Dusk attempt number 2

[Understudy]

Well I have taken another hive body off. Left it at a 45 degree angle. The box had some honey in it but that was it. No brood. I did so about an hour before dusk.  It is now dark. And while there are few less bees in the hive there are still many of them.

I am not very accepting at this stage of the dusk method. It may work well for others it does not work for me.

I will blame it on beekeeping in the south.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[Michael Bush]

Is there any brood in the box?  If so they will not leave.

[Understudy]

No, there is no brood in the box.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[Michael Bush]

Maybe it's a southern thing.  Or the full moon.  It doesn't really get dark with a full moon...

[TwT]

I rank the Dusk method right up there with the super above the intercover method, both pipe dreams to me because they never worked......

[Scadsobees]

What they fail to mention is that with the super on the 45deg angle you then need a really really strong wind to blow the bees out, right at dusk. :roll:

That works....

You might need cool temps at night to get the dusk method to work without a high-pressure concentrated "wind".

Rick

[BMAC]

I am all about being mean to my bees when it comes to robbing them.  So they get the hurricane treatment.  I just picked up a Husqvarna commercial backpack bee blower.  I mean leaf blower.

That really chucks them out of the supers.

Just gotta make sure your queen didn't accidental move into the super.


Hey any problems with using Honey Bee Robber with a fume borad????

Besides burning the crap out of your eyes and making snots run out faster than being gassed in boot camp?

[Kathyp]

i used the fume board last year.  quick, easy, no residual smell or taste.

[Old Timer]

leaf blower gets my vote. it only takes a few minutes. blow the bees off, put it in a garbage bag, tie it up, and move to the next super.

[reinbeau]

We use the fume board and Fisher Bee Quick (works well, even in the high 50's, which surprised me), but if there are any stragglers left, they get blown out with a leaf blower. 

[Michael Bush]

>Hey any problems with using Honey Bee Robber with a fume borad?Huh
>Besides burning the crap out of your eyes and making snots run out faster than being gassed in boot camp?

...making you smell like puke, and making you want to puke...

[BMAC]

I have used Fisher Bee Quick for 2 years now along with the leaf blower this year.  I am not that impressed with Bee Quick.  Honey Bee Robber works much better.  But as Michael pointed out.  That stuff is terrible.  Smells terrible. 

Burns my throat and my eyes whenever we use that stuff....  Sometimes it burns my eyes bad enough I have to walk away for about 10 minutes....

[KONASDAD]

I just take an extra empty super and shake each frame in front of hive,place in other super and cover w/ towel. Repeat ten times , times the number of boxes! Sounds like a lot of work, but w/ a few hives its quick and easy and fool proof. My bees dont mind being robbed if there is still soem flow going on. I like to harvest when theres still some flow going on so uncapped frames can be consolodated into an emppty super and given to a hive to complete or redistributed across some weaker hives for future stores.

[sean]

I do the same thingas konasdad only i use a cover instead of a towel. but what is this dusk method?
never mind found out.

[Kirk-o]

Try that old Beekeeping Technique shake them or brush them off
kirko

[annette]

I just take an extra empty super and shake each frame in front of hive,place in other super and cover w/ towel. Repeat ten times , times the number of boxes! Sounds like a lot of work, but w/ a few hives its quick and easy and fool proof. My bees dont mind being robbed if there is still soem flow going on. I like to harvest when theres still some flow going on so uncapped frames can be consolodated into an emppty super and given to a hive to complete or redistributed across some weaker hives for future stores.

Actually this shake and brush them off method is what I have been doing all the time. I have never actually tried the dusk method of leaving them out.   I may just continue with what has been working. But thank you for the answer I had been looking for. I have a super still on one hive that they have partially filled up and partially capped. There is a flow going on right now and so I am giving them a chance to cap the honey before I take it from them.  The partially capped frames can be placed back into the hive as you said, to replace frames that are empty or not as full.

I am feeling like it is a race against time. Trying to get them ready for winter, but still giving them a chance to forage as long as possible before pulling the remaining super. I need to relax about it all. This is my first time ever having to deal with what to do with all the supers and storing them for the winter. But I have all the knowledge I need from this forum and so I will do the right thing.

Take care and have a great day,
Annette