Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: Patricia H on January 27, 2014, 02:30:55 am

Title: New member
Post by: Patricia H on January 27, 2014, 02:30:55 am
Hi, I'm Patricia and new to this site and I am baffled trying to figure out how to post something. I am from Hampton Bays, NY USA and will be just starting with beekeeping this year. I'm learning a lot from reading the posts which is just great. I hope I will be better with my bees than using this site.  :-\
Title: Re: New member
Post by: wouldliketobee on January 27, 2014, 03:33:29 am
After you log on click "new topic"  ,type in subject, then post your question or statement. Hope this helps.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: GSF on January 27, 2014, 06:21:08 am
Welcome. Update your profile and put your location in. A lot of bee questions are location related. First year beek here as well. A lot of good info and people on this site.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: T Beek on January 27, 2014, 07:17:23 am
Hi, I'm Patricia and new to this site and I am baffled trying to figure out how to post something. I am from Hampton Bays, NY USA and will be just starting with beekeeping this year. I'm learning a lot from reading the posts which is just great. I hope I will be better with my bees than using this site.  :-\

Welcome!  As a confirmed luddite, thechNOpeasant I'm with you.  I've found learning to maneuver and navigate around these kinds of places is harder than working my bees, often it is much more confusing.  I rarely visit during the summer months…too buzzzzy.  Happy reading……..Happy Beekeeping!
Title: Re: New member
Post by: sc-bee on January 27, 2014, 07:29:28 am
As said above you have to be logged into your account to post. Choose the forum you wish to post in from the list ex. General beekeeping etc. Look to the right side of the screen and you will see tabs labeled: Mark Read- Notify- New Topic-Post New Poll. Choose New topic to post a new question. Choose notify to mark a post to follow and notify you on your e-mail.

If you wish to post on someones else's topic. Open the topic and choose the reply button. Oh yes after you finish typing in the white box at the bottom you will fine buttons Post- Preview- Spell Check. If you wish to preview the post select preview before post :) As you hang around you will figure out posting quotes, pictures etc.

Oh yea, Welcome to Beemaster. Hope this helped a little if you were not pulling my leg :)
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Joe D on January 27, 2014, 10:52:23 am
Welcome to the forum, Patricia.  You may want to find your local bee club also, they can bee a big help sometimes.  Good luck with your quest to become a great beek.



Joe
Title: Re: New member
Post by: tefer2 on January 27, 2014, 11:49:49 am
Welcome to the forum Pat.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: BeeMaster2 on January 27, 2014, 12:56:44 pm
Welcome to the forum Pat.
Jim
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on January 27, 2014, 01:11:00 pm
Welcome Pat..check out longislandbeekeepers.org great club with several master beekeepers involved with it. Im in Amityville. .there are several beeks out your way.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: AllenF on January 27, 2014, 08:26:01 pm
Welcome to the forum.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: sc-bee on January 28, 2014, 06:51:42 pm
I see you are no longer hopelessly lost :)
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on January 28, 2014, 07:52:59 pm
Patricia, are you taking any beekeeping classes?
Title: Re: New member
Post by: crane on January 28, 2014, 09:08:09 pm
Welcome to the boards Patricia. You guys make really good ceiling fans up there!  ;)
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on January 28, 2014, 09:17:21 pm
Hi,
Yes I am. I joined the LI Beekeepers Organization and will be taking a course under Ray Lackey from Bohemia. I went to my first meeting of the LI Beekeepers this past Sunday in Smithtown. Very nice people. Right now I'm making lists of what I want to purchase as far as hives and equipment It gets expensive. I have some nucs ordered through Ray Lackey so I'm ready to do it. I stayed on this site for 2 hrs last night getting all kinds of info such as plastic or wax foundation (I decided against the plastic), 8 frame or 10 frame setup, so I'm going with the 8. I'm trying to learn from what others are saying in their experiences. And I also learned how to reply on this forum tonight so I'm not quite hopelessly lost. :)
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on January 28, 2014, 10:40:24 pm
Patricia, are you taking Ray Lackeys season long course? I started with Ray and went with all his recomendations to date. I help him unload the nucs when they arrive i think its a blast. I was at last Sundays meeting as well, very interesting speaker on making money off your hives. Ray is a great teacher and you will be amazed at his knowledge of beekeeping. how many Nucs did you order?
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on January 28, 2014, 11:30:02 pm
Yes I was at that meeting and got the new member greeting. I signed up for a crash course that was supposed to be all day Sat Feb. 8th but Ray just said tonight it's been cancelled because of not enough people. So I'm aiming for the same course in March in St. James. I would have liked the all season long one but I have scheduling conflicts. I ordered 2 nucs and am thinking of adding a 3rd. On the fence about that one. Glad you have good things to say about Ray and the courses. How many hives do you have?
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on January 29, 2014, 07:21:17 am
Pat..I have 7 hives at the moment..not knowing your background. .I would highly recommend the season long course if you could swing it..just fyi Rays nucs are usually strong..many beginners have swarming issues early on..I started with 2 nucs in April and had 5 hives by June..the season long course was indespensible to me..but maybe you can mentor up with someone close to you through the club..
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on January 30, 2014, 02:22:16 am
I definitely will only get 2 nucs after what you've experienced. Wow. I hope the bees are still the same as when you bought yours. I really wish I could take the season long course but it's not possible for me. I don't like having to just take a crash course but I have no alternative. That's why I'm watching as many videos as I can right now and am reading books.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rdy-b on January 30, 2014, 04:09:52 am
 dont sweet the small stuf-if you have the want -and it is true --the bees will teach you-- 8-) RDY-B
Title: Re: New member
Post by: GSF on January 30, 2014, 06:57:28 am
Patricia, One of the things I've been doing (first year beek), in addition to what you've been doing, is I started with the most recent post and read the threads one at a time going back. Good luck!
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on January 30, 2014, 07:19:41 am
Pat. .it took a master beekeeper to point out incorrect information on a YouTube video about checkerboarding..be careful not all that we see is correct. Good books and videos from reliable sources like Mike Plamer..Mike Bush..DrJim Tew..just to name a few..also check out beekeeping101.psu.edu online course..good beginner information at your own pace.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: T Beek on January 30, 2014, 07:30:48 am
Patricia, One of the things I've been doing (first year beek), in addition to what you've been doing, is I started with the most recent post and read the threads one at a time going back. Good luck!

This is excellent advise.  The BeeMaster archives are loaded with good info.  I spent about two years lurking and reading before I ever wrote a single post.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: GSF on January 30, 2014, 08:38:58 am
Yeah T Beek, I love reading them. Someone will say: "This is the way you do it." then a reply to the effect; "That's one method" or "That will work unless". Like you said, a lot of good info.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: sc-bee on January 30, 2014, 12:12:42 pm
Pat. .it took a master beekeeper to point out incorrect information on a YouTube video about checkerboarding..

Not sure which you tube video you are speaking of. I would like to see if the master beekeeper got it right. Folks throw the word checkerboarding around loosely and use their own interpretation when in reality in recent bee keeping years I think folks are trying to refer to Walt Wrights recommended sytem of keeping bees. But everyone makes their own changes and say  "I am checkerboarding"

Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on January 30, 2014, 01:41:44 pm
Sc...if I saw the video again I would remember it..but basically the guy was checkerboarding with undrawn foundation which doesn't create laying space for the queen so essentially crowding is not eliminated and as a novice I did not pick that up right away...sort of like the movie More than Honey opening  scene of queen emerging from cell..it was facing up..the cells face down...not all you see is always correct..youtube has alot of I did it once now im an expert.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on January 30, 2014, 02:33:48 pm
Wow, I love all this good advice! Who better to listen to than friends on this forum! I know I will certainly learn along the way. I'm sure there is a lot of misinformation on the YouTubes, and it would be picked up by the experienced keepers. That's why this forum site is so great. If I have a question there is plenty of experience here to kick it around. I have been following the Brushy Mountain Bee Farm videos & Mike Bush videos which seem to be really good. I do have one dilemma to solve before I even get started. I plan to go with all 8 Frame Medium Brood Boxes & Supers but the nucs come on Deep Frames. I know I could put an 8 Frame Deep Box on the bottom and all the rest Medium, but I want to keep everything one size to switch out back and forth. Does that make any sense at all or should I get the one Deep Brood Box. How would everyone else go about it? Your opinion counts. :)
Title: Re: New member
Post by: sc-bee on January 30, 2014, 05:30:19 pm
Wish I could give you advice there. I have a friend in the same situation. They stacked two mediums to insert the deep and will have to cull the deep frames later in the process. Maybe someone has a better way if all you can find in deep nucs.

 Also if I remember right Brushys 8 frame equipment outside measurements is a little narrower than the other companies 8 frame equipment. This means you can not stack Brushy 8 frame with others 8 frame and it look even on the outside.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on January 30, 2014, 05:58:06 pm
Thanks for the info. I don't know why everyone just can't make the same size equipment. It would be so much easier for everyone. Argh.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on January 30, 2014, 10:27:14 pm
Pat, I would put the nucs in a 8 frame deep, put mediums above that as needed...go into winter like that, comes late winter/early spring the bees will be up in the mediums and you can pull the deep out. You can then keep the deep to cover feeders, trim it down to a medium or use it as a swarm trap.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on January 30, 2014, 10:47:20 pm
I think you're probably right the more I think about it. You can probably never have too many boxes. Wintering over in a Deep box would offer them more insulation if they cluster together in the center and I don't have to cull frames. Plus if the nuc does really well they have more room. I'll be worrying that they will have swarming on their mind, which is not really a bad thing I guess. You gain more colonies, right?  But I'm too new in this to address a swarm. I vision a basket ball size of bees 30 feet up in a tree.  :oops:
Title: Re: New member
Post by: T Beek on January 31, 2014, 06:25:13 am
Any size box can serve as a NUC box.  I mainly use mediums because that is all I use.  By inserting follower boards to both sides you can make it any width size that you choose (followers allow for expansion along with bee population growth).

"different sized' equipment?  It is the American way  :)  SEE; 'automobiles' for more examples  ;)  I am basically a non-conformist in life, but also recognize that SOME uniformity is GOOD.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: jayj200 on February 12, 2014, 09:23:26 pm
below Be master's official facebook page, is a list reading from left to right read as follows.
home help search profile and so on

HOME should take you to a list of subjects
HELP offers help on navigating this site
SEARCH will help find a topic or people
PROFILE one can find profiles of
for me its hard to see non bold some what similar colors farther right and down from that row
Reply
easy as that
under this white reply box is post and spell check down down to get there.
jay
Title: Re: New member
Post by: obxbee on February 13, 2014, 04:29:55 am
Patricia welcome to the forum. Im rarily on here due to work sometimes for several months
But the people here are friendly and helpful.
I still consider myself a "bee haver" instead of a bee keeper but I keep learning every day.

Good luck.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: jayj200 on February 16, 2014, 11:33:16 am
One must remember or take into consideration that those like Mikel Palmer have thousands of hives.

Foam board insulation costs would necessarily be UMUGAS, and therefore valid for his situation.

For me I could ill afford to loose even one hive due to cold or wetness inside.

A new Queen is what $100.00

Mikel Palmer would raise his own queens with his own resources, thousands of hives, human workers, and other considerations I could not name.

Yes bee tree have larger openings and sometimes multiple openings. One must concider a bee tree

 would necessarily have many multiples of the 3/4 inches of a man made hive, the difference is 3,4,5,6

 inches of wood when compared what we have shoved them into.

Are we now God's by our own actions?

jay

Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on February 25, 2014, 07:56:04 pm
Hi Pat, Did you attend this past Sunday's LIBC meeting?
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on February 25, 2014, 09:10:18 pm
Hi, yes I did and part of the meeting before it for beginners. I missed the first part of it which was about feeding and what feeders to use with sugar solution. Ray had all kinds with him to show but I missed that part. I asked him about the jar feeders which you place over the inner cover hole and he didn't like them. I saw a frame type feeder that sets down in between the frames, and he had also had top feeders but don't know his opinion on those either.
     I got 2 hives delivered last week. They each have 1 deep 8 frame box and 2 medium supers to go on top. I just have to seal/varnish the outside wood on them. Now I just have to find what feeders to get. Were you at the meeting? There were so many more people than the last meeting.
Title: Re: New member
Post by: buzzbee on February 25, 2014, 09:20:55 pm
Here is the link to Walt Wright on checkerboarding:
http://www.knology.net/~k4vb/all%20walt%20articles.htm (http://www.knology.net/~k4vb/all%20walt%20articles.htm)
You can find some other  links stickied in the reprint article forum here:
http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/board,56.0.html (http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/board,56.0.html)
I made  video on a few feeder types a while back:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWtBvEbAI9Q&feature=youtu.be (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWtBvEbAI9Q&feature=youtu.be)

Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on February 25, 2014, 10:18:38 pm
Thank you Ken! That is great! :)
Title: Re: New member
Post by: beesNme on February 25, 2014, 10:34:09 pm
welcome patrica,  i am new here as well. great place to find info and good people,

good luck
Title: Re: New member
Post by: Patricia H on February 26, 2014, 03:01:14 am
Thank you beesNme and welcome to you too!  :)
Title: Re: New member
Post by: rjmeyer on February 26, 2014, 06:17:51 am
Yes Pat i was in attendance as well, Ray had me turn the volumn down on the speaker for the audio...we need to have name tags made so everyone will know each other..maybe next time..Ray likes frame feeders because of less storage space needed when you have 100 of them, he likes Betterbees styrofoam hive top feeder also, i have 2 but i also like Mann Lakes hive top feeder...Bee Smart has a new feeder you may like alot..i know the designer/owner..ill email you a link if you would like and we can talk feeders if you want. Did you get the email for Connie with the membership file? im listed..if not let me know.