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Author Topic: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....  (Read 24973 times)

Offline Meadlover

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #60 on: December 16, 2009, 07:49:15 am »

We need a photo of the vacuum.

OK here's a photo of the vacuum.
I think the mesh probably doesn't have enough surface area of holes, therefore probably excessive force was on the bees.
I think I really need to find a supplier in Brisbane of "hardware cloth".

ML





Offline Meadlover

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #61 on: December 16, 2009, 07:55:31 am »
As soon as I got home this arvo I fired up the smoker and inspected the cutout hive.
Unfortunately there was quite a lot of SHB larvae in there - I removed the bottom board and hosed the larvae into a bucket. I also removed as much as possible of the beetle and larvae (took out a frame of mostly drawn comb, and a frame of infected brood) but I fear that the hive may have got to a point where they are doomed - but I will persist for as long as possible.

 :'(

Haven't heard back from the couple that just had a hive setup in their wall either. Guess I'll wait for the next swarm/trapout/cutout call...........

ML


Offline SlickMick

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #62 on: December 16, 2009, 08:03:01 am »
That's bad luck about the SHB Mat, you must have a swag of it down there.

You probably need to go into the hive daily to flush out what beetle and larva you find.. get the honey frames into the freezer for a day or so. You may have to shake bees off individual frames and then hose out the larva into water and detergent

Hope you save the hive but its looking pretty grim. Are the larva into the brood frames too? Keep an eye on that nuc too

If there is anything I can help out with let me know

Mick

Offline Meadlover

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #63 on: December 16, 2009, 08:14:31 am »
Yeah the Larvae are into the brood frames  :-x I think there's not enough bees, no queen, and too many SHB.
I removed EVERY SHB that I found, and as many of the larvae that I could see.
It has been a learning experience at least, to see how quickly, and how the SHB move through the hive.

I think I will be going to a full mesh base on my hives as the SHB traps in there at the moment could work alot better. Gotta find somewhere to get "hardware cloth" now though.
Another project goes onto the list.

ML

Offline Lone

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #64 on: December 16, 2009, 08:27:43 am »
Ain't that nice of Slicko, hey, throwing you in it and not going out to help?  :)  ML, maybe next time, take the hive home with you the night of the cutout.  Don't cry, though, I'm sure bees are a dime a dozen in brizzy.  Why don't you chuck those bees and salvagable brood in with your other hive?  There will be more bees to protect the brood from the beetles. I'm using honey from a couple of cutouts now to feed back to them.  What is hardware cloth, and what is it for?

Hey and don't forget Slicko offered to help with anything - I'd put him on a couple of your projects.  hehehe

Lone

Offline Meadlover

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #65 on: December 16, 2009, 09:31:38 pm »
What is hardware cloth, and what is it for?

Lone
Lone,

hardware cloth is basically heavy duty flywire, but you can get it in other sizes and materials - Brass, Stainless Steel, Galvanised etc.
I found someone near me http://www.metalmesh.com.au/cfm/index.cfm?newLocation=cfm/home.cfm that has a Stainless Steel mesh with a 3.3mm aperture for $81/m +GST. I know this sounds expensive but it comes from a 1220mm roll so 550mm will give me 3 sheets that will fit 3 x 10 frame hives, which works out at $49 for 3 pieces, so $16 a pop.
I'm planning to use it in my next beevac, plus also to make a bottom trap for SHB as the holes are big enough to let the SHB fall through into a tray of cooking oil underneath - like this design http://www.greenbeehives.com/
So far that is the best looking trap I have seen, in theory. Would be interested to get feedback from those that use that type and their pros and cons. Need to do a bit more searching this arvo I think.

ML

Offline D Coates

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #66 on: December 17, 2009, 11:27:37 am »
Unfortunately by the time the larva are dropping through the bottom the damage is done.  I'd focus more on trapping the adults and keeping hive streingth up.  I've learned quite a bit from your post, thanks for sharing.
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Offline iddee

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #67 on: December 17, 2009, 07:48:58 pm »
Why use a bee vac??


This photo is:



The same place as this photo.



Would you want to do it without a vac to remove a few bees first?



.
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me . . . Anything can happen, child. Anything can be"

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Offline Kathyp

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #68 on: December 17, 2009, 07:56:06 pm »
i probably would, but then, i wouldn't have all that exposed skin out there!   :evil:

that's pretty new comb. did you just skip it and hive them like a swarm?
Someone really ought to tell them that the world of Ayn Rand?s novel was not meant to be aspirational.

Offline iddee

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #69 on: December 17, 2009, 08:09:54 pm »
Yes, I just laid it on the frames until The bees had all found the queen, then disposed of it. It didn't have enough body to be manipulated. It would crush itself under it's own weight just laying in your hand.
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me . . . Anything can happen, child. Anything can be"

*Shel Silverstein*

Offline JP

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #70 on: December 17, 2009, 09:44:37 pm »
Meadlover, put this in the back of your head if you're ever in this situation again. If you set up a new cut out colony and are inundated with shb, check them for a queen. If you still have one, 86 all comb or freeze it for later & set the bees up on fresh foundation or drawn comb. Its best if you remove all shbs & begin again as though they were a swarm. Without brood, a queen, feed & enough bees to tend to matters, you can reverse things and save that colony, but you must have enough bees and a queen to give it a go.

Welcome to the wonderful world of bee removal!


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Offline Grandma_DOG

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #71 on: December 18, 2009, 04:51:22 pm »
That's pretty drastic, JP. What if you have several frames of brood from a cutout? If I freeze this, I'm losing many beemonths of effort to raise that brood. WOuldn't it be better to swap the frames in a strong colony and take good colony frames and put them in the cutout hive?

Meadlover, put this in the back of your head if you're ever in this situation again. If you set up a new cut out colony and are inundated with shb, check them for a queen. If you still have one, 86 all comb or freeze it for later & set the bees up on fresh foundation or drawn comb. Its best if you remove all shbs & begin again as though they were a swarm. Without brood, a queen, feed & enough bees to tend to matters, you can reverse things and save that colony, but you must have enough bees and a queen to give it a go.

Welcome to the wonderful world of bee removal!


...JP
Here is my new book on Swarm Trapping at http://learningbeekeeping.com/beekeeping-articles/how-to-swarm-trap/ and follow me on youtube at OutOfaBlueSky

Offline JP

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #72 on: December 18, 2009, 08:03:07 pm »
That's pretty drastic, JP. What if you have several frames of brood from a cutout? If I freeze this, I'm losing many beemonths of effort to raise that brood. Wouldn't it be better to swap the frames in a strong colony and take good colony frames and put them in the cutout hive?

Once shb show up in a weak hive they work with extreme fervor. The end result occurs within a day & 1/2 time frame. If something drastic isn't done, you lose the colony.


...JP
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Offline Meadlover

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Re: 1st year Beek, 1st cutout this weekend....
« Reply #73 on: December 19, 2009, 05:55:12 pm »
Meadlover, put this in the back of your head if you're ever in this situation again. If you set up a new cut out colony and are inundated with shb, check them for a queen. If you still have one, 86 all comb or freeze it for later & set the bees up on fresh foundation or drawn comb. Its best if you remove all shbs & begin again as though they were a swarm. Without brood, a queen, feed & enough bees to tend to matters, you can reverse things and save that colony, but you must have enough bees and a queen to give it a go.

Welcome to the wonderful world of bee removal!


...JP
If I had the queen in there I think that your suggestion would have been the best approach. By trying to save a few too many brood frames I have lost the entire brood to SHB and probably all the bees too.

And thanks for the welcome JP, I'm looking forward to my next removal :-)

ML