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Id toss some combs in there as enticement. The irrigation boxes on our association common area always fill up every spring. Since there is bee scent and combs they hang out until my co worker shows up.
Shit that reminds me I need to rebait my swarm traps and get them out. Pollen is just starting.
Are mites a thing in your area and have you treated for them? Never a bad idea after receiving a NUC
I don’t know how bad mites are around here but I have treated the hives with oxalic acid using the InstantVap. I could have went with cheaper options but this thing makes it simple, quick and easy! I will treat them again in a week to get any that may have been in a capped cell.
Must be CA rates. $200 for a queen? Ouch, they were $40 here last year.Our bee keeper said that the going rate on a queen in our area is around $200 and if you drive out to Sac is about $140. His hives got decimated by all the rain this winter so he was super stoked to get these. He was very suprised how well our bees were doing and it turns out that all the aloes we have around our house are winter bloomers and are loaded with sugar. The pollen basket or corbicula on the females collecting pollen are bright red from the color of the aloes flowers. So if you can grow certain aloes that flower during the winter in your area they are a key food and pollen source. Here are some pictures of them
Couple links to winter blloming aloes
Winter means aloes in bloom
www.marriedtoplants.com
Winter-Blooming Aloes Put on a Spectacular Show — Grubb & Nadler
At Grubb & Nadler Nurseries we grow a wide variety of winter-blooming aloes among our large collection of wholesale plants. View our availability list or visit our wholesale nursery in Southern California today.www.grubbandnadler.com
We picked one up as well, worth the investment for long term I think. Much better and easier than the strips.
I got the cordless version. I didn't want to tote the car battery around.
I used the oxalic acid vaporizer and have had good results. The last mite checks I did 2 weeks ago showed one mite in one hive and nothing in the other two hives. Definitely wear the respirator that shit is tough and you will run away if you catch a small wiff of it! I treated mine every week for three weeks when I got them in April and will treat them one more time in the fall.
I have heard I need to remove my honey supers during treatment. I one hive has them the other does as well. The one im
I'd pull the super for treatment, even if you're not going to harvest that honey this year. Bees will use it, and it's nasty stuff.
I typically run 2 deeps for what I leave them. Then queen excluder and honey supers on top. In my original hive its not uncommon for both deeps to have brood and lots of bees in them.
I don't plan on harvesting any this year but you can leave them on. This is approved for use with the supers on. Api-Bioxal (Oxalic Acid)
. Had mites show up in my new hive this year and had a weather window to treat with formic pro. Well my new hive took that like a champ but it really set my existing hive back. May have weakened it too much to make winter. We shall see. Anyways thats the hive thats getting beat up. Threw an entrance reducer on both of them and then worked on finding the wasp nest. Took some time but found a in ground yellow jacket nest. Had a can of spray so I filled the hole with spray and that somewhat slowed them down. I then dumped a bottle of bleach down the hole and covered it with about 4-6” of 5/8- gravel. Also set a few meat traps hoping to lure them into that. Fingers crossed they didnt do to much damage to that hive. Also killed 2 boldfaced hornets around the hive as well. I have no idea where their nest is. Its always something when I have time for nothing. 😞
How were your boxes for fullness? I cant get mine to go into the honey supers but I think by keeping them on the stack they are “less likely” to swarm with space available.
