The Grovestead
  •  Blog
  •  Events
  •  Publications
    • Durable Trades
    • Audio Recordings
    • The Grovestead Newsletter
  •  Gather & Grow
  •  About Us
The Grovestead
The Grovestead
  •  Blog
  •  Events
  •  Publications
    • Durable Trades
    • Audio Recordings
    • The Grovestead Newsletter
  •  Gather & Grow
  •  About Us
  •  Blog
  •  Events
    • Farm Camp
    • Workshops
    • Internships
  •  Publications
    • Durable Trades
    • The Grovestead Newsletter
  •  Farm Stand
  •  About Us
  • Tutorial

Queening the hives

  • June 3, 2015
  • 3 comments
  • 71 views
  • Rory

Queen in her cage

Towards the end of last summer we discovered one of our two bee hives was vacant, a victim of Colony Collapse Disorder. We pulled frames with honey and added them to the other hive to give the remaining bees the best chance of surviving the upcoming winter.

But when spring arrived, the second hive had died off as well. We’re not really sure what happened, if it was something we did or if it was just a fluke. They are learning more about Colony Collapse Disorder and the link with neonicotinoid pesticides, one of the reason we started selling neonicotinoid-free flower seeds. Apparently 2014 was the worst year in a decade for beekeepers, with 40% of hives disappearing on average. With only two hives, the odds were already against us.

So that means this year we’re starting from scratch, again, except for the knowledge we’ve gained.  We’ve learned a lot and we’re determined to keep our hives healthy and thriving this year.

First, we relocated the hives from a shady tree-line to the middle of our apple orchard. We think the bees will appreciate the warmer, sunnier location.

Hives moved to a sunnier location in our apple orchard

Added 2 more hives this year

Second, we are supplementing the hives with more food, such as pollen patties and sugar water. There are differing points of view on this, but from the beekeepers I’ve talked to it doesn’t hurt.

Supplementing hives with extra food, like pollen patties

Finally, instead of 2 hives this year we invested in 4 colonies. Two of them came as “nucs”, just like last year, with the queens already included and a couple frames of brood. The other colonies were queenless—part of a split from another hive. The queen stayed with the original hive but I got several frames of brood and worker bees. This required me to introduce a new live queen bee into the hives.

Oddly, like many farm staples, I’m learning, live queen bees are something you order through the mail. I found a dealer and placed an order for two queens on a Monday. On Tuesday morning my queens were at the local Post Office.

New queen bees arrived by mail

Opening the box revealed two queen cages and about a dozen worker bees.

Queen bees inside the shipping box

To introduce the queen to the colony, I had to make room between the center frames, then insert the box.

Queen cage inserted into the hive

That is all there is to it! The queen cages are plugged with a hard-candy substance. Within a few days, the worker bees eat away the candy and free the queen. The whole while, the worker bees are feeding the queen through the screen mesh.

I left the hives alone for about a week and then inspected them again. Both queen cages were unplugged and the queens were out! It took another few days before I could see evidence of new brood. As of the last inspection there was plenty of new bees hatching and honey-making going on.

 

0
0
0
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0
Avatar photo
Rory

Rory Groves moved his family from the city to the country several years ago to begin the journey towards a more durable way of life. Rory and his wife Becca now reside in southern Minnesota where they farm, raise livestock, host workshops, and homeschool their six children. He is the author of Durable Trades: Family-Centered Economies That Have Stood the Test of Time.

Tags
  • Honey Bees
  • queen bees

Durable Trades is Now Available!

Our book about historical, family-centered professions is now on sale!

DETAILS & PURCHASE


Receive our Print Newsletter!

We publish a free quarterly newsletter to encourage Christian families and cover articles about farming, family, and faith.

DETAILS & SIGN-UP

You May Also Like
View Post
  • Family
  • Tutorial

DIY Christmas Gifts You Can Make for (or With) Your Kids!

  • December 11, 2020
  • Rory
View Post
  • Farming
  • Tutorial

The Farm Calendar

  • December 11, 2019
  • Rory
View Post
  • Tutorial

Winter-Proof Chicken Waterer

  • November 13, 2019
  • Rory
View Post
  • Farming
  • Tutorial

Managed Intensive Rotational Grazing for Sheep

  • December 27, 2016
  • Rory
View Post
  • Tutorial

Building a Top Bar Hive

  • May 23, 2016
  • Rory
View Post
  • Tutorial

Evaporating sap and making maple syrup

  • April 9, 2015
  • Rory
View Post
  • Tutorial

How to tap a tree

  • March 29, 2015
  • Rory
View Post
  • Tutorial

Getting started with Maple Sugaring

  • March 12, 2015
  • Rory
3 comments
  1. Rachel says:
    June 4, 2015 at 7:59 am

    So exciting and fascinating. Wishing you all the luck this year with your bee colonies!!

    Reply
  2. Carrie says:
    June 4, 2015 at 9:39 am

    Wow amazing. Love the photos and the information. I hope it all goes well this year!

    Reply
  3. MarleneGroves says:
    June 4, 2015 at 9:39 am

    Looks great! Twice as much honey this year!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts
  • A Very Photogenic Winter
    • February 27, 2023
    • 98 views
  • Working Together
    • February 20, 2023
    • 188 views
  • How Much to Grow?
    • January 14, 2023
    • 616 views
Popular Posts
  • Where’s the Beef? It’s time to build our own supply chains.
    • April 25, 2020
    • 23.5K views
  • Managed Intensive Rotational Grazing for Sheep
    • December 27, 2016
    • 14K views
  • Boiling maple sap over home-built evaporator
    How to Build an Evaporator (from stuff laying around)
    • April 12, 2014
    • 11.4K views
Mailing List

Be notified of events and goings on at the Grovestead!

Contact
The Grovestead
  •  Blog
  •  Events
  •  Publications
  •  Gather & Grow
  •  About Us
Copyright © 2022 by The Grovestead. All Rights Reserved.

Input your search keywords and press Enter.