Yeah if the buds were burnt by the cold then snip them off and take the year as a loss. It wouldn't be a bad time to prune any stray branches to help get some secondary growth and a fuller bush for next season.
it will come around fast . if you leave it , it's your fault , once the cycle is broke it's broke . all gardening should be in the planter bye now in Orlando and harvest is about to come to fruition .
Got 2 new sets of bees this weekend and put them in. Also checked on the other bees I already had in. Here's the 2 places I got the bees from: And then various pictures from my hives: I like this one because of all the bees bringing different color pollen back
I've been working on building a hive scale instrument set that will record bee hive weight, internal temperature, and internal humidity. I finally finished it and put it under the hive where the swarm I caught a month ago is. Here's where the data is recorded to: http://www.hivetool.net/oconee2 Here are some pictures of the build and the hive.
Weather is finally shaping up here. This weekend is going to be the weekend to get the garden going. I'm planning on building 3 new boxes (4 x 8) and then getting a truckload of top soil from a local nursery. I live in Nashville so I'm gonna go with snap peas, onions, leaf lettuce, okra, tomatoes, peppers, and have a separate herb garden as well. Anything else you guys recommend?
How hard is it to keep bees? Do you need the scales and instruments? Is there a good website or blog you would recommend?
No, you don't need scales and instruments. I'm just doing this for fun, and I'm trying to get into NASA's network. They use this data for research into bees, forage, and global warming. I don't think it's that hard to keep bees. Per hive, you probably would spend 30 minutes to an hour a month. There is some start up cost to it in buying the bees/hardware. Here's some good websites for beginners: http://www.honeybeesonline.com/beekeeping-lessons/ http://www.ent.uga.edu/bees/beekeeping.html Or this book: https://www.dropbox.com/s/wdexarxp0s270ry/Bee Keeping For Dummies.pdf?dl=0
Corn I dont know why, but I saw a little bag of corn in the seed racks at Home Depot the other day, so I bought it and added them along the back fence of my garden, just to see if I can grow corn
I'd never planted corn before but did so this year, not in any of my planters, just in the dirt. So far looking good, have about 10 stalks that are 1-2ft high.
I'm in the local beekeepers association. We're spending the weekend putting observation hives into 8 county schools (will eventually be in every school in the county, which will make us the only county in the country to do that). The hives are 8 frames of bees behind glass that have a pipe leading outside for the bees to move through. They are in science classrooms, halls, or the libraries. The hives are free for the schools and each school has a hive sponsor who will do the normal maintenance and care for the hives, calling us if they need help. The schools will get to extract any excess honey made.
But seriously, how much work is it to keep bees and get honey from them? I'm interested in it, but pretty lazy and enjoy my free time.
I spend about 15 minutes per hive every 1-2 weeks. That is an inspection to make sure the queen's still laying, that they have room, and no issues have popped up. Extracting honey takes a little longer, but it depends on how you're going to do it as far as how long you will be actively doing it.
Yesterday afternoon, my dad called me to tell me that one of his hives had swarmed and said I could have the bees if I could get them. The only problem was they were 40 ft up in the air in an old oak tree. I ended up tying a string to an arrow and shooting it up over the branch, then using that to pull a stronger rope up and over. I initially tried to shake them off of the branch, but that didn't work. So I put some frames in a cardboard nuc box and tied that to the rope and hoisted it up as close as I could get to the bees, hoping they would make their way in. Unfortunately, they didn't go in and eventually flew off to their new home. But while I was doing that, my dad's other hive swarmed and landed on a bush 3 ft off the ground, so I was able to get them. Here are some pics from the swarms and one of my hives that I checked on today. This is the 2nd swarm of bees, not sure how they can be seen, but look around the branch in the middle.
Any recommendations on a power pole saw to trim crepe myrtles? Not sure if I need gas or electric. I have about 10 to 15 and they are aboit 10 feet high.
I have an electric Remington brand one i like Decided gas wasnt worth it since i only use it once a year, and those little engines are always finicky when used so little
I took this video today. They don't really know why they do this, but they believe it means they're happy bees.
So the hive scale I set up has had some time to run now. One this graph you can really see when the nectar flow picked up. Right now the main sources are blackberries and tulip poplars. Also some pictures of my bees on blackberries and turnips.
Watering Azaleas are shallow-rooted plants and require irrigation during dry periods. This is especially true of those planted in the spring. Azaleas planted in warm weather in sandy soils may require watering of the root mass twice a week during the first year. To determine when to water, pull back a small area of mulch near the base of the plant and check the moisture level of the root ball and surrounding soil. If the top few inches of soil feels dry, wet the soil deeply, to at least a depth of 6 to 8 inches. Use soaker hoses or drip irrigation to slowly water the base of the plants. Overhead irrigation may promote disease. Azaleas in waterlogged soils will decline and are susceptible to root rot diseases. It is important to reach a balance of regular, deep watering and good drainage to promote a healthy plant.
That is badass. Also, I got my bees today. 1 queen, 15,000ish bees and 5 broom frames built out. Spoiler
Also didnt get stung once which i guess is a good thing. But i kinda feel uninitiated lol. Like i skipped a rite of passage.
So the hive flow frames are extra wide, I didn't realize that. And going without gloves your first time with the bees? More power to you.
Yeah i had some leather gloves in the garage but forgot to grab them. I threw on a longsleeve fishing shirt and had some thick "brush" type jeans on. I just kinda followed the lead of the guy that brought me the bees. He had a smoker (which i still need to buy) but short sleeve shirt and no gloves. I have a hat with a veil but i never put it on. The bees were seriously calm. I was a little nerveous at first but i knew i could handle a few stings so was prepared to just tough it out. Then I didnt even get stung...so i got that going for me. I pulled up a lawn chair next to the hive this afternoon and just watched them from about 3-4 feet away. Pretty cool.
I wanted to ask you this...i never got around to painting or water sealing the hive. I saw a you tube video where the creator of this hive painted tung oil on the outside as a natural way to treat the wood. I was thinking this might be ok to do on the outside and roof of the hive one evening. Will i kill the bees if i do this? Or will they leave the hive?
The main thing is to do what makes your comfortable. And remember, just because the bees were calm one day, they may not be the next. I'd recommend at least using a veil each time. They will probably get more defensive the bigger the hive gets too, but that still may not be much. There are a lot of differences between all my hives.
I've never done it but it sounds like it's fine. You could even use latex paint apparently: http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?313081-Painting-a-hive-with-bees-already-in-the-hive http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?309187-Hive-Painting-or-Thompson-Water-Seal http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?281584-painting-supers-with-bees-inside
Thanks for the info. Im going to get some paint/stain/oil (whatever i finally decide on) and apply it in the evening today. I want to do it while the colony is still small and they're not even fooling around up in the super yet.
Also, if you don't want to use leather gloves, but still want some level of protection, a lot of people use nitrile gloves when working the hive. Gives some sting protection but you still have dexterity.
I use this type of glove when changing out my breaks on our vehicles. Figured they would be good to use for working bees too. http://m.harborfreight.com/coated-r...e-90912.html?utm_referrer=direct/not provided
ive never grown tomatoes before this year, so im pretty proud of these guys purple bumblebee grape tomatoes - they were delicious
Picked my first tomatoes this weekend. Have about 20-25, all starting to turn red. Jalapeños and peppers starting to grow, too. Everything going much better than expected.
First batch of radishes are done. Much better than the last 2 years, just need to conquer carrots now.
Went and got two more nucs on Saturday. Also inspected my other hives. Here are some of the pictures.