Before I put the pollen substitute out......

1560 Views 37 Replies 4 Participants Last post by Gypsi, 4 mo ago

Gypsi

Discussion Starter · 5 mo ago

Nothing is in bloom here, fall lasted forever, I left a lot of honey on the hives, didn't do a fall harvest (although I saw 10 solid frames in the TOP super in November) They eat a lot when they aren't clustered, so I left them their honey. But I didn't get mite treatments done. There was still brood in November.

I've seen a few bees out since our very hard freeze looking for pollen and decided to rush a treatment in before I put out pollen substitute in hopes that there isn't brood yet. Because I had grandkids here I really could not inspect first, also if we get another cold snap, I don't want to break their propolis seals.

I also didn't want to burn bees with the OAV wand, so I made a new dispenser out of a primer can, put the pan of my Varrox in thru a cut in the side wall, and used a pen case (metal) near the top on the other side to send the smoke into a hole I drilled in the back of the bottom box, near the bottom. It was a good system. Photo

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I flipped my sticky boards first. Because I use screened bottom boards I can see how many mites drop. I'll check 24 hour drop probably about 3 pm tomorrow. Hit it with enough oxalic acid I hope. I'll put out pollen substitute later today.

How is your winter beekeeping going?

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Wil

· #2 · 5 mo ago

So far, so good, if you can call Ohio weather activities good. Finally got a day of no rain, I hope so maybe will do a round of OAV since it was November when I did one last.
Bees are on top eating their sugar bricks, but I did leave all the fall honey for them also. As warm as it has been they probably went through that in lightspeed. That one very hard cold snap we had here a few weeks ago sure had me worried though, but the bees are doing fine and flying on the warm days.

Gypsi

Discussion Starter · #3 · 5 mo ago

I see a few bees here and there, it's too cool yet this morning to see if they hit the pollen sub. Unless I see great traffic at the sub feeder before the weekend I think I am going to pull the top box and make sure I have queens.
Mite drop after OAV, 3 boxes on each, 10 on the Beeweaver hive, 6 on the swarm hive. And that is on the whole sticky board, not per square inch. EIther there aren't very many bees or there aren't very many mites. I need to know which and make sure I'm not queenless. Good pollen sub traffic would answer that without opening the hive.
There aren't many bees in my area, not enough forage, and when I quit doing removals my mite issues went way down, because I wasn't bringing home dirty bees

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Wil

· #4 · 5 mo ago

Finally, I gave all 7 hives the OAV treatment today since this was the only window I had going forward to give them a shot. The last single dose I gave them was back around Thanksgiving. The temperature got up to 45*F but from here on the rest of the week and next will head to the low 30's for daytime temps.

Gypsi

Discussion Starter · #5 · 5 mo ago

That's pretty chilly. I have a young beekeeper coming out to help me this weekend, I need to have a peek in the hives, it was November last time I looked and still lots of brood. Need to be sure I'm not queenless, and we have a warm stretch running

Wil

· #6 · 5 mo ago

That cold snap we had a few weeks ago plunged us down to a minus -20*F. Don't think I wasn't worried for the bees. Sure glad our barn is overdone in insulation for the barn critters.
I have friend that has been putting his pollen subs out for the bees too and they have been going after it like crazy on the warm days. I am not so sure I want to put any out yet because we still have a lot of winter ahead yet and I don't want them to grow in population to fast quite yet.

Gypsi

Discussion Starter · #7 · 5 mo ago

mine aren't going for the pollen sub. I think they found some real pollen somewhere, it's about holly bush time soon down here, or oak, maple, elm.

Gypsi

Discussion Starter · #8 · 5 mo ago

apparently it took just the right weather, I walked into a cloud of bees by the pollen sub feeder yesterday. The queens are laying I guess. Not sure if I want to treat with OAV again just now.

Gypsi

Discussion Starter · #9 · 5 mo ago

My elm tree is budding out, about to be done with pollen substitute, nice afternoon I'm seeing bees at the pond and in the garden snooping around

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roadkillbobb

· #10 · 5 mo ago

well up here in new york we still have a few months of winter..before anything starts budding or turning green..just more snow in the forecast for the weeks to come...

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Gypsi

Discussion Starter · #11 · 5 mo ago

In the summer when it's 110 here I'll bet it's not 110 there. Nice snow, makes the yard look all neat and clean

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roadkillbobb

· #12 · 5 mo ago

LOL..I personally hate the hot heat, ill take mid 70s anytime, I also like the change of seasons, but havent lived where you dont get snow...all I know is in winter here there are no bugs to bite and siphon off your blood..lol..
110..forget about it..Id be hibernating in the house with the a/c blasting...

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Rick_Bee

· #13 · 5 mo ago

Snow yesterday, 30°F this am.

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Wil

· #14 · 5 mo ago

3 inches of snow and 30*F here, where I am. Bees are staying warm.

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Gypsi

Discussion Starter · #15 · 5 mo ago

cold rain but we need the rain here, and it's about 52 right now, will hit 30 tonight so a light freeze, wagons of delicate plants get pulled in garage

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Wil

· #16 · 5 mo ago

Well today we had a bit if a weather warning but we only got about 2 inches more snow so that's not bad. The temperature went up to 36 degrees and started raining on me while I was behind the barn zeroing in my muzzleloader. I definitely had to many warm clothes on cause I was sweating like crazy and got soaking wet. I'll go check on the bees later to see if I need to brush away any snow from the entrance but I don't expect them to go out and go sled riding.

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roadkillbobb

· #17 · 4 mo ago

Wil said:
Well today we had a bit if a weather warning but we only got about 2 inches more snow so that's not bad. The temperature went up to 36 degrees and started raining on me while I was behind the barn zeroing in my muzzleloader. I definitely had to many warm clothes on cause I was sweating like crazy and got soaking wet. I'll go check on the bees later to see if I need to brush away any snow from the entrance but I don't expect them to go out and go sled riding.

I just got a new cva accura ,,I have 2 knights already.. im going to sight it in next week when I get upstate, and now theres about a foot of snow on the ground....you should start another thread about muzzle loading...

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Wil

· #18 · 4 mo ago

roadkillbobb said:
I just got a new cva accura ,,I have 2 knights already.. im going to sight it in next week when I get upstate, and now theres about a foot of snow on the ground....you should start another thread about muzzle loading...

My 85 year old cousin has the same as you, a CVA Accura. Norm is three shots touching at 100 yards. Very nice rifle. It's accounted for more then a few deer.

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roadkillbobb

· #19 · 4 mo ago (Edited)

Wil said:
My 85 year old cousin has the same as you, a CVA Accura. Norm is three shots touching at 100 yards. Very nice rifle. It's accounted for more then a few deer.

I ordered the .50 cal lrx as I heard reports the .45 bergara barrels were having major issues, and im on a muzzle loading forum and they said some of the .50 cal barrels have issues, I checked my bore and it was good, nice and shiny with no roughness....A friend has an accura and also says its very accurate...
what powder and bullets does he use?..
hers a pic of a bore from the forum of the guy that just bought last month of a cva accura mrx .50 cal. you can see the roughness, he sent it back to midway...the bore I got is nothing like that disaster...

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Wil

· #20 · 4 mo ago

roadkillbobb said:
I ordered the .50 cal lrx as I heard reports the .45 bergara barrels were having major issues, and im on a muzzle loading forum and they said some of the .50 cal barrels have issues, I checked my bore and it was good, nice and shiny with no roughness....A friend has an accura and also says its very accurate...
what powder and bullets does he use?..

We both use the same. Blackhorn 209 powder, T/C 250 gr. Shockwave and a Federal 209 shot shell primer. He uses 100 grains of powder, I use 90 grains. Several drop on the spot deer at 100 yards.I have also scored with the 300 grain Shockwaves also but now down to a box of 250 grainers so I have been using them. The 300 grainers shot real well also. If both our rifles are shooting over 2-1/2 inch groups at 100 yards, we are having a bad day.

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