Beginner

Beekeeping
Guide Installing
Your First
Bees and
Beyond

[Link]

BEEKEEPING GUIDE 1
 Basic Kit
Queen Catchers

Swarm Traps Gloves

Bottling Buckets

Smokers & Sheilds

Capping Scratchers

manufacturer of
quality beekeeping
supplies since 1976
[Link]

Manufacturer Of Quality
Beekeeping Supplies Since 1976
2 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 BEEKEEPING :: PACKAGE BEES

How to Install
Package Bees
in a Langstroth
Hive
By Steph Merkle

L
earning how to install package bees with a 1:1 sugar syrup in a clean spray bottle. 8. Place your queen cage. Position her
isn’t all that difficult, but if you are evenly between two frames. If your queen
new to beekeeping, it can be helpful Okay, Let’s Install! cage has a metal tab, bend it around the
to review the process from start to finish. 1. Remove the telescoping cover, inner frame. Otherwise, you can rubberband the
cover, and three to four middle frames and queen cage around the frame until the queen
Supplies for Installation Day: set them aside. is released.
~ Spray bottle with sugar water
~ 1:1 sugar water for feeder 2. Mist your packages with sugar water. 9. Next, dump the bees into the hive.
~ Mini marshmallow (one per queen If it’s below 60 degrees F, avoid this step as
cage) — if your queen cages don’t have a you don’t want to chill your bees. This gives 10. Place the nearly empty package near
candy cork the bees a little boost after a long journey. the hive entrance and let the bees make their
~ Small piece of clean cardboard (mini- way into the hive throughout the day.
mum 6”x6” should be plenty) 3. Give the package one forceful shake to
~ Hive tool knock as many bees as possible to the bottom. 11. Gently replace the frames until all
~ Pocket knife of your frames are back and evenly spaced.
~ Veil 4. Remove the feeder container from the
~ Suit package. 12. Place a pollen patty on top of your
~ Gloves frames between the inner cover or the top
~ Lit smoker (optional) 5. Place a piece of clean cardboard or feeder, depending on your setup.
some other “lid” to prevent the bees from
Pick Up Your Package Bees flying out at this point. 13. Place your feeder of choice —
You’ll want to pick up your bees as soon Boardsman, top feeder, in-frame feeder, to
as possible from your local dealer or from the 6. Grab the tab or the queen cage and name a few. Fill your feeder with 1:1 sugar
post office. To control temperature and ward shimmy it out. Remove the queen cage and water and Honey B Healthy.
off any stray bees flying around your vehicle, inspect her (without releasing her!). She will
a big sheet comes in handy. Keeping them in have other bees clustering around her. You 14. Return your inner cover and tele-
a trunk is acceptable as well, as long as it isn’t can brush them off gently with a feather or scoping cover. You’ll want something heavy
an exceptionally hot day. If you are unable to your gloved hand. on top — like a brick — to protect against
install them promptly, keep them in a temper- predators or a windy day.
ate location (not too cold or hot), like a dark, 7. Replace the cork with a mini marshmal-
draft-free basement, garage, or outbuilding. low. This gives the colony time to get used to
If they have run out of feed — generally a tin their new queen while they eat through the
can inserted into the package — you can mist marshmallow.
the outside of the package screen twice a day

BEEKEEPING GUIDE 3
 BEEKEEPING :: NUCS

What’s a Nuc?
The Best Way To Get Started With Bees

By Ed Dane OPTION 1: THE PACKAGE means they are all unrelated. We don’t
The package is without a doubt the most know all there is to know about this yet,

T
here are several ways to get started popular way to start, but is it the best? but research shows that the relationship
with bees. Most beginners start Well, consider how a package is made of the bees in a hive has an effect on the
with packages because they are up. Generally, bees are shaken from equilibrium of the hive.
the most readily available. Another way several different hives into a package or
is to catch a swarm. I believe this is pref- cage setting on a scale. When the proper OPTION 2: THE SWARM
erable to a package. But the best way to weight is achieved, a queen in her own In a swarm, usually the mother queen
get started is to buy existing hives, be small cage is added, then a can of sugar leaves with the first swarm. The worker
they nuclei (nucs) or one or two story water and the package is sealed. The bees in the swarm may have different
complete hives. Now let’s consider what worker bees are from several different fathers, but they all have the same mother,
the differences are and I think you will hives and the queen may be from another so they are all half-sisters. They have this
see why one is preferable to the other. hive in a completely different yard. This advantage from the start.
4 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 OKAY, SO WHAT IS A NUC?
A nuc consists of two or three frames of brood, a frame or
two of honey, pollen, and possibly
one empty frame of drawn comb or
foundation. It has roughly two or
three pounds of bees to cover the brood
and a queen or queen cell. Basically it
is a miniature hive.

balance. If it doesn’t reach that point or hive. There are many ways this imbalance
if it loses its balance for some reason and can occur. This is where the experience
can’t recover, it will die. of a mentor comes in handy.
Some things that help make a hive
balanced are the relationship of all bees SUMMARY
in the hive, as we’ve already discussed. These are all things to consider when
These include the stages of developing starting out with bees. I know it’s harder
brood in the brood nest, be it eggs, larva, to find nucs and existing hives, but I see
or sealed brood, the number of bees more nucs advertised now than before, so
and the space available in the hive, the they are becoming more available.
amount of stores (honey and pollen), One way to find and obtain bees is to
They have also gorged themselves on the amount of open space in the brood contact a commercial beekeeper in your
honey before leaving the hive. If they are nest for the queen to lay, the amount of area and volunteer to help him or her.
put on foundation comb they can begin queen pheromone, and more. All these They may be happy to have help lifting
to draw wax immediately. In fact, I have have an impact on how balanced the hive all those heavy supers of honey and you
captured many swarms that have only is. Even a small nuc can be balanced if might learn something in the process.
been on a branch for a couple hours and all these things are in place. That is why You may also be able to buy some bees
there is burr comb on the branch. This a nuc can be over-wintered successfully, from them.
is because when they gorge themselves even in Michigan where I live. All these That’s kind of how I got started. I was
on honey their body starts making wax. factors relate to one another and if one of 14 years old and interested in bees. I knew
A swarm that is put in a hive with only them gets out of balance it can affect the a man in our church who was a beekeeper
foundation wax can sometimes draw that whole. So that’s why it is important to get and I started asking him questions. He
whole super of foundation (10 frames) in a new hive to the point of balance as soon invited me to go with him while he worked
a matter of three or four days. What an as possible and work to keep it that way. his bees. One afternoon he called me to
advantage for the beginner beekeeper The success of the hive depends on it. ask if I would like to accompany him while
who doesn’t usually have access to drawn Many things can impact the balance he captured a swarm. I was delighted. So
comb but has to start with foundation. A in a hive. For instance, predators or dis- he picked me up at my home and we went
package is sometimes referred to as an ease may weaken the bees. Pesticides out and shook this nice swarm out of an
artificial swarm, but I think you can see may build up in the hive and affect the old apple tree. When he dropped me off
that there is a big difference. reproduction of the queen. This can hap- at home, he asked me where I wanted to
pen from an outside source (agricultural put the hive. I asked him what he meant
OPTION 3: THE EXISTING HIVE spray) or from the use of miticide in the and he said he was giving me the hive
You should know what a “nuc” is by now, hive by the beekeeper to control varroa. because the wanted to help me get started
and if it is made up properly, it has the The queen may fail and the workers are in beekeeping. That was 51 years ago and
same advantages as a full-sized hive. The unable to replace her. The beekeeper I’m still in love with bees.
hive is balanced; this is the key. What do I may injure the queen or split the brood
mean by “balanced”? Well, there are many during manipulation or inspection of the Happy Beekeeping!
factors involved and we are still learning
how they all interplay, but every hive
strives to achieve its own equilibrium or
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 5
 BEEKEEPING :: CATCHING SWARMS

Catching Swarms
Means Free Bees

It is
recommended
to start with
swarms that
are organized
and proven
survivors.

By Ed Dane two reasons. One is because they are superior to the other. You may have seen

D
free and the other is because a swarm one of the cone-style traps advertised
o you get sticker shock ever y is a sur vivor. If you think about it, these in the bee supply catalogs. This is a
time you see the price of bees? bees have had to sur vive the last winter container that is a little larger than a
How would you like some free and be strong enough in the spring to five-gallon bucket and is shaped like a
bees? Have you ever thought about build to the point of swarming. That large flower pot. It is brown and made
trapping a swarm? makes them much more appealing to from shredded wood pulp. It has a cover
Swarms have been harder to find me. Now if they happen to come from a on the large end and an entrance hole
the last couple of years because of feral hive, that makes them even more in the smaller end. It attaches to a tree
the loss of so many bees due to mites, valuable because they have done all that and looks like a part of a limb with a
disease, pesticides, CCD and harsh on their own without any help from a hole in it for the bees to enter.
winter weather. Therefore, there has beekeeper. This is the hive I want to Before attaching it to the tree it is
been stiff competition for the ones that make splits and raise my own queens recommended that you add some bee
exist. This is where setting traps can from. I have trapped many swarms over lure. This can be purchased from the
give you an edge. the years and I’d like to share with you same catalog and consists of either
I personally value swarms second how to do it. some ar tificial pheromone or some
only to purchasing a nuc or an existing I have used two types of equipment essential oils that attract the bees and
hive and far superior to a package, for to trap bees. Both work but one is far help them locate the trap.

6 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 I have used this type of trap only once
and I would not recommend it because
of one basic flaw that I learned about the
hard way. Swarms are very good at draw-
ing wax. In fact, I have had them draw a
whole super of foundation in three or four
days. This is because they have gorged
themselves on honey before leaving the
original hive. This is a good thing if you
are a beginner and don’t have access to
drawn comb, but in one of these traps, it
can be a disaster. If you don’t check the
trap every day, or better yet at least twice
a day, the bees can fill that trap full of wax
and you can’t get them out without a real
mess on your hands. So I don’t recom-
mend you use this type of trap.
This is how I do it. I take two 2-by-4
studs and cut one into a rectangle-shaped
frame. To one of the narrow ends, I attach
the other 2-by-4 stud. This stud works as
a leg and the rectangle-shaped frame is
attached to the tree by a couple of screws.
Then I put a complete single-story hive
with a bottom board, an inner cover and
telescoping cover on the frame and at-
tach it with a stretch cord. Inside I add
10 frames (six foundation and four drawn
comb). I put the drawn comb in the middle.
This has two purposes. One is to give the
queen someplace to start laying right away
and the other is to add to the attraction of
the hive because drawn comb has some
scent to it, especially if it has had brood
raised in it. If you don’t have any drawn
comb, it will be fine with just the bee lure
but if you have it, I think it helps.
The lures can be purchased from the
bee-supply catalogs and work well, but I
make my own by using a method that my
mentor showed me 51 years ago when
I first started keeping bees. I carry a
small bottle with some rubbing alcohol
in it, and when I find a hive that is always hive that I had setting in one of my bee You will also want to move the hive at
cross when I try to work them, I replace yards, but I think they prefer one in a tree. least two miles away. The rule is, if you
the queen. The old queen goes into the This method keeps the trap high enough move a hive, you should move it less than
bottle. I keep this bottle and collect any to be attractive to the bees and low enough two feet or more than two miles. This is
dispatched queens all summer long. Then so I can use a stepladder for easy removal. because the bees use the angle of the sun
next spring when I am setting my swarm Actually, I’m tall enough that I can stand and visual signs to help them locate their
traps I take a Q-tip, break it in half, dip it on the tailgate of my truck and remove hive. If you don’t move them at least two
in the bottle and toss it in the trap. The the hive without a ladder. miles away, the field bees may go back to
alcohol evaporates and the pheromone is One word of caution: don’t forget to the original location by mistake.
left to attract the bees. I like this arrange- staple the hive parts together so the hive
ment because I have a trap that is easily won’t come apart when you remove it. I Good Luck &
removed from the tree stand, so I don’t would also recommend that you move the Happy Beekeeping!
have to transfer the bees to another hive. hive after dark so you get all the bees and
It also gets the trap in the air, so it appears don’t leave any field bees that may be out
more like a hollow tree to the bees. They gathering nectar.
like this because it is more natural. I have
had many swarms move into a dead-out
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 7
 BEEKEEPING :: THE QUEEN’S ARRIVAL
solid bottom, they can attach a ride with
the next bee that walks past them. Some
commercial hives also have a drawer on
the bottom (with sticky paper) so you

Preparing
can see the amount of mites that fall. If
you have more than one hive, keep three
to five feet between them. This makes it
easier to work on the hives as the year

For The Queen

goes on.

Readying The Queen’s Residence

Once you have the stand (and landing
board down), I always add a queen ex-
cluder. These can be made from plastic,
wood or metal depending on your choice.
Getting Your First Hive Means Because the queen is a lot bigger than the
worker bees, this will stop the queen from
Building Your Setup Just Right escaping the hive and taking the bees with
her. (I learned the hard way one year.)
On top of the excluder goes the “liv-
ing quarters” of the queen. You will have
to decide if you want an eightframe or
a 10-frame box and then use that size
If you are starting a new hive (one box for that hive. There are three sizes
with no comb on the frames), you will of honey bee boxes (for both the eight-
want the three-pound hive. If your hive and 10-frame): Shallows are 5.75-inches
has comb on the frames, then the two- tall; mediums are 6.625-inches tall; and
pound one is fine, unless the comb needs supers are 9.625-inches tall. Normally
to be rebuilt and you want to get more you will use two “supers” for the living
workers. quarters for the queen.
When you get the queen, she is ready On the top box, leave one frame out
to start laying eggs. But she is unable to of the box for now (so only nine in the
do so until the comb is built. The more 10-frame or seven in the eightframe).
worker bees you have, the faster it can be You will be using this space later when
built. Since worker bees live an average you install the queen. After the queen
of 21 days, you want the queen to start is installed, you will put the missing
laying ASAP, and queens live roughly four frame in the box. Put the top on the
to five years. box and you are ready for when the
After you order the bees, you have bees come.
to decide where you want to put them.
Having the front of the hive face south Picking Up Your Bees
(or southeast) is the best, because the Bees are shipped on skids (120 hives per
early morning sun will get the bees out skid). When you pick up the bees, they
of the hive faster. You will also want five will cut the connecting wood between the
to six feet in front of the hive so they can hives to separate them from the other
fly in easier (they can make do with less hives on the skid. Some bee sellers will
room, but seem to be happier with this ask you if you need a mini marshmallow
This is what the queen’s box looks like. A few amount of space). for the bees (same as what is used in hot
bees did escape, which is normal. When you place the hive, do not put chocolate). If you don’t have any or don’t
it on the ground for a few reasons. One want to buy any, you will get one for each
is comfort. It is easier to work on the hive you are bringing home.
hive when it is roughly waist high. But On top of the hive there is a metal
By Romie Holl, Wisconsin the more important reason is because can and you will see a strip of metal in a
of mites that attach themselves to bees slot. The can is where the food, the sugar

T
here is a decision to be made when when they are out collecting pollen. You water, is kept for the bees. The metal strip
you order bees: do you want the will want the bottom of the hive at least is attached to the queen’s box inside the
two-pound or three-pound hive? six inches off the ground. Your landing hive. When you transport the hive home,
You will only get one queen, but how board should have a screen built into it. make sure the hive stays vertical so the
many worker bees do you need right off When mites fall off the bees, you want sugar water doesn’t leak out of the little
the bat? That depends on your hive. them to fall to the ground. If you have a holes on the bottom.
8 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 When The Bees Get Home
After getting home, I use welding gloves
and my bee suit to protect myself and I
am ready to install the bees into their
new home. Before pulling the metal can The bees are in
their hive, and
out of the wood box, make sure you grab
the temporary
the metal strip securely using a vice grip. feeders are in
You don’t want to accidently drop it into place.
the hive box and have to fish it out sur-
rounded by the bees.
Using a screwdriver, pry out the edge
of the metal can until you can grip it. What
you want to do is pull the can out, while
sliding the metal strip to the hole and
pulling out the queen box. Then replace
the metal can until the queen is installed,
keeping as many worker bees in the hive
box as possible. A few bees will escape,
but it is easier to work on the queen’s box
if you limit the amount.
What holds the queen in her
box is a cork on the bottom. You will here. This will keep the queen from laying place the canning jar with a full one every
remove the cork (I use an ice pick) and eggs in the honey boxes later. Replace the week or so, depending on how fast they
put that mini marshmallow where the inner cover and put on the jars of sugar eat the food.
cork was. water over the opening (with the holes
After bending that metal strap that is down) so the bees can get to it. In Six Weeks
attached to the queen’s box into a hook, By the time it takes the worker bees In about six weeks, you will remove the
you will hang the queen’s box in the hive to chew through the marshmallow (about feeder you are using, add the first honey
over a frame. Remove the can from the a day) to release the queen, the hive will box to the hive and put the feeder on top.
hive box and set it to the side. Flip the smell like home and the queen should be The size of honey box you use will depend
box over so the opening is on the bottom happy and start laying eggs if the hive has on how much you want to lift later.
and shake the box to make the bees fall comb already. A “super” will weigh 70 pounds when
out and cover the queen. I place the near In two days, go back to the hive and full of honey. A “medium” will weigh 50
empty box on the ground next to the hive remove the queen’s box and put in the pounds when full. And a “shallow” will
so the stragglers can find their way to frame that you had set aside earlier. Put weigh 30 pounds when full. So while the
the queen. the inner cover and feeder back. Now bigger boxes mean less work in adding
Put the inner cover on top of the bees you are done for about a week when you new boxes or removing the honey less
(this is a board with a hole in the middle either remove the canning jars of sugar often as the year goes on, they are heavier
for feeding the bees). The can might be water and install one of the several types than the others. (The weights are based
almost empty from the trip. Place the of feeder (frame, top, or others) or re- off a 10-frame box.)
feeding can on the hole and go make food
for the hive. I use canning jars to feed the
bees for the first two weeks. This allows
me to see from a distance how they are
eating and when I need to feed them
again. I drill 1/64-inch holes in the lid. Honey Bee Boxes
This will allow the bees to suck the food
out of the can, but it will not drip out when
the jar is vertical. Name Size Weight*
(8- and 10-Frame) (10-Frame)
Fill the can one-third full with sugar
and the rest with warm (not hot) water.
Walking back to the hive, I shake it to Shallows 5.75 inches tall 30 pounds
thoroughly mix it.
Mediums 6.625 inches tall 50 pounds
Back At The Hive
When back at the hive, remove the can and Supers 9.625 inches tall 70 pounds
set it off to the side so the bees can get to
it. Remove the inner cover. By this time, *when full of honey
the bees will be all over the hive and not
on top. I place a second queen excluder
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 9
 BEEKEEPING :: SPRING CLEANING

Spring
Spring doesn’t
always spring in
spring, fall doesn’t

Cleaning
always fall in fall
and sometimes we
don’t have winter.
How does that
affect the bees?

temperatures. But with our crazy weather,

they break cluster more often and when
temperatures drop quickly they may not
get back in time to protect the queen, or
worse, they reconvene too far from the
honey stores. Assuming they survived,
your job in spring is to clean out the dead,
and return the bees to the front entrance
so they can begin foraging and growing
their family again. 
Winter bees live a lot longer, but there
will still be plenty of bodies inside on the
floor and in the comb cells. The Beepod
has a sliding screen floor for easy cleanup,
otherwise just scoop out the bodies by
hand. I try to extract as many of the dead
head-first heater bees from their cell
graves, gently tapping the bars on the
side to eek out their bodies far enough
to grab their wingtips and pull them out
of the cells.
By Charbee Koenen • [Link] honey. Honey is not only food, but also By helping the bees we let them move
the bee’s thermal blankets. Bees cluster onto other important tasks, like prepping

S pring is a time when beekeepers open

their hives to do cleanups and count
dead-outs. Today it’s different, spring
tightly around their queen like a Rugby
scrum. Some go headfirst into the cells,
dislocating their wings and shivering
beds, gathering propolis, pollen and nec-
tar. And if we run across a failed colony
it’s no doubt a sad moment, but these
doesn’t always spring in spring, fall doesn’t to create friction and heat much like days we can celebrate giving a new colony
fall in fall and sometimes we don’t have flannel sheets, once you wiggle your a home and hoping that they’ll learn the
winter.  How does that affect the bees? feet a bit. The small cluster heats the new patterns of food, forage and weather
Well bees are creatures of pattern and we area around their queen to 90ºF, so her so they’ll one day become survivor stock
beekeepers are pattern recognitionists. So “mommy parts” stay warm and healthy. and produce resilient offspring.
since the pattern is now no pattern, and Once they’ve used the honey for heat, In recent years everyone has been
we’re likely in part responsible for it…it’s they eat it up and melt a doorway in the experiencing rather dramatic mortality
up to us to help them out. comb, and all move through to the next rates among their bee colonies. So I always
In a top bar hive like the Beepods, honeycomb blanket. This repeats until tell my new beekeeping friends to not get
bees draw their own wax combs horizon- the cluster moves from the front of the too attached to their colony, for spring
tally with “bedrooms” by the entrance hive to the back. Hopefully they stored cleaning may be more than a reset. Just re-
and “pantries” deeper inside. In prepara- enough honey to make it until spring member the goal is to help bees breed into
tion for winter, the colony cuts back in brings new nectar sources.  survivor stock that can regain strength as
size and back-fills the bedrooms with Bees do best with consistent winter nature’s principal pollinators.
10 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 11
 BEEKEEPING :: THROUGH THE SEASONS

What to Know as Spring

Unfolds Into Summer

By Tom Theobald, Colorado new challenges we face as beekeepers. are willing to give it your best shot, willing
As I say in every beekeeping class, I to spend the time and attention neces-

I
f April is the beekeeping equivalent teach tongue-only-partly-in-cheek, “You sary to do it right, it will open you up to
of planting time, then May is when don’t keep bees, you marry them,” and a magic kingdom, a rare window into the
our efforts start to germinate. As the because of that marriage, that choice natural world where you are an intimate
problems we face as beekeepers have to become a beekeeper, you sign on to participant not merely an observer.
grown, I’ve begun to question what my confront anything that threatens your
role should be here. Should I continue charges. If you don’t you aren’t a bee- Welcoming Spring
to use my 40 years of experience to give keeper, you are what we call a bee-haver. On the far wall of my Honey House where
new beekeepers a sound foundation This craft isn’t some great mystery, it will be one of the first things I see when
or should I discourage them, knowing but it’s more than just hanging out a bird I open the door is a bumper sticker I found
that the evidence is mounting rapidly house, far more challenging now than somewhere years ago—Just Another Ho
that their experience may be costly and it was even 10 years ago, and if you are Hum Day In Paradise.
disappointing? a bee-haver I can assure you that your Of course it overstates things. Over
I haven’t answered those questions bees will likely be dead in short order, the years, I’ve had my share of wrecks
yet. Initially at least I plan to focus on the one season, perhaps two. In many parts and rodeos. I’ve spent many a long night
good side of bees and beekeeping, the of the country you may see these same out closing in bees to protect them from
happy side that’s kept me transfixed for results even with the best of care. Getting spraying, wondering if there might be a
most of my adult life. I’ll touch on some into beekeeping is like hopping a freight mountain lion or a bear out in the dark
of the challenges from time to time, but train— you may see the country, or you watching me work. I could go on with a
won’t dwell on them…yet. It would be may be headed for a train wreck, maybe long list that would look like a script to
irresponsible of me though, I think, not both—but the only way to find out is to a Laurel and Hardy movie, one disas-
to ultimately look closely at some of the hop on. If you want to be a beekeeper and ter after another, but you get the idea.
12 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
Beekeeping is farming, just with a dif- standing up. The egg will hatch in three they’ve eaten their way up into their honey
ferent kind of livestock, and because it’s days into what in the butterfly world stores and the brood and most of the
farming, there is always something about would be a caterpillar, a larva. Larvae activity will likely be in the second story
to go wrong just around the corner. grow rapidly and at the end of seven days and the first story will be mostly empty.
Interspersed with the disasters have grown to fill the cell in the honey- This isn’t always the case: a really strong
though were the sunny spring days comb. They spin a cocoon within the colony may be using both boxes, but on
spent with the bees, watching them hap- cell and the hive bees cover the cell with average most of the occupancy will be in
pily bringing in nectar and pollen, warm a breathable form of beeswax, brown, the top box.
summer evenings when the air around the color of shopping bag paper. This is
a beeyard is redolent with the fragrance what we refer to as “sealed brood,” and
of new nectar and filled with a soft hum your packages should have sealed brood
coming from the hives as thousands, filling nearly all of two to four frames of
millions of wings fan to distill that nectar honeycomb.
down into honey. The total brood cycle covers 21 days,
Nearly every month in beekeeping is
critical in one way or another, more so
from the day the egg is lain to the emer-
gence of a new bee, her downy body fuzz
Beekeeping is
the warm months because these days
represent the productive season. These
matted down from her close confinement.
In an hour she will be dried out and
farming, and
are the days when the crop is made or
lost and the plotting starts back in March,
fluffed up, looking like a little chick. Her
first responsibility is to turn right around because it’s
farming,
even February, here in Colorado. and clean the cell she emerged from, and
If you are in dandelion country, and while she’s at it maybe a few more in the
most of us are, the bees should be bring- immediate vicinity. Then she will begin
ing in some of their own nectar, but it
doesn’t hurt to continue feeding them,
feeding her still-developing sisters, the
larvae. For the first three days the nurse
there is always
even into the summer. If they stop need-
ing it they’ll stop taking it. The queen
bees eat large quantities of honey and pol-
len, bee bread, which a specialized gland
something
should be laying well and you should
have a nice brood pattern with brood
in their jaws convert to a high octane baby
food, royal jelly. For the next four days, about to go
wrong just
in all stages on two to four frames of the larvae are fed bee bread directly, then
honeycomb. spin their cocoon and the cell is sealed.
“Brood” is a term that covers all the
stages of the new bees as they develop.
Honey bees share the same life cycle as
Nearing Summer
If you are an experienced beekeeper or if
around the
butterflies, which many people are more
familiar with, the difference being that
you started a year ago and have success-
fully overwintered a colony, May presents
corner.
the life cycle of a bee occurs within the a different set of circumstances. Your bees
hive. It begins with the queen laying an are in two hive bodies—deep supers—and
egg, about the size of a tiny grain of rice, are growing rapidly. Bees’ natural patterns
which she sticks to the bottom of the cell, are to move upward. During the winter

BEEKEEPING GUIDE 13
 move into it. If both boxes are occupied, Learning To Anticipate
then this reversal has to be a little more One of the most important skills for
surgical, moving brood frames down and beekeepers to cultivate is anticipation. A
honey or empty frames up. For really colony of bees may go into the winter with
strong colonies these rearrangements a population of 30,000 bees, lose half or
may begin as early as mid-March and be more and then begin to build again when
done several times. Just remember, keep the days begin to lengthen, early tree
the empty space above the bees. pollen begins to appear and the queen
Eventually though the bees will begin commences laying again. By mid-April,
to exceed the capacity of the two hive bod- certainly by mid-May, the population of a
ies and still need more room, and May is good overwintered colony may be peaking
when most colonies reach that point. This and if the beekeeper doesn’t take some
is where the honey supers come into play. of the steps I’ve described, the bees will
Honey supers are put on a colony be “hanging in the trees.”
for one of two reasons: to provide space As beekeepers we have to stay ahead
for honey storage or to give more room of the bees, anticipate what’s up ahead.
and relieve the crowding pressure. This A good queen can lay about 2,500 eggs
means that honey supers are often put a day. She is limited in the early spring
on in the spring long before they are by the size of the colony population, the
needed for honey storage, but to relieve number and ability of the nurse bees to
the crowding pressure and discourage feed the larva, and the size of the night-
swarming. time cluster on the coldest nights (any
When you do this, there is a distinct brood not covered will chill and die). As
risk that the queen will move up into we get further into March and then April,
these honey supers and begin laying the colony population is increasing and
in them. This doesn’t present any prob- the nights are warming, so the queen
lems for the bees, to them comb is comb can lay closer to her capacity. If she is
and it doesn’t matter if that comb is in laying 2,500 eggs a day, this means that
a hive body or a honey super. It does 21 days down the line there will be 2,500
make a dif ference to the beekeeper, new bees, and the next day, and the next.
however. The comb that has had brood As beekeepers, we are shooting at a mov-
A colony of bees will more readily in it will be darkened, and that in turn ing target somewhere out there in the
recognize space above them rather than can darken the resulting honey sub- summer, the summer honey flows. We
below, and this has some important con- sequently stored in those darkened want the population of a colony to peak
sequences in the spring. If a colony is in combs. Also, it will require time and just prior to the onset of the major honey
the top story, bumping the top, they will additional manipulations to work the flow. We want the maximum number of
begin to feel crowded even though there queen out of the honey supers soon fielders to harvest the crop. If the colony
may be a box of empty comb below, and in enough that all of the brood will have peaks too early then we have created a
the spring this crowding starts the bees emerged before the supers are pulled large number of consumers, if it peaks
on a course to divide and multiply, or to extract the honey. too late, we’ve missed part of the honey
swarm. Swarming is a natural occurrence The simple solution to this is a device flow. Once again, this is a mix of art and
in the spring, but as a beekeeper you beekeepers designed many years ago science, this is what we shoot for, but a lot
don’t want your bees to swarm. These are for just this purpose—a queen excluder. can happen between spring and summer.
your workers. These are the bees that are A queen excluder is a frame the size of This may all sound a little too merce-
going to make your honey crop, pollinate the outside dimensions of the hive, with nary, but it isn’t really. For 40 years my bee
your garden or your fruit trees. If you are parallel bars spaced so workers can pass business was based on honey production,
keeping bees in an urban or suburban en- through, but the larger queen can’t. This as that’s what paid the bills. By focusing
vironment, you need to control swarming goes under the honey supers and keeps on honey production both the bees and I
not only to maintain a strong population the queen down below. The colony will prospered, their objective after all was the
and produce a honey crop, but while have plenty of room for brood rearing same as mine: honey production. The deal
swarms may be natural, when they are in the two hive bodies and the empty su- we had was that under my care they would
hanging from your neighbor’s door knob pers will take the crowding pressure off produce more than they needed for the
or moving into the wall of their house it and discourage swarming. Like much of coming winter and I got the surplus. We
may be a strain on neighborly relations. beekeeping, this is both art and science. both benefited. It was a perfect marriage.
It will usually be effective, but sometimes So in May look forward to June and
How Do You Control Swarming? a slimmer queen will slip though the July. Know when the major honey flows
Giving bees more room is the key. If the excluder, and sometimes the bees just are likely to occur in your area and begin
lower story is empty the two hive bod- have their minds made up and they will to shoot for them. If you aren’t already
ies can simply be reversed, putting the swarm regardless of how much room aboard, the freight train is pulling away.
empty space above the bees so they can you give them. Hop on.
14 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 15
 Supering up for a
Honey of a Summer
By Tom Theobald, Colorado propagate themselves if not dealt with ral world and even though beekeeping

J
early, a small problem uncorrected be- has been a business for me I’ve still
une brings an end to the procrasti- comes a bigger problem, then an even always felt privileged to be allowed in.
nation of springtime and the price bigger problem, then a disaster. The For you newcomers and hobbyists this
that goes along with it. The spring beekeeper’s role is to keep things on is part of your learning. Pull up a chair
months, March, April and May, are the course. or an empty hive body to sit on, position
time when a beekeeper sets the scene for Think of putting a few young chil- yourself so the sun is over your shoulder
what’s to come, and if the essential things dren in a room to play. You parents and start by removing an outside frame
that needed to get done weren’t tended know that you wouldn’t just leave them or two to give yourself some room to
to it’s too late now, what’s done is done, unattended for hours at a time, you work. Put the frames you’ve removed
or not done as the case may be. By June would check on them ever y so often. in an empty hive body that’s on a drip
spring is behind us and beekeepers are Bees are no different. A lot can hap- board and cover them, then settle in. Pull
supering up. pen in the course a colony is on in just out one frame at a time, it’s like leafing
In the beginning beekeeping classes, two or three weeks, so it’s important to through the pages of a book.
I encourage new beekeepers to go into keep track of the status of each colony. If it is a warm sunny day and the bees
their hives at least ever y seven to 10 For newer beekeepers, if you haven’t are busy bringing in nectar and pollen
days to see how things are going. While already done so, spend some time with they’ll pay little attention to your gentle
a healthy colony of bees in a healthy the books and with YouTube videos so intrusions. If resources are in short sup-
environment will follow a generally pre- you understand what the course should ply then the bees may be more defensive,
dictable course, growing in population be and what you should be looking for more protective of the hive. In the bee
as spring advances, swarming, building at any given time in the season. world when times are tough each colony
again, then capitalizing on the summer While there’s a practical reason for will start testing the defenses of every
honey flows, there are a lot of variations regular inspections, there’s more to other colony, looking for those colonies
on this theme and a lot can go awry in a it than just that. A colony of bees is a that are too weak to defend themselves.
relatively short time. Problems tend to unique, intimate window into the natu- The result is a general state of alert and
16 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
a defensiveness that you might not have
seen just a day or two before. Reading a
colony’s mood is particularly important if
you are keeping bees where your neigh-
bors are close by and you have to know
when to close a colony up and come back
on a better day.
As you work your way in, frame-by-
frame, you will come to a frame that has
a lot of pollen. This is the pantry, this is
the frame right next to the brood nest
and the bees store the pollen where it is
close at hand for the nurse bees. With
the sun over your shoulder, shining down
into the cells, you can easily see eggs and
larvae and you should begin seeing the
brood right after the pollen frame. You
don’t have to find the queen every time,
you just need to see the evidence of her
activity, good brood in all stages that may
cover several frames. The books will give
you much more detail on what you should
be seeing. Make a few notes every time
you go into a hive, over time it will help
you understand what you are involved in
much better.
If you got packages in April or early
May they should be filling out their first When inspecting the frames, be careful to gauge the mood of your swarm that day,
story by now and be ready for a second. especially if you have neighbors close by.
This will give them room for continued
expansion of the brood nest and storage
of the summer honey that will carry them
through the winter. Here in Colorado we
would expect that colonies started from
packages in the spring would, on aver-
age, fill out two hive bodies and make where the winters are longer and more vest more honey in the fall and this added
their winter stores by fall. This can vary severe. honey covered the cost of the indoor
somewhat depending on the season and I remember listening to a talk early facility and then some.
the part of the country you are in, and un- in my beekeeping career by Jim Kuehl, a The point here is that how much to
der favorable conditions a package might Nebraska beekeeper who was one of the leave for the bees is quite variable, but it’s
produce a super or two of surplus honey first to winter bees indoors on a commer- better to err on the plus side rather than
the first year, so be prepared, but don’t cial scale. Jim moved the colonies into a short the bees and leaving 75 pounds or
count on getting a crop the first year. light-tight, climate controlled building in more is a good target. A second story
By early summer the queen is laying October and kept them in until March. nearly filled with honey plus honey in the
about 2,500 eggs a day, round the clock, Air exchange was a critical consideration, outside frames of the first story will meet
and for good overwintered colonies the carbon dioxide can build up quickly and this requirement.
population may peaking at 50,000 to kill the bees, and the other critical ingre- One of the real advantages of the
60,000. It is this large summer population dient, the temperature, was held at 48 to Langstroth approach to beekeeping
that enables a colony of bees to store 49 degrees At that temperature the bees (those white boxes everyone is famil-
enough honey to carry them through consume the least amount of honey. If it iar with) is the ability to expand or
the six months of the year when there gets colder than that the bees cluster to- contract the capacity of a hive based on
will be no blooming plants, at least in the gether and need to consume more honey the dictates of the bees and the season.
northern U.S., the part of the country I’m to generate heat to keep the cluster above The Reverend L.L. Langstroth is gener-
most familiar with. In Colorado the winter survival temperature, and if the tempera- ally regarded as the father of modern
consumption for an average colony in an ture rises much above 48 to 49 degrees beekeeping. In 1851 he struck upon the
average winter would be about 75 pounds, the bees are more active and consume concept of the “bee space.” From his
and this is what we have to leave for the more honey because of that. observations he saw that bees left a fairly
bees. This is probably representative of Jim found that at 48 to 49 degrees he uniform spacing between their combs,
most of the northern tier of states, but could overwinter a colony on 12 pounds what he called the bee space (about 3/8
colonies may need more further north of honey. This meant that he could har- of an inch) and he speculated that if he
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 17
 built a hive where all of the free space Nobody knows for certain what the origin
was 3/8 of an inch and put the comb in of this beekeeping term is, but our best
wooden frames, the bees would leave that guess is that these were boxes that were
A colony of bees free space open and he would be able “superimposed” on a colony, thus super
is a unique, to remove the combs and examine the
hive without destruction. He designed
for short.
The Langstroth approach is well
intimate window such a hive, it worked beautifully, and
the Langstroth Hive and that elegant
suited for honey storage and harvest-
ing. To maintain the proper bee space a
into the natural little concept of the bee space has been Langstroth box should have 10 frames of
the foundation of American beekeeping, comb. We cheat a little in the honey su-
world and even much of beekeeping worldwide, for the pers and use nine evenly spaced combs.
past 164 years. The bees will compensate for this by
though beekeeping The year ‘round home for a colony drawing adjacent combs out a little fur-
has been a business would be two hive bodies, deep boxes a
little more than nine inches tall with nine
ther, reestablishing the proper bee space.
This results in fatter combs.
for me, I’ve always or 10 frames of honeycomb in each.
Extracted honey gained in popularity
The bees seal each filled cell with a
wax cap, which must be removed in some
felt privileged to be around 1900 and since one hive body efficient manner to “extract” the honey
full of honey might weight 100 pounds at harvest time. With fatter combs, a hot
allowed in. or more, for ease of handling beekeep- knife can follow the plane of the wooden
ers sensibly opted for shorter boxes for frame and remove the cappings quickly
storage of the year’s crop of honey. There and efficiently. The now-open combs can
were various sizes available over the then be spun out in a piece of beekeeping
years and the popularity of many of these equipment called an “extractor,” basically
varieties waxed and waned. Collectively a big centrifuge that spins the honey out
these boxes came to be called “supers.” of the comb by centrifugal force.
Nationally honey production has run
about 70 pounds per colony, varying up or
Honey Extractor down a few pounds depending on the year,
but in recent years the national average
has seen a considerable drop. Beekeep-
ers with a small number of colonies can
devote more individual attention to their
bees and far exceed the averages—given
good bees, good management and a pro-
ductive season. In our area the average
over the years has been about 75 pounds,
but I practice a form of beekeeping called
Double Queening, where through a
series of manipulations a second queen
is established in the colony. My two
queen colonies would average about 240
pounds, and my personal record was 320
pounds from a single colony. That added
production comes at a cost though — and
includes a lot of manipulations of heavy
boxes and careful timing — but it was
that added production that kept my small
honey producing business alive.
Nationally we have seen a dramatic
growth in small-scale beekeeping and for
most, honey production isn’t paramount.
Nevertheless, a healthy, thriving colony
under the care of a good beekeeper is
going to produce more honey than it
needs in most years, and by June those
strong colonies need to be supered up.
In a good year, with a good colony, by
the end of summer they may be higher
than your head.
18 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
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BEEKEEPING GUIDE 19
 BEEKEEPING :: MOVING A BEEHIVE

a nurse bee. Next, it might graduate to a

honey processor or a wax builder. Then
it moves up to the position of guard bee
and guards the entrances. The last phase
of its life is as a field bee. Bees only live
six or eight weeks during the summer
months when the honey flow is in full
swing because they work themselves to
death in that short time.
A bee doesn’t need to orient to the
hive until it starts foraging. This is why
you can make a split from an existing
hive and leave it setting in the same yard
and not worry about all the bees going
back to the original hive. The field bees
will return to the original hive but the
nurse bees will stay with the brood. If
you make sure you have enough nurse
bees by shaking a couple extra frames
of bees into the split, you will usually be
successful. You’ll want to keep checking
to make sure that you have enough nurse
bees to keep the brood warm and possibly
shake more bees if necessary for a few
days though, just in case.
However, if you want to move the
Allowing good ventilation during the move is key. Also, doing so at night will ensure you whole hive to another spot in the yard,
don’t lose any bees that are out foraging. you may have a problem because the
field bees will all go back to the original
spot unless you move the hive at least
two miles away. That is why the rule is

How to
By Ed Dane to move bees less than two feet or more
than two miles.

W
hen I sell bees to a new beekeep- Bees have an exceptional ability to ori-

Move the
er, the question of moving bees ent on the spot where the hive sits. They
often comes up. I get questions use the angle of the sun and also line of
like, “Why do you move them after dark?” sight of prominent features of the land to

Hive
or “Can I move them again once they are help them locate their hive. So if you set a
set?” or “Why do they have to be moved hive of bees in your yard and then decide
at least two miles away?” These and other that you don’t want them there but would
questions about the subject are not easily rather have them in another spot in the
understood and can be very confusing to same yard, you first have to move them to

From Point A to beginners. Yet, the more we learn about

bees the easier they are to understand.
another spot at least two miles away for a
few weeks until they have reoriented on

Point Bee The first thing to remember about

bees is that you cannot make a bee do
that spot and then bring them back to the
new position in your yard. If you bring
anything. They are programmed to be a them back too soon, the foragers that
bee and do what bees have always done. were foraging when you moved them will
But you can sometimes manipulate them remember the old spot and ago back to it
into doing what you want them to do if and you will have defeated your purpose.
you understand a few basic things about You want to leave them there long enough
them. So let’s answer a few of the ques- for the old foragers to die off before you
tions about moving bees and why we do move them back. So I always tell new
it the way we do. beekeepers to make sure that where they
When a bee first emerges from the set the bees is where they really want
comb, the first thing it does is clean its own them to be, permanently. Yes they can
cell. For the next couple of weeks it’s job be moved, but it isn’t that easy.
is to take care of the brood; what we call The main reason for this is so that we
20 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
don’t leave any bees behind. If you were This keeps the bees in the hive and also Secure the Hive
to move the bees to another spot during gives them ventilation. Be sure to remove Before You Move it
the day, all of the foragers that were out this screen as soon as the hive is set on its One more thing to always remember is
collecting nectar and pollen when you new location otherwise they won’t be able to staple or strap everything together
moved the hive would be lost because the to get out of the hive in the morning. before you try to move the hive. If it’s
hive would be gone when they returned. been a week or two since the hive has
If there was another hive within a foot or Don’t Shine Any Light been opened, the bees will probably
two of the spot where their hive sat, they Directly at the Hive have it glued together with propolis, but
would most likely assimilate into that Bees don’t fly at night but like any insect, why would anyone want to take a chance
hive and survive. If not, they would die. they will be drawn to light. One of the knowing what could happen? It’s always
This could amount to several hundred beekeepers I sold some bees to learned better to be safe than sorry.
bees if the nectar flow was in full swing. this the hard way one evening when we
At the price of bees today, you don’t want were moving his bees. I told him not to
shine his flashlight at the hive entrance
Happy Beekeeping!
to lose any of your precious bees if you
can help it. but he just couldn’t help himself because
he was so interested in watching the bees.
Don’t Close the Hive Completely The next thing I knew, he was swatting
The bees will need ventilation so they don’t himself and running for the cab of the
overheat and die on the trip to their new truck. I had to chuckle because I learned
location. The best way to assure this is to that lesson the same way myself many
use some screen to cover the entrances. years ago.

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BEEKEEPING GUIDE 21
BEEKEEPING :: WINTERIZING

Time to Winterize Your

Beekeeping Gear
By Alexis Griffee, Florida

W
hen the cooler weather rolls in,
our thoughts on the farm often
drift to the major winter tasks.

A Few Tips to Best Store Your However, for beekeepers, there are still
some tasks to complete before hanging
Bee Equipment for Winter up your bee suit for the year. Proper
storing and cleaning of your beekeeping
equipment is not only vital to the life and
functionality of your equipment, but also
to the health of your bees.
As the honey flow winds down and
your honey has been extracted, it is time to
clean and put up your supers, frames and
foundation. On our own farm, we always
take this time to clean and prep all of our
equipment so that we are not left chasing
our tails as we scramble to assemble it all
while catching a swarm or in the middle of
the bee yard. It is pretty common to find a
frame that has gotten a bit off kilter from
use, especially after being in an extractor
for the honey harvesting! We take this time
to rebuild what we have that was damaged
during the year. It is also at this time that
you can take inventory of your supplies.
If you know that you had a certain item
that was irreparably damaged, now is the
time to write down what will be needed
for replacements.
During this time, we go through and
scrape off any extra propolis and wax, and
inspect all of the frames for sturdiness.
When scraping off your frames and boxes,
it is important to pay special attention
to the corners or any cracks. These are
the areas that some pests will hide and
la their eggs. Not only is it important to
eliminate these pests, but this will also tell
you if there is a bigger problem brewing
within your hives.
It is also through these inspections
that we can really have a good look at what
is going on with our bees. If there were
any problems with pests like wax moths
or hive beetles, it will be clear when you
inspect these parts. If we do find a hive or
frames that have pests on them, we often
will freeze them in our deep freezer to kill
off any eggs. Many beekeepers will do this
to all of their equipment, space permitting,
as an extra precaution.
22 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 However, if you find yourself lack-
ing freezer space, another tried and true
method to sterilize your equipment is to
use a blowtorch. Many beekeepers will
During this time, we go through and scrape
use a blow torch lightly on the insides of all off any extra propolis and wax, and inspect
of their boxes and on wooden frames. This
will not only help to burn off any residual all of the frames for sturdiness.
wax and propolis but kill any eggs that
may have escaped your inspection. This
method is chosen often because it is fast,
precise and does not take any particular
skill all while being effective.
Chemical sterilization, although
harder to use, is another method that is labeled and away from children and pets. It is not just larger pests that can
used commonly by commercial beekeep- Despite the extra caution needed when cause major damage to your beekeeping
ers with a large amount of equipment. using acetic acid, there are many benefi ts. equipment. Moths, roaches and other
Chemical sterilization of your hives and This method is especially valuable to the scavenging bugs are drawn to the smell
components has proven through the years beekeeper that has dealt with pests and of foundation in particular. They will eat,
to be effective with threats to your hive. unexplained hive loss. Acetic acid is proven destroy and lay eggs on your equipment.
While more commonly utilized overseas, to kill nosema parasites, chalk brood Aside from negating all of your previous
the use of acetic acid to fumigate your spores, wax worms and other problems work with cleaning and preparing your
equipment has been proven very suc- that have plagued beekeepers. No matter equipment at the end of the season, this
cessful. what method of cleaning your equipment will also put you at risk for introducing
To use this fumigation method, the you choose, all provide valuable benefi ts pests into your hives next spring.
hive components need to be bagged, and are crucial to keeping healthy hives. One of the easiest and cheapest ways
wrapped or stored in a sealed, preferably After you have your equipment re- to keep your bee equipment pest free
wooden structure. To use acetic acid, you paired, cleaned and sterilized, it is time through the winter is to use moth balls.
will need 80 percent industrial grade. to store it for the winter. While you are Moth balls will repel most major pests
This can be acquired from beekeeping preparing your own home to endure a cold and keep them out of your equipment
supply stores as well as some chemical winter, so are many pests. Areas that are storage area. Generally speaking, moth
supply stores. For the treatment, you will prime for storing your equipment are also balls should be replaced every year to
need to place a dish of acetic acid, usu- perfect for pests like mice, moths, snakes ensure that they are still potent enough
ally about 50ml worth, on top of a stack and roaches to spend their winter, too. It to do the job effectively. To use these,
of hive parts. This is where many people is no secret that mice alone can do a lot simply sprinkle them around the base of
seal the hive components up depending of damage to property. Mice are attracted your equipment. When we stack our hive
on their storage locations. The hives to the sweet smell of the foundation and bodies and supers, after every few, we
and the acid should be left undisturbed equipment. The boxes make great starting put a layer of cardboard in between the
for approximately one week. After this points for their nests and the wax gives boxes. On this, we lay some more moth
time, the acid can be disposed of and the them something to chew for the long balls. This tried and true method is used
beekeeping equipment can be aired out winter. Aside from the obvious damage commonly by beekeepers all throughout
so that it is ready for use before next year. that this will cause your equipment, this the United States.
Once this, or other cleaning and steriliza- is not sanitary. These same boxes will be Homesteaders are hopeful people and
tion method has been completed, your holding honey next spring so keeping are always planning and looking forward
equipment is ready for storage. them clean should always be a priority. to the next season in their life. Beekeep-
However, a word of caution when As with anything in nature, for every ers are no exception to this rule! It is
using acetic acid. Acetic acid will corrode action there is a reaction. In the winter, during these winter months where you
metal as well as concrete. Due to this, it snakes need a couple of things: warmth can take the time to plan out your apiary
is recommended that you cover all metal and food. In your storage shed if it is not and determine your plan for next year’s
parts with Vaseline to prevent the corro- properly maintained, your bee equipment success. It is also in this time that you will
sion. Additionally, do not store your metal can be a supplier of both of those needs. need to get your bees on order. This can
extractor in the same enclosed area as Snakes will follow the rodents, and some- be done by placing your order through
your other equipment when you are using times that may mean into your storage area. a mail order company or by contacting
this method! If your fumigation area has While they are just following their food other beekeepers in the area that catch
concrete floors, be sure to bag your hives source and do not have a specific interest and sell swarms or split their own hives
and seal them tightly before you begin this in your beekeeping supplies, this can still for resale purposes. It is important to not
process so that it does not cause damage be problematic. Obviously some snakes are end your beekeeping duties as soon as
to your floor. Also, be sure that you wear venomous, and even those that are not can the cold weather sets in. Through a little
proper eye protection as well as gloves still give you a nasty infection if you are to hard work and planning with your equip-
when handling acetic acid to prevent get bitten. Like the mice, it is just best to ment, you will be setting yourself up for
injuries. Always keep acetic acid clearly prevent the problem before it starts. a productive spring.
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 23
 Natural Comb Building:
Boon or Bust?

your culling routine is one way to go Two Langstroth-Compatible,

Story and Photos By
Laura Tyler, Colorado foundation-free gradually. You can also Foundation-Free Frame Styles

T
start new colonies on foundation-free We use two styles of foundation-free
he construction of natural bee frames. We started adding foundation- frames at my apiary, T-frames and V-
comb is a wonder to behold. free frames to colonies at my apiary eight frames.
Festooning bees clasp legs to years ago and are currently using three We build T-frames using commercially
form hanging chains, a behavior many different frame styles: traditional brood milled frame parts. If you were building
beekeepers describe as measuring, and frames with foundation and two styles a typical Langstroth frame, the “T” strip
set to work building hexagonal cells of foundation-free frames, T-frames and you see underlining the top bar in this
using wax flakes they excrete from V-frames. photo would be rotated 90 degrees and
abdominal glands and shape with their
jaws. Each bee appears to work inde-
pendently, yet somehow cells built by
many bees working on different areas
of comb come together seamlessly. It
is astonishing. And when you consider
that natural bee comb has the added
benefit of being free of the pesticide
residues found in manufactured foun-
dation, it’s no wonder that interest in
foundation-free beekeeping is on the
rise, especially among small-scale bee-
keepers seeking to minimize pesticides
in the hive. Yet foundation-free comb
is a challenge to work with. It takes
attention and an experienced hand to
manage it successfully. Do you have
what it takes to go foundation-free in
your Langstroth setup? And if you do,
will it benefit your bees?
The first step you can take toward
reducing contaminants in your hive
is to simply cull old pathogen-laden
comb and replace it with empty frames,
whatever style you have on hand, for
the bees to draw anew. Do this in the
spring before your bee population
peaks, and when they are primed to
build new comb. Avoid taking comb
containing eggs or young brood. Once
comb culling becomes a habit, you are
one small step away from transitioning
to foundation-free beekeeping. If you
keep bees in Langstroth equipment,
inserting foundation-free frames into
24 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
used to hold the top edge of a sheet of
foundation securely in place. Eliminate
the foundation, turn the strip 90 degrees
and you have created a great starting point
from which the bees can string their first
arcs of comb.
Our V-frames are homemade frames
milled from two-by-fours using a table
saw. The top bar of the frame in this
photo is shaped like a shallow V. The
bees will build comb starting at the
low point of the V and draw it down. It
is unnecessary to add beeswax, either
strips of foundation or a melted strip of
wax, to either of these frame styles. The
bees will use the structure of the frame
as their guide.

Pros and Cons

Foundation-free beekeeping, as lovely
as it may appear, isn’t for ever yone.
Here are some of its benefits and
drawbacks.
A natural comb being built in process.
Benefits:
Note how the bees interlock their legs.
• Foundation-free bee comb is pesticide Right: On top, a T-frame, and
free. “All foundation beeswax pressed on bottom, a V-frame.
into sheets and used as templates for
comb construction sampled from North
America is uniformly contaminated,”
according to Pesticides and Honey Bee
Toxicity. This scientific paper published
in 2010 listed many beekeeper-applied
pesticides (used to control varroa and
other pests) as contaminants and cast
confusion on the role of pesticides in bee
decline. Going foundation-free removes
these contaminants from your beekeep-
ing equation, giving you a clean slate on
which to start your bees.

• Savings of cost and time. Going founda-

tion-free eliminates the recurring expense
of beeswax foundation and allows you to
skip a step or two when preparing new
frames for your colonies.

• Good for bee health? While I’m not • Foundation-free comb is fun to watch. Drawbacks:
aware of any studies that explore the re- As someone who enjoys early spring • Foundation-free comb requires extra man-
lationship between natural comb building beekeeping tasks including comb agement. While bees have the potential to
and bee health, biodynamic beekeeper management, the opportunity to watch build squirrelly comb on any style of frame,
Gunther Hauk mused on the subject in his natural comb being built by bees adds the potential for off-center, undulating comb
2002 book, Toward Saving the Honeybee: a layer of depth and interest to my work of varied widths is greater when you go
“Just as we derive our strength to a great with them. I enjoy observing the bees’ foundation-free. You need to be prepared to
degree from the health and stability of our creativity and seeing the greater variety go into your hives every week when bees
bones (for walking, jumping, running, of forms they come up with when left to are laying down natural comb to keep an
lifting, etc.), so does the bee derive her their own devices as opposed to working eye on things and keep frames movable.
strength to raise healthy offspring from on foundation. Watching bees make natu- What you don’t want to have happen is for
the substance the bee has ‘sacrificed’ from ral comb makes beekeeping even more the bees to build cross comb or other shapes
her own body, this precious wax.” interesting to me. that render frames unmovable.
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 25
 Is Natural, Foundation-Free
Beekeeping Right for Your
Langstroth Colony?
If you are a beginner, probably not. But if
you are an experienced beekeeper who
enjoys getting in there with your bees
and doing comb management, it may add
something wonderful to your beekeeping
experience.
After several years of foundation-free
beekeeping my husband, who is my
beekeeping partner, and I are assessing.
Has it helped our bees? And if so, how?
This is hard for us to judge because we
haven’t approached our natural comb
building experiments scientifically. We
both enjoy the peace of mind we get
from eliminating one potential hazard,
contaminated foundation, from our
A natural frame, fully drawn and packed with honey. colonies. Since overseeing comb and
new brood production is one of my fa-
vorite beekeeping tasks, I am happy to
continue working with foundation-free
comb, even it means more work. My
• Foundation-free comb is fragile. Natu- • Foundation-free comb slows hive man- husband, who values speed in the hive,
rally drawn bee comb has a fluid quality agement down. If your handling isn’t prac- is less enamored of the process than I
when warm. When naturally drawn comb ticed and you don’t have time to manage am, and is lobbying for us to go back to
is heavy with brood or honey you cannot comb construction, foundation-free bee- conventional bee comb with foundation.
ever position its wide surface parallel to keeping will present new inconveniences What we have decided for the moment
the ground or gravity will pull it down. that make it feel challenging to get in and is to continue using both the foundation
To inspect both sides of a foundation-free out of the colony, thereby discouraging and foundation-free comb depending on
comb you cannot flip the comb up and your engagement with your bees. If you short-term needs. Fortunately, the two
down like a visor as you may be used to get yourself into a situation where entering frame styles are interchangeable. The
doing with conventional comb. Instead your colonies feels overwhelming because only drawback to using both styles at
of flipping, you must master a swooping of comb issues, then natural comb building once is remembering to be consistently
motion where you rotate the comb like is not for you. You must keep your bees in a careful when handling them.
the hands on a clock dial, or around like state where you are comfortable engaging While I am always interested in new
a carousel. with them at any time. ways to improve things for my bees, I’m not
under any illusion that management deci-
sions, like whether or not to use foundation
or go foundation-free, have a tremendous
impact on them. There may be effects, but
they are subtle. Alas, it is the widespread
Is natural, foundation-free beekeeping incidence of pesticides in the environment
that presents the biggest challenge to all pol-
right for your Langstroth colony? linators, not just honeybees. It doesn’t matter
what new handling techniques I introduce,
If you are a beginner, probably not. if the larger environment is hostile to my
bees wellbeing, they will suffer. The trick for
But if you are an experienced beekeeper concerned beekeepers is to remain engaged
on two levels, looking inward at what we
who enjoys getting in there with your personally can do for our bees, and looking
outward at what we can do p litically in the
bees and doing comb management, larger world to also support them. While
the inward stuff may give us a satisfactory
it may add something wonderful to feeling of being in control of something, a
feeling we don’t always get to experience
your beekeeping experience. in the wider world, it is not a substitute for
engagement in the political sphere, which
we must attend to as well.
26 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 Beekeeping Your First Year,
From Hiving to Honey Harvest
HOMEGROWN
HONEY BEES
By Alethea Morrison • Photographs By Mars Vilaubi

Discover the joys of harvesting

honey from your own backyard.
Alethea Morrison outlines what
you’ll need to know to make it
through the first year, while stun-
ning macrophotography by Mars
Vilaubi brings the inner workings
of the hive to life. With in-depth
discussions of allergies, colony
hierarchy, bee behavior, and
more, this approachably infor-
mative guide bursts with enthu-
siastic encouragement. Keep
your own bees, and enjoy the
sweet buzz. 160 Pages

[Link]/shop
970-392-4419

BEEKEEPING GUIDE 27
 BEEKEEPING :: BEESWAX CANDLES

Candles Made From

Preparation
• Collect your equipment before you start.
Look to beekeeping and candle supply

Beeswax
companies for specialty materials like
wick, wax melting containers and dipping
racks. Equipment like water bath pots
and cooling racks can be easily thrifted,
or perhaps can be found in your home.
How to Make Devine Beeswax Tapers Food and craft don’t mix, so whatever you
appropriate from the kitchen for candle
making should remain candle making
equipment forever more.

• Give yourself time and space. Candle

dipping is a slow craft that you will enjoy
more if you set aside the time for it to
happen at an unhurried pace. Also, if you
are using your kitchen for candle dipping,
don’t plan to also use it for cooking while
your stovetop is occupied with wax.
Candles and
the dipping
• Make sure you have enough melted
vats.
wax, and then some, to fill your dipping
vat. It can take 10 or more pounds of wax
to fill a 15-inch dipping vat, depending on
its diameter. The wax level in your vat
will drop as your candles grow so keep a
pouring pot of melted wax nearby to add
to your vat as needed.

• Heat your wax safely. Beeswax melts

at around 145°F. At temperatures above
185°F it will discolor, and at 400°F it be-
comes explosive. The ideal range for candle
dipping is between 155°F and 175°F. Melt
your wax in a water bath to maintain a safe
temperature. Never melt your wax directly
on a stovetop. Electric warming contain-
ers with a rheostat that allow you control
Story and Photos By the temperature are also available. Use a
Laura Tyler, Colorado But since beeswax candles make a candy thermometer or laser thermometer
most precious gift representing a mar- to test wax temperature throughout your

B
eeswax comes in a range of riage of effort between the bee and the candle-making session. Invest in a fire
colors, from lemon-yellow to beekeeper, they are absolutely worth extinguisher for your work area if you
warm, grizzly brown. Depending saving for. don’t already have one.
on its age and what part of the colony Like many beekeeping families, my
you har vest it from. While wax from all husband and I divide our beekeeping work • Protect your lungs by ventilating. While
areas of the hive is useable to a degree, between the two of us. Beeswax render- beeswax fumes are relatively benign, the
it is cappings wax, the newest wax you ing and candle making are his domain. beeswax molecule starts breaking down
collect as part of your honey-extracting His engineer’s mindset and interest in into respiratory irritants at temperatures
process, that makes the most divine systems make for efficient and consistent of 220°F and above. Reduce your poten-
beeswax tapers. It can take years for candle production. While you don’t need tial exposure to these irritants and any
even the most productive small-scale to be an engineer to make beautiful hand- other colorants or scents you may use by
beekeeper to save enough wax to fill a dipped candles, it helps to be methodical. ventilating your space. A range-top hood
dipping vat with the material to make a And with a measure of patience you will provides good outflow. Leave a door or
single set of tapers. do just fine. window cracked to allow fresh air in.
28 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 How To Render Beeswax How To Dip Beeswax Tapers
Rendering is the process of heating and Candle dipping rewards a slow and steady
melting unprocessed wax to filter out hand. It also has a meditative quality that
impurities. I recommend using only cap- can bring great joy to those for whom the
pings wax for dipping beeswax tapers. It is skill is a good fit.
easier to clean than wax from other parts
of the hive and makes for an exquisite, MATERIALS:
aromatic candle. • Water bath (large cooking pot filled
part way with water)
MATERIALS:
• Dipping vat tall enough to accommodate
• 1 or 2 nylon mesh straining bags avail-
the height of candle you’d like to make
able from most beekeeping suppliers
• 1 (or more) wax pouring pots with
• 2 wax pouring pots with handle and
handle and spout
spout
• Rendered beeswax, enough to fill dip-
• Water bath (large cooking pot filled
ping vat and replenish as needed while
part way with water)
dipping
• Paper towels METHOD:
• Thermometer
• Silicone molds (cupcake size molds • Set water bath to boil.
• Taper dipping frame (optional)
recommended for easy handling) • Place dipping vat in water bath and fill
• You may also dip candles freehand by with beeswax. The dipping vat will float
METHOD: tying little weights (nuts or washers) onto when empty but should settle neatly on
• Set water bath to boil. ends of wick. the floor of your water bath as you add
• Use warm (not hot) tap water to rinse • Wick for tapers, 2/0 square braid cotton wax weight.
honey residue from cappings wax in mesh wick recommended, but you are free to • Prepare a reserve of melted wax to
straining bag. experiment replenish dipping vat as you dip your
• Fill wax melting pot halfway with a • Cooling rack (try using an old fashioned candles. If you can get your wax pouring
50/50 mix of rinsed cappings and water. clothes drying rack) pot wax to fit in the same water bath as
the dipping vat, great. If not, prepare a
• Set half-filled melting pot in water bath • Blade for candle trimming second water bath.
to melt.
• Pour melted 50/50 mix through an
empty mesh bag into your second wax
melting pot. The goal of this first pour
is to filter larger bee parts and detritus
from cappings.

• Set pot in water bath to re-warm and

settle.
• Wax and water will separate. Wax will
settle on top. A layer of slumgum will
settle under your wax on top of the water.
• Gently pour clean layer of wax into
silicone molds. Avoid pouring slumgum
and water into molds.
• Allow any remaining wax, slumgum and
water to cool in wax melting pot. When
cool, it will separate from the sides of the
container allowing you to remove it from
the pot. Discard water. Save cooled wax/
slumgum disc for further rendering. Try
using a single ply of a two-ply paper towel
instead of mesh bag when rendering
further for a finer result. Wicks are strung through the candle dipping rack.

BEEKEEPING GUIDE 29
• Monitor wax temperature using a thermometer. The ideal range for beeswax candle
dipping is between 155° and 175° F. Do not allow wax temperature to exceed 185°
to prevent wax from darkening.
• String wick through candle dipping rack per instructions. Skip this step if you
plan to dip your candles freehand. If dipping freehand, simply tie nuts or other small
weights to wick ends before dipping.
• Dip candle dipping rack or weighted wick to desired depth in dipping vat. If this
is your first dip wait for bubbles to rise from the wick before you remove it from the
dipping vat. When the air bubbles stop rising it is a sign that your wick is properly
saturated with wax. Do not wait for bubbles on subsequent dips.
• Place on rack to cool.
• Candle is ready to be re-dipped when it is still warm, but not hot, to the touch. You
will learn to judge this as you progress.
• Continue the process of dipping, cooling and re-dipping until you reach desired
candle width. Create a nice tapered tip on your candle by dipping it just deep enough
to submerge previous high wax mark each time you dip.
TROUBLESHOOTING:
• Count your dips and make notes for your next candle making session. • Candle making takes practice and good
• Use a blade to trim the bottom ends of your candle pairs. Dip candles two to three old-fashioned trial and error to master.
more times after trimming to finish ends. • If your candles appear rippled it may
be because the wax is too hot, or you are
dipping the tapers too fast. First, go slower.
If that doesn’t fix the ripples, lower the
temperature in your dipping vat.
• If your candle ends look like ringed tree
trunks when you trim them it means your
layers have failed to bind. Either your wax
in the dipping vat was too cool, or you al-
lowed the tapers to cool too long between
A dips. Next time increase the temperature
finished in your dipping vat and/or allow less time
candle. to pass between dips.
• If your candles fail to build mass it
means your wax is too hot and you are
melting your previous work each time you
dip. Or you are dipping your tapers too
slowly. Reduce your heat and try again.
The trick to mastering hand-dipped candle
making is to find the right combination of
temperature and dipping speed.
• Dip candles at a consistent, steady rate
to prevent ripples.

30 BEEKEEPING GUIDE
 BEEKEEPING :: PROPOLIS

PROPOLIS:
problems and fungal infections to al-
lergies and sore throat.

Cultivating Propolis

Bee Glue that Heals The quantity of propolis a bee colony

will produce depends on its nature
and the conditions in the hive. Some
colonies produce big, peanut butter y
swaths of propolis that require diligent
How to Use the Resin scraping on your part to move frames
around. Others run a drier ship, high-
Bees Leave Behind lighting the edges and ends of your
equipment with a thin, almost delicate,
reddish varnish.
Occasionally, when the right trigger
is applied, bees will produce a terrific
quantity of propolis, the size of a man’s fist
By Laura Tyler, Colorado of beeswax, pollen, and essential oils, or larger, in a single area, typically near

T
propolis has a warm and spicy aroma the main entrance to the hive. I have seen
here are non-urgent tidbits of that suggests comfort and myster y. this happen in my own colonies, usually
beekeeping lore that the ex- Its use as a folk medicine dates back when something has gone wrong. One
perts won’t tell you when you thousands of years. Today people use time, the bottom edge of a frame came
are just getting started with bees. Not it to treat ailments ranging from oral loose, touching the bottom board. The
because they are secret. But because
the amount of information available to
new beekeepers is vast, and so much of
it is need-to-know, that less pressing but
still interesting details—like deciding
what to do with that gob of propolis you
have been adding to all summer—fall
by the wayside. But as you are ready,
your willingness to continue learning
and tr ying new things can feel like an
initiation drawing you deeper into the
world of bees.

What Is Propolis?
Photo
Honeybee propolis is a brown or red- by Laura
dish resinous substance made by bees Tyler
to protect the hive against animal and
bacterial invaders. The word “propolis”
is a compound of the Greek words “pro”
and “polis” and translates to, “Before
the city.” Bees use propolis as a build-
ing material to fill gaps and crevices,
varnish combs and shape entrances,
sometimes creating fantastic gobs
that supposedly aid ventilation in the
hive.
People have obser ved bees using
propolis to corral insect pests like
small hive beetles into tiny propolis
“jails,” and to embalm dead mice. It
has potent antiviral and antibacterial
properties that aid in protecting the
colony from infection. Made up of
plant saps gathered by bees, redolent
BEEKEEPING GUIDE 31
bees took this as an invitation to fill the space between the
comb and bottom board with many square inches of potent,
immaculate propolis. Another time, a piece of grass that
How to Use Propolis
fell into the colony near the entrance inspired a similar
behavior. While these feats are exciting to witness, they are I swear by propolis as a preventative remedy
difficult to replicate or predict. When I see a colony has a when I am traveling or feeling run down. I
propensity to make propolis, I will insert twigs along the
have also found it useful in treating a sore
bottom board near the entrance to inspire propolis creation
with mixed and often disappointing results.
throat. I prefer to take propolis raw as opposed
The simplest and most reliable method of harvesting extracted in a tincture or blended in a salve.
propolis is to scrape it and save it in a designated bucket each My favorite way to use propolis is the way I
time you work your hive. Look for the bigger, cleaner areas of learned from a beekeeper friend in my second
propolis that collect along the top edges on each frame. Also, year of beekeeping:
there are many fun looking styles and shapes of propolis traps
available from beekeeping suppliers.
Collect quality propolis, the rich looking,
Beekeeping literature is full of negative information about
propolis, how it gums up your equipment and requires continual clean stuff free of bee parts and splinters,
scraping to maintain frames in moveable condition. Propolis as you work your colonies throughout the
is “unnecessary in modern apiculture, apparently useless to year.
the bees and a disadvantage to the beekeeper,” according to
the 34th edition of A.I. Root’s beekeeping classic, The ABC Store it loose in a sealable container, either a
and XYZ of Bee Culture. Curiously, the book goes on to extoll bucket or plastic bags at room temperature.
propolis’ importance as, “the base of an important antiseptic
You may also freeze it.
preparation used by surgeons … highly recommended as a
domestic remedy for wounds and burns.”
That is the nature of propolis. Challenging but important. Choose a piece about the size of a pea, roll it
And highly recommended to beekeepers seeking to expand their into a ball and stick it on the back of a tooth, or
role as providers of bee products in their communities. the roof of your mouth. Hold it in your mouth
for as long as you like, minutes or hours (after
awhile it will break down) and then swallow
or spit. Do not chew. Propolis has an intense
yellow color that will temporarily stain your
teeth and mouth. It also has a mild anesthetic
quality. A mild tingling or numbness in the
mouth is normal when using propolis.

Caution: Some people are

aller gic to honeybee
products includ-
ing propolis. If
you experience
an allergic reac-
tion, discontin-
ue use and con-
sult a physician.

32 BEEKEEPING GUIDE