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Subject: Orange County, NC Beekeepers
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Re: [ocba] Any special concerns or reasons to inspect hives during warm spells
- From: Rob Cook <crookkohler AT bellsouth.net>
- To: Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com>, Orange County Beekeepers Association <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
- Subject: Re: [ocba] Any special concerns or reasons to inspect hives during warm spells
- Date: Thu, 5 Jan 2017 20:47:04 +0000 (UTC)
Thanks everyone, as usual I find all your opinions to be really useful and helpful.
Rob
On Tuesday, January 3, 2017 9:13 AM, Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com> wrote:
Rob,
Take a look at the article <here>.
In winter, we need to ensure that our colonies are heavy with
honey stores and are alive. We can do both of those without
opening the hive up and pulling frames. Lift from the back to
determine weight. Put your ear to the side of the brood chamber
and give it a knock to determine if the bees are alive.
If we do a full-out inspection this month, there really isn't
anything beyond feeding that we can do if we find any problems. We
cannot requeen, it isn't the right time for combining weak
colonies, Varroa mite damage has already been done, etc. Plus,
presence or absence of brood means absolutely nothing. So doing a
in-the-hive inspection right now can satisfy our curiosity and
perhaps enhance our bee education but has no value with respect to
colony management per se.
Regardless of whether you pull frames or not, feed sugar to your
colonies if they are light. Syrup, fondant, candy boards all work
fine; the form of the sugar isn't important. We have a long way to
go until the main nectar flow starts (see article <here>).
Sugar is 40 cents per pound, package bees are $120 each. Do the
math.
Does this help?
Randall
On 1/2/2017 10:49 PM, Rob Cook wrote:
Hi,
Wondering if it hurts the hive to open it up during the winter to check on it when the weather is warm.
Is there anything specific to look for on a winter inspection?
Thanks,
Rob Crook
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-
[ocba] Any special concerns or reasons to inspect hives during warm spells,
Rob Cook, 01/02/2017
- Re: [ocba] Any special concerns or reasons to inspect hives during warm spells, Alwyn Smith, 01/03/2017
-
Re: [ocba] Any special concerns or reasons to inspect hives during warm spells,
Randall Austin, 01/03/2017
- Re: [ocba] Any special concerns or reasons to inspect hives during warm spells, Rob Cook, 01/05/2017
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