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Subject: Orange County, NC Beekeepers

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: mary leonhardi <mleonhardi AT hotmail.com>
  • To: Orange County Bee Assoc. <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [ocba] ocba Digest, Vol 117, Issue 3
  • Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 20:13:16 -0500

Some camelia are blooming now, and they are a great source of pollen.

> From: ocba-request AT lists.ibiblio.org
> Subject: ocba Digest, Vol 117, Issue 3
> To: ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
> Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 14:19:40 -0500
>
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> Today's Topics:
>
> 1. Re: Carrboro bees (Meredith Friedrick)
> 2. Re: Carrboro bees (Catherine Adamson)
> 3. Re: Carrboro bees (John Rintoul)
> 4. Re: Carrboro bees (Hamsiba Family)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Sat, 13 Dec 2014 21:33:00 -0500
> From: Meredith Friedrick <friema16 AT gmail.com>
> To: Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com>
> Cc: Orange County Beekeepers Association <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> Subject: Re: [ocba] Carrboro bees
> Message-ID:
> <CAAhLM=wJhNKAxGFn5okY3Oiuq-ay5sXrsb5me_o0aNgyR5TY0Q AT mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>
> I've enjoyed your posts -- from the viewpoint of a yet-to-be beekeeper,
> what you two wrote is pretty fascinating stuff. Good read for cold days!
> I'll keep these two posts in my file for a long time. Thanks for sharing
> your observations.
>
> Meredith Friedrick
>
> On Sat, Dec 13, 2014 at 11:42 AM, Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Nice observations, John! Thanks for sharing. This reiterates that we can
> > learn a lot from our bees by just watching them come and go. In fact there
> > is a book (free download), At the Hive Entrance
> > <http://www.biobees.com/library/general_beekeeping/beekeeping_books_articles/At%20the%20Hive%20Entrance.pdf>,
> > that tells you all sorts of things to look for and what they mean. Note
> > that this book was written with respect to German beekeeping, but many/most
> > of the concepts can be carried over to US beekeeping. Just don't take
> > everything it says literally at face value. Of course that caveat applies
> > to US beekeeping books too!
> >
> > With respect to your observation about bees flying in cold weather, my
> > understanding is that bees cannot EFFECTIVELY FORAGE at temperatures below
> > the low 50s. However I have seen them FLY as low as 47 or so degrees. Those
> > bees are assumed to be on cleansing flights (defecating/pooping), not
> > foraging.
> >
> > The asters should be long gone, at least in my area, but clearly there are
> > things blooming, whatever they are. The next major bloom that we beekeepers
> > are anticipating is from maples, which should start in late January or so.
> > The temperatures in January and February often pop up into the 50s and 60s,
> > giving bees an opportunity to forage. The maple pollen provides the protein
> > for explosive brood production in late winter.
> >
> > Bees can be caught out too long in cold weather and their muscles quit
> > working because of the cold. I once found a dead bee on the landing board
> > during a cold spell, and since it was such a nice-looking specimen I
> > decided to add it to my classroom show-and-tell materials. I carried it in
> > the palm of my hand back to the house, but by the time I got to the door
> > the warmth of my hand had revived her. I returned her to the entrance of
> > the hive and all was well.
> >
> > Randall Austin
> >
> >
> > On 12/12/2014 10:41 PM, John Rintoul wrote:
> >
> > I've read that bees don't fly when the temps are below 55F.
> >
> >
> >
> > _________________________________________
> > ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
> > Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/
> >
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> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 08:11:47 -0500
> From: Catherine Adamson <cadamson AT alumni.unc.edu>
> To: beecd AT icloud.com
> Cc: ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
> Subject: Re: [ocba] Carrboro bees
> Message-ID:
> <CAHSm3QL0xnhpnOXpw=mzpjcGmy0qEYL2Ea17EGY+WnJm+qthBw AT mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>
> Hi John,
>
> I know just how you feel. My dad, who also keeps bees, set a patio chair
> out in his beeyard and could watch the traffic come and go for hours.
>
> As for pollen this time of year, one of the nice things about urban keeping
> is that humans tend to find ornamentals that bloom at different times of
> year . I was surprised to see huge amounts of pale pollen on baskets in
> January but realized that at the nursery, just a mile away, a whole stand
> of mahonia was in bloom.
>
> They aren't getting enough flying time for proper foraging but they will
> definitely find the occasional midwinter snack.
> On Dec 13, 2014 11:48 AM, "Randall Austin" <ra41717 AT gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Nice observations, John! Thanks for sharing. This reiterates that we can
> > learn a lot from our bees by just watching them come and go. In fact there
> > is a book (free download), At the Hive Entrance
> > <http://www.biobees.com/library/general_beekeeping/beekeeping_books_articles/At%20the%20Hive%20Entrance.pdf>,
> > that tells you all sorts of things to look for and what they mean. Note
> > that this book was written with respect to German beekeeping, but many/most
> > of the concepts can be carried over to US beekeeping. Just don't take
> > everything it says literally at face value. Of course that caveat applies
> > to US beekeeping books too!
> >
> > With respect to your observation about bees flying in cold weather, my
> > understanding is that bees cannot EFFECTIVELY FORAGE at temperatures below
> > the low 50s. However I have seen them FLY as low as 47 or so degrees. Those
> > bees are assumed to be on cleansing flights (defecating/pooping), not
> > foraging.
> >
> > The asters should be long gone, at least in my area, but clearly there are
> > things blooming, whatever they are. The next major bloom that we beekeepers
> > are anticipating is from maples, which should start in late January or so.
> > The temperatures in January and February often pop up into the 50s and 60s,
> > giving bees an opportunity to forage. The maple pollen provides the protein
> > for explosive brood production in late winter.
> >
> > Bees can be caught out too long in cold weather and their muscles quit
> > working because of the cold. I once found a dead bee on the landing board
> > during a cold spell, and since it was such a nice-looking specimen I
> > decided to add it to my classroom show-and-tell materials. I carried it in
> > the palm of my hand back to the house, but by the time I got to the door
> > the warmth of my hand had revived her. I returned her to the entrance of
> > the hive and all was well.
> >
> > Randall Austin
> >
> >
> > On 12/12/2014 10:41 PM, John Rintoul wrote:
> >
> > I've read that bees don't fly when the temps are below 55F.
> >
> >
> >
> > _________________________________________
> > ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
> > Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/
> >
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> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 09:47:01 -0500
> From: John Rintoul <beecd AT icloud.com>
> To: Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com>
> Cc: Orange County Beekeepers Association <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> Subject: Re: [ocba] Carrboro bees
> Message-ID: <A078C24A-D7F6-4A6C-96EF-CE39F7029C65 AT icloud.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>
> Randall,
>
> Thanks for the link to At the Hive Entrance. I downloaded it for my winter reading.
>
> Catherine Adamson, who also keeps bees in Carrboro, pointed out that finding pollen in an urban environment is a bit easier. Since many urban gardeners often try to keep something in bloom during every month of the year the bees can generally find something. In the neighborhoods around me the camellias are in bloom. Catherine noted that mahonia is also abundant in Carrboro. She was in agreement with you that the time away from the hive is too short for full on foraging, but noted that an occasional snack can be found by an opportunistic forager.
>
> John Rintoul
>
> > On Dec 13, 2014, at 11:42 AM, Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Nice observations, John! Thanks for sharing. This reiterates that we can learn a lot from our bees by just watching them come and go. In fact there is a book (free download), At the Hive Entrance, that tells you all sorts of things to look for and what they mean. Note that this book was written with respect to German beekeeping, but many/most of the concepts can be carried over to US beekeeping. Just don't take everything it says literally at face value. Of course that caveat applies to US beekeeping books too!
> >
> > With respect to your observation about bees flying in cold weather, my understanding is that bees cannot EFFECTIVELY FORAGE at temperatures below the low 50s. However I have seen them FLY as low as 47 or so degrees. Those bees are assumed to be on cleansing flights (defecating/pooping), not foraging.
> >
> > The asters should be long gone, at least in my area, but clearly there are things blooming, whatever they are. The next major bloom that we beekeepers are anticipating is from maples, which should start in late January or so. The temperatures in January and February often pop up into the 50s and 60s, giving bees an opportunity to forage. The maple pollen provides the protein for explosive brood production in late winter.
> >
> > Bees can be caught out too long in cold weather and their muscles quit working because of the cold. I once found a dead bee on the landing board during a cold spell, and since it was such a nice-looking specimen I decided to add it to my classroom show-and-tell materials. I carried it in the palm of my hand back to the house, but by the time I got to the door the warmth of my hand had revived her. I returned her to the entrance of the hive and all was well.
> >
> > Randall Austin
> >
> >
> >> On 12/12/2014 10:41 PM, John Rintoul wrote:
> >> I've read that bees don't fly when the temps are below 55F.
> >
> -------------- next part --------------
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> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 14:19:35 -0500
> From: Hamsiba Family <hamsibas AT gmail.com>
> To: beecd AT icloud.com, ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
> Subject: Re: [ocba] Carrboro bees
> Message-ID:
> <CA+x3aG4PYCM2L1VV0GOU28QeMuXG1TPPG+h=mskyJf92te0uQQ AT mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>
> John,
>
> Over here near the Botanical Garden we are seeing a lot of yellow pollen
> coming in, maybe one in 10 bees are packing significant baskets of it. I
> too am wondering what is blooming now. Our Mahonia is all budded up but not
> out yet.
>
> But hmmm, as a certified Master Gardener, shouldn't you be telling us what
> it is? (The Master Gardener over here doesn't know either!)
>
> Cheers,
>
> Brad Kosiba
>
> On Sun, Dec 14, 2014 at 8:11 AM, Catherine Adamson <cadamson AT alumni.unc.edu>
> wrote:
> >
> > Hi John,
> >
> > I know just how you feel. My dad, who also keeps bees, set a patio chair
> > out in his beeyard and could watch the traffic come and go for hours.
> >
> > As for pollen this time of year, one of the nice things about urban
> > keeping is that humans tend to find ornamentals that bloom at different
> > times of year . I was surprised to see huge amounts of pale pollen on
> > baskets in January but realized that at the nursery, just a mile away, a
> > whole stand of mahonia was in bloom.
> >
> > They aren't getting enough flying time for proper foraging but they will
> > definitely find the occasional midwinter snack.
> > On Dec 13, 2014 11:48 AM, "Randall Austin" <ra41717 AT gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> Nice observations, John! Thanks for sharing. This reiterates that we
> >> can learn a lot from our bees by just watching them come and go. In fact
> >> there is a book (free download), At the Hive Entrance
> >> <http://www.biobees.com/library/general_beekeeping/beekeeping_books_articles/At%20the%20Hive%20Entrance.pdf>,
> >> that tells you all sorts of things to look for and what they mean. Note
> >> that this book was written with respect to German beekeeping, but many/most
> >> of the concepts can be carried over to US beekeeping. Just don't take
> >> everything it says literally at face value. Of course that caveat applies
> >> to US beekeeping books too!
> >>
> >> With respect to your observation about bees flying in cold weather, my
> >> understanding is that bees cannot EFFECTIVELY FORAGE at temperatures below
> >> the low 50s. However I have seen them FLY as low as 47 or so degrees. Those
> >> bees are assumed to be on cleansing flights (defecating/pooping), not
> >> foraging.
> >>
> >> The asters should be long gone, at least in my area, but clearly there
> >> are things blooming, whatever they are. The next major bloom that we
> >> beekeepers are anticipating is from maples, which should start in late
> >> January or so. The temperatures in January and February often pop up into
> >> the 50s and 60s, giving bees an opportunity to forage. The maple pollen
> >> provides the protein for explosive brood production in late winter.
> >>
> >> Bees can be caught out too long in cold weather and their muscles quit
> >> working because of the cold. I once found a dead bee on the landing board
> >> during a cold spell, and since it was such a nice-looking specimen I
> >> decided to add it to my classroom show-and-tell materials. I carried it in
> >> the palm of my hand back to the house, but by the time I got to the door
> >> the warmth of my hand had revived her. I returned her to the entrance of
> >> the hive and all was well.
> >>
> >> Randall Austin
> >>
> >>
> >> On 12/12/2014 10:41 PM, John Rintoul wrote:
> >>
> >> I've read that bees don't fly when the temps are below 55F.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> _________________________________________
> >> ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
> >> Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/
> >>
> >
> > _________________________________________
> > ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
> > Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/
> >
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> End of ocba Digest, Vol 117, Issue 3
> ************************************


  • Re: [ocba] ocba Digest, Vol 117, Issue 3, mary leonhardi, 12/14/2014

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