather this morning was overcast and in the 70’s. Nematodes do not like heat so it is best to apply them when the temperature is under 80 degrees. You can usually find nematodes at your local nursery especially if they cater towards more organic gardening practices.
Since the package I bought will treat 9000 square feet, I also spread them through my veggie garden and in my plant beds. Nematodes will also attack ants, fleas, and other garden pests.
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Pollen is the only source of protein and other nutrients for the bee colony, and is the primary food for the larvae. Below is another great shot by the owner of the property where my hive resides. In addition to working very hard to get itself into the African Aloe Bloom, the pollen baskets on the legs of this bee are quite full. I’ve also decided that even though there is a wild hive in the neighbor’s yard, I’m assuming any photo taken is a bee from my hive.
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Austin is probably having one of the best springs in recent memory, and it seems everything is in bloom right now. Sometimes though, plants you think bees would be all over are completely ignored for something more mundane.
Take the photo below. This is from my backyard along my fence. One half of the fence is covered in jasmine in full bloom, and the other is wax leaf ligustrum from my neighbor’s yard which is a common builder’s shrub (also an invasive plant for Austin). Which one was covered in bees? If you guessed the jasmine, you are wrong. The bees were all over the shrub, and as you can see, even the butterflies were getting in on the action.
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On a beautiful Sunday morning in Austin, TX, I opened up the hive to see how things were progressing. The top hive feeder still had quite a bit of syrup from my mid-week fill-up, but I added more syrup so I would not have to make another trip during the week. I’m hopeful that I can remove the feeder completely next week as the girls should now have enough numbers and nectar flow available to take care of themselves.
The 2nd super had a goodly amount of foundation drawn out with some capped brood in the middle frames. I’ve come to the conclusion that I added the 2nd super a week too early, but I don’t think that is going to matter in the long run. I’ll need to be a bit more patient and wait for the 2nd super to have at least 6 frames with capped brood and honey before adding the 3rd.
The 1st super was mostly filled with capped brood and honey with the exception of the outer most frames. However, there was evidence the bees were starting to draw out foundation on those as well so that is a good sign.
I was wondering if I was going to catch a glimpse of Large Marge and sure enough I spotted her on frame 5 on the original super. She tried to tell me a story of the worst accident she has ever seen, but I told her to get back to work laying eggs. Even though there is plenty of evidence she is laying well, it is always nice to see your queen.
I unfortunately did see 5 hive beetles, but they were all in the top hive feeder, and I got a lot of satisfaction squishing them dead. I did not see any evidence of them in the 2 brood supers, so that makes me feel better that the bees are driving them up away from the combs. The beetle trap is on its way, and this evening when it cools off a bit, I’m going to spray beneficial nematodes around the hive.
Below is a slide show of yours truly inspecting the frames. The frame that is completely vertical shows a really nice frame filled with capped brood in a tight pattern with honey on the upper corners.
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A friend told me about this British company that makes a line of chicken coops as well as beehives. They also have a branch in the U.S. I have no idea if these hives are any good, but they look interesting. The company is called Omlet and their line of hives is called the Beehaus.
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Urban Beekeeping in Austin, Texas 