Thorough Inspection - Finally

I finally made it thoroughly through my hive on Saturday. I also got my first sting (what a beauty)! Here are my observations:
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2009
Weather: Overcast, breezy, Low 60s

All of the sugar candy was gone. I didn't see the queen, but I did see capped brood & larvae. There were several frames of brood in the middle, 1 frame of drone comb toward the front, but all honeycomb was empty. They were still bringing in some pollen, not as much as the week before. I had several bars cross-combed toward the front. I think I fixed some of them, but not all. I still had to detach the sides again. Maybe I need to scrape those sides clean. Also, I am thinking about a different design that I have seen lately. The top bars are longer than mine, but the box is not as deep. I think it might be easier to manage.

I did get the one sting on the side of my hand. I think the bee just flew into it. They had been crawling all over my hands with no problems. I noticed that sudden movements would cause them to fly off the comb. I did get quite a few pings on the new veil I got. I also got the new smoker and used it. I have mixed feelings about the smoker. I have read that it masks the alarm pheromone. I have also read that it causes the bees to consume their honey, thinking that they may be forced to leave because of fire, which makes them lethargic, fat and not as able to position their abdomens to sting. With this hive, there was no honey to consume, so what were they to do? I think it probably caused more stress. I probably should have gotten more stings.

In such a case as this (if not all the time) I think a sprayer mixed with water and either sugar or some organic apple cider vinegar would have had a totally different effect on the bees. They may have even welcomed it! Last season I used the water/vinegar mix I read about at the biobees.com forum, and it seemed to work better, for me anyway.

I added a wide top bar in the back of the hive with a hole to accept an inverted jar of sugar water later Saturday. I checked it Sunday afternoon and some was gone. I don't want these bees to get dependent on feeding, but I think it was necessary. This hive had a late start last year, and it was a HUGE swarm (I don't know how many pounds) that the beekeeper captured from one of his hives! My goal is to have bees that ultimately will need little if any of my intervention (intrusion), and maybe just let me have a bar or two of honey now and then. I think Sam Comfort with Anarchy Apiaries said, "Bees know what's best for bees". I agree.

First 2009 Inspection - Almost

Date: March 28, 2009
Time: Afternoon
Weather: clearing, windy, 70s, behind cool front w/ lots of rain

The bees survived the winter and are looking good, only no honey in the combs I inspected. There was eggs, larvae, and capped brood. There was pollen, but no honey. I observed a few hive beetles on the combs. There was a good population of bees. They were for the most part calm considering they had nothing to eat. My son took a couple stings and a worker or two got after my wife, so, since it was a rather windy day, I decided to close her up about 1/2 way through. I did not see the queen, but the hive looked healthy.

I took some sugar candy and put it in the hive behind the last combs. I may check it today and replace with just 2:1 sugar water. I also need to take care of those hive beetles. As always, I've got to keep a close check for ants. Lots of pollen coming in, but apparently not much nectar, yet.



Here's my 2009 to-buy list:

• Smoker - borrowed one for Saturday's inspection
• Veil - my homemade one is a little hard to see through
• Hive tool - not absolutely necessary, but handy to have
  

Plans for this season (not necessarily in order of preference):

• Possibly make a split
• Catch a swarm or two
  
• Harvest my first honey
• Look into joining our local beekeeper's club
• Learn, learn, learn

I may post a link to a little bit of video of this inspection also. It will somewhat demonstrate how to detach comb that is attached to the sloped sides of the tbh. I used a long carving knife and, so far, it has worked well. You may also have noted a little torn piece of comb in one of the corners. Any cross-comb usually gets trimmed or straightened if possible and the bees just keep on building.

Maybe the Last Inspection

I inspected the Top Bar Hive again yesterday, and nothing much has changed. I am almost certain that the larvae is drones, now. About the only thing left to do now is wait and see.

Another Inspection

I looked into the hive again yesterday. It looks like there may be some larvae. Comb building has almost stopped, though, so I still don't know for sure. This may be drone larvae.

Third Inspection

I made my third inspection yesterday. My observations:

• Bees are still working, but comb-building has slowed
• There's pollen, nectar, and some capped honey
• There's still no sign of a queen or brood

I have thought about getting a queen, but the hive is at a state now that it may be too late if it is queenless.

The Second Inspection

I made my second inspection about a week after the first. I'm still concerned about the presence of the queen. The beekeeper assured me that there was a queen in there when he captured the swarm, so I'm not giving up hope. The combs are larger and there is pollen and uncapped honey.

The First Inspection

When I transferred the bees to their new home, I put one of the frames from the other hive - upside down - into the Top Bar Hive to encourage these bees to stay. After all, I'm not really keeping them, I'm just trying to create a suitable home and hope they like it enough to stay. After a few days, I removed the frame and noticed that the bees were already building natural comb on the top bars, so it wouldn't be long until I could actually do an inspection. As a note, I didn't see the queen or any evidence of the queen when I did the transfer, so I was hoping that I could see her during my first inspection.


I finally opened the hive up and inspected. During the first inspection, I was mainly just getting a feel for working around the bees and the Top Bar Hive. Still no sign of the queen or brood. All I could do was wait and see. Here's a pic of some of the first natural comb from my Top Bar Hive: