Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: MagicValley on June 18, 2010, 01:34:58 pm
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I think I might have put my hive in a spot that gets too much shade.
What are the best practices in regards to this? Does it depend on the local climate?
If I need to move my hive to a spot with more sun, what is the best way to do that without too many bees getting lost?
Greg
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In Mississippi most hives are placed in full sun due to the SHB.
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Most of mine are in mostly shade. It is just easier on me to work them.
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I moved mine from 80% shade to 80% sun this year. Of the two hives I had at my home that were 80% shade one developed hive beetles. I found a 4 inch patch of the larva between two frames. I killed the larva froze the frames, reduced the hive size from 2 deeps to one and moved them to full sun. They rebounded beautifully back into two deeps and are now pulling two supers of honey so far. I do give them upper and lower entrances as well as SBB's to allow them to cool off more easily.
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Ideally you want the hive to recieve morning sun afternoon shade and evening sun. The theory is they will start foraging earlier and stay out later. However since we got the shb in kansas all my hives get about 80 percent sunshine.
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I always thought that SHB was a southern pest and did not do well up north. Are they everywhere?
Steve
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I hope all of them in FL move north and give somebody else a shot at them! Just as an aside, all you southern guys, do not leave supers out for the bees to clean up after extracting. Just a few hours is all it takes to start a major beetle farming operation in your stored supers! Don't ask how I know this! :-x
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I keep mine in full sun...sure seems to help. It's so bad here we have to make sure to extract honey within hours of pulling it. When I first started keeping bees it was common practice to pull supers and stack them for several days during extraction. Try that now and you'd have slimy honey.
Scott
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As the bees are cleaning out extracted supers and you start to see the beetles putting up mailboxes, at dark, throw the supers in the freezer and kill those boogers. You will then have your own beetle trap operation going. A day in the sun then a couple in the freezer. Over a few days, or weeks, you should be able to kill out a lot of beetles.
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Combination of sun and shade. Morning sun, then mid day shade, and then later in the day they get more sun.
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I always thought that SHB was a southern pest and did not do well up north. Are they everywhere?
I have 1 hive in full sun and 3 in full shade, the 3 in full shade get hive beetles every year, I live in northwestern Ohio. Although I've never had the beetles ruin a hive, the bees seem to keep them in check. I have a beetle trap on 2 of the hives, but I rarely check it. I think I will try moving them to the sun and see if that helps.
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Full sun.
http://www.bushfarms.com/beesfaqs.htm#locating (http://www.bushfarms.com/beesfaqs.htm#locating)
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Thanks for all the advice. I haven't seen any SHBs yet.
The spot the hive is at now, gets sun for about 1/2 hour at sunrise, then is shaded most of the day, then is in good sun for about 2 hours before sunset.
This morning it was 50F before sunrise.
When is the right time to remove the covering board under the screened bottom? The board under my hive's screen has has lots of dropped pollen and flakes of wax.
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I don't have boards underneath, even during the winter.
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Thanks for all the advice. I haven't seen any SHBs yet.
The spot the hive is at now, gets sun for about 1/2 hour at sunrise, then is shaded most of the day, then is in good sun for about 2 hours before sunset.
This morning it was 50F before sunrise.
When is the right time to remove the covering board under the screened bottom? The board under my hive's screen has has lots of dropped pollen and flakes of wax.
I remove my im early spring and replace in late fall. I have some hives I leave open year around
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any in oklahoma have any ideals thanks
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gb, welcome to the forum. suggestion; update your profile to include your location. Most bee questions are location specific.
I put mine in the direct sunlight for at least 80% of the day to keep SHB away/down.