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Author Topic: how many hives you have going into winter  (Read 9499 times)

Offline backyard warrior

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #20 on: November 08, 2011, 04:23:01 pm »
Im going into winter with 18 hives and two nucs we will see what we have in the spring may your bees be well :)  Chris

Offline Haddon

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #21 on: November 08, 2011, 04:35:40 pm »
well I guess this year I will be testing the limits of how small and little food I can have on a hive and them still come threw.

I cant even count hives right now because I know I need at least 2 queens if not 3 and none of the other hives are up to par.

Oh and SHB are every where.

Here is a attempt to list what I have.

2 hives with 2 deeps say 15 frames drawn out.

2 nucs with queens one full 5 frames other 2 frames with very few bees but I swapped locations on them last weekend so hopefully the small one increased numbers.

1 hive 10 frame deep with I would think 60 pounds of honey in there I dont understand them but thats how they wanted to live it was a swarm and that built 4 brood frames and filled the rest with capped honey and refused to move into another deep.

2 other one deep hives one not booming and the other is the exposed colony removal

Now the last junk that is left
3 hives in hard question

One God help it was living in a column like on you front porch thought I would save it to do till spring well Sunday I found it had fallen down and smacked the ground so I did a emergency cutout and could not save any of the comb and have no clue if the queen is alive but I did give them one frame of brood and eggs to keep them in the location.

Next one has refused to requeen for the last 2 months I just keep putting eggs in it but surprisingly the numbers has not dropped even thought I don't let them finish the brood out I check for queens cells after a week or more if none shake and drop another frame in.

Last is a trapout that might or might not have a queen.

If I could get one or 2 to queen right I would combine and hope for the best.

At least it has been warm.




Offline REDBEE

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #22 on: November 08, 2011, 08:12:05 pm »
800 palletts give or take

Offline Dave360

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #23 on: November 08, 2011, 09:00:54 pm »
20 or so and 4 nucs hope they over winter  better than last year had 10 lost 4

David

Offline gardeningfireman

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #24 on: November 08, 2011, 10:06:28 pm »
I now have seven; including one topbar hive and a nuc. One of the hives is low on stores because they requeened in lat Sept./early Oct. and didnt store much nectar. I did feed though and am crossing my fingers!

Offline Sundog

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #25 on: November 08, 2011, 11:22:22 pm »
I have two hives.  A Lang given to me last fall that appears strong and healthy, which  I hope to be able to split in the spring, and a KTBH from a cutout this summer with six bars of brood like the one in the photo.  It too appears healthy and growing.  (Just a hobby)

Having fun!

(Find the queen)
http://i865.photobucket.com/albums/ab218/Sunchaser01/DSCN0708.jpg

Offline beee farmer

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #26 on: November 09, 2011, 12:03:44 am »
180 ...well see how the Mississippi winter treats them.
"Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do"  Benjamin Franklin

Offline annette

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #27 on: November 09, 2011, 01:47:43 am »
4 now and I just started feeding this week.

Offline Country Heart

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #28 on: November 09, 2011, 03:45:20 am »
I have two hives.  A Lang given to me last fall that appears strong and healthy, which  I hope to be able to split in the spring, and a KTBH from a cutout this summer with six bars of brood like the one in the photo.  It too appears healthy and growing.  (Just a hobby)

Having fun!

(Find the queen)
http://i865.photobucket.com/albums/ab218/Sunchaser01/DSCN0708.jpg

Nice!  Love the photo.  I hope to have a TBH too someday.

Offline oliver

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #29 on: November 09, 2011, 09:53:47 am »
Six, 5 insulated, 1 in a building, this will be a first for this setup, we'll see come spring if it was worth the effort..dl

Offline CapnChkn

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #30 on: November 09, 2011, 04:49:55 pm »
3 colonies, one crazy defensive hive, one trapped swarm, and one that has a bought queen.  Right now the two "meaner" colonies get out earlier, but don't do much all day.  The bought queen hive is now getting started later, but is out until nearly dark.

"Thinking is like sin, them that doesn't is scairt of it, and them that does gets to liking it so much they can't quit!"  -Josh Billings.

Offline luvin honey

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #31 on: November 10, 2011, 11:26:54 pm »
3 in topbar hives
The pedigree of honey
Does not concern the bee;
A clover, any time, to him
Is aristocracy.
---Emily Dickinson

Offline divemaster1963

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #32 on: November 10, 2011, 11:37:32 pm »
I had 3 but combined the two weaker ones. My partner and friend has 17 started with 20 lost three to robbing. all are now very strong because of a strong fall flow. we did not harvest the fall flow to get the strong and ready for spring splitting. hoping to get a good bit of cutouts and swarms next year. trying to make the 100 to 150 mark.

Offline rober

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #33 on: November 11, 2011, 01:46:18 pm »
5 Strong looking hives.

Offline wadehump

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #34 on: November 12, 2011, 09:49:04 am »
going in with 17 hives all from swarms,cutouts and splits

Offline Boonersbad

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #35 on: November 13, 2011, 07:00:10 pm »
13 hives going into winter.... we'll see how the dice roll

Offline AllenF

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #36 on: November 13, 2011, 07:27:19 pm »
10 or 11.   Can't remember.   Had a deadout a few weeks ago.

Offline ziffabeek

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #37 on: November 14, 2011, 10:02:33 am »
Three!  with fingers crossed.

The Mississippi Queens are in a deep with 2 mediums, packed and it probably weighs about 80 lbs.  I didn't touch them this summer except to add the supers.  They are going strong.

My 2 splits are each a deep and a medium.  I was reaallly worried about them, but when I tucked them all in this weekend, they had packed in quite a bit of stores in the last week.  Their populations aren't huge but they seem healthy.  They are still light, but if the warm weather we've been having sticks, I think they might make it. Somethings giving them some bright orange pollen they've been bringing in and they are still taking food.  I know it's late to be feeding, but I figured its better to have food and maybe too much moisture than not to have food.  We'll see, fingers crossed!

love,
ziffa

Offline rick42_98

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #38 on: November 14, 2011, 10:41:08 am »
3 going into winter.  I had 4 but 1 was lost after going hopelessly queenless.  They would not accept another queen for their own reasons.  My hives are moderately heavy, healthy.  I look forward to see them through the winter.

Offline woodchopper

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Re: how many hives you have going into winter
« Reply #39 on: November 15, 2011, 06:58:04 am »
Eight as of last weekend but one of them is very weak. I think the weak one got robbed out and I don't expect it to last long. It was a off year for many beeks up here in the Northeast. We're due for a good year after the past few.  ;)
Every man looks at his wood pile with a kind of affection- Thoreau