Fall pests

Yellow jackets and other wasps, as well as, spiders can become bothersome pests for our hives during the fall.  Strong hives will fight them off.

Early Fall Check

The aster and golden rod is still blooming.  Bees are busy bringing in pollen and nectar .  Now is the time for beekeepers to check their hives for proper winter stores.  You do not want to wait until the weather gets too cold, the bees will be reluctant to take the sugar water quickly.

Honeybee Education

One of the most interesting things about being a beekeeper is sharing the love of bees with others.  In spite of recent media attention given to bees, many people still know very little about the importance of honeybees.  You can make a sign like this for yourself and help promote the bee !

Pollen Gathering is important

In addition to gathering nectar for winter food stores, I want the bees to be able to collect a variety of pollen.  This can be used to keep the last round of babies before winter well fed and stored to use in late winter when the queen resumes laying...usually right about the end of December or early January. (A time when natural pollen is not usually available)

Bees on Buckwheat

I love planting a small patch of buckwheat in my vegetable garden after the corn has finished.  It will bloom in 30 days and gives the bees something to do when not much else is available here. (Buckwheat should not be planted where grazing animals can get to it !!)

Honey bee working buckwheat blossom

Small patch of buckwheat beginning to bloom

Fuel for your bee smoker

Beekeepers often use smokers when working colonies.  We believe the smoke masks alarm pheromones that are released by guard bees thus reducing "the call to defend the colony". Also, maybe the bees think a forest fire is approaching as they will go to open cells and fill their stomach with honey making them less inclined to sting.  Whatever, the scientific answers may be, using smoke properly can result in a more pleasant hive inspection for the beekeeper and the bees with no or very little detrimental effects for the colony.  A variety of materials are used by beekeepers for fuel: commercial smoker fuel, burlap, wood shavings, pithy wood, paper, dried sumac seed heads etc.  For local beekeepers in my area (upstate South Carolina) dried pine needles are the fuel of choice.  They are free, easy to collect and produce a cool dry smoke.  I keep an old bucket with a hinged lid and periodically (after a few days with no rain) I will ride my ATV over in the woods and scratch up dry pine needles.  Don't dig down deep and get into the damp duff layer - just skim the dry ones from the top.  You will have great natural fuel for many hours among the bees.

Feed those bees.... if they need it

Some people say you should never feed your honeybees as they should be strong enough to take care of themselves.  I can appreciate that line of thinking..yet I realize the bees are not native to this area nor is it normal to have several families of honeybees living in such close proximity.

This year has not been good for beekeeping overall.  Too much cool weather during the spring and then rain, rain and more rain.  Despite the fact that I have watched my colonies, not taken off too much honey and actually fed a little - I still have a couple of colonies on the brink of starvation.  Large number of workers, healthy looking queen, very little brood  (some of which may have been eaten) and no honey stores.  So I feed feed feed now !