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I’m an overwhelmed newbie

2K views 5 replies 3 participants last post by  Gypsi 
#1 ·
Where to begin.... I bought a deluxe beekeeping kit. Came with one deep brood box and accessories. Picking up my package of bees Memorial Day weekend. Got print catalog from Dadant, Better Bee and Brushy Mountain. So many choices.
First question:
•When can/do I add honey supers?
• What’s best/safest feeder to use?
(My kit came with frame feeder)
•Should I purchase treatments/medications for Nosema, chalk brood, American/European foul brood, varroa mites, tracheal mites, hive beetles, sac brood, and stonebrood to have on hand if needed?
•Should I feed the bees and if so, what is best? I bought some honey-be-healthy so far; should I purchase pollen patties, a microbial supplement, a pollen substitute, winter patties, etc?
• I live on 5 acres of land, and there’s numerous flowers and I plan to plant more bee attracting blooms. I’m reading “Beekeeping for dummies” which is quite comprehensive. In the end, I suppose everyone finds the
system that works best for them, but I want to make sure I get the important things in place. Thanks for any and all responses.
 
#2 ·
Hi and welcome aboard..I would put nuc frames in a super with a small honey super to start, I use frame feeders and spring will be 1 to 1 mix of sugar and water, a must is to treat for varroa mite, I use oxilic acid vapor...I wouldnt feed patties in the spring, 5 acres is great do you have any water feature? pond or stream? the bees need water..
 
#4 ·
Thanks Bob for your reply. Have some woods that has a sort of swamp when it rains. I’m planning on putting a chicken waterer with rocks around the circumference so bees don’t drown. Is that a good idea? It’s amazing how I feel after reading all about bees; I feel sort of like a queen myself; the bees will be depending on me for there very existence so I need to be vigilant and anticipate their needs before they need them and then they reward me with honey. I believe that the bees can associate humans with the things that are provided to them. Many a strange, symbiotic relationship can be attained by different species of animals with other animals and with humans with other unlikely animals as YouTube videos will attest too. Some things upset me such as the drones being kicked to the curb before winter. “Ouch”, but a hive has to run like a well oiled machine to survive. Their hive hygiene is quite the task and their duties and roles in the hive amazes me. I’m reading and watching videos all I can about beekeeping. I didn’t order a nuc because it’s too late so I’m not planning on harvesting any honey this
year so bees have adequate stores for winter. I’m getting the bees on Memorial Day weekend so should I feed them even if there’s flowers available? Also, if you have any other information you can give me, I’d be very grateful. I’m using the Langstroh hive system. I have a ten frame deep box for the bees so far; I prefer to use mediums. Should I put on a deep on top of this one, or can I put mediums on top and how many?
Well, enough of my rambling. Thank you
 
#5 ·
I personally dont like to keep any water close to the hive as it may bring robber bees too close to the hive, so 50 or 60 feet away is fine the bees will find it, rocks in the waterer are a good idea so the bees dont drown, and yes to feeding a new package or nuc even if flowers are blooming this will help the queen and hive expand faster in numbers, most important is mite control...I have 2 deeps ontop of each other then the mediums ontop of those, as this spring im going to split the hive by seperating the 2 deeps and let them requeen on there own, I will take a few frames from the deep that has the queen after she lays new eggs and put them in the half that doesnt have a queen, this is more experimental than a sure thing, hey its a hobby to play around with, I can always buy a queen if they dont requeen in a month or 2..dont expect to take any honey the first year so they have plenty of stores, also reduce the bottom hive entrance to about an inch till the hive gains numbers so they can protect the hive against robber bees....
 
#6 ·
Feed feed feed, Sugar syrup 1:1 with a few drops of bleach or vinegar, to keep it from developing fungus. You will likely be feeding all summer this year. It's a good investment. And feed inside the hive, there are many styles of internal feeding. So you don't attract robbers.
 
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