Time to super up!

I saw dandelions on the way home from work! In my area, that is a sure sign that the nectar flow is starting. My Italians are already supered up with foundation (as opposed to already drawn comb), and earlier this week I finished putting a thick coat of beeswax on some more plastic frames so I can super my Carnies as well. The third year might be the charm for a surplus honey crop!

Just look at my Italians. They are kicking butt and taking names. If they don't swarm, they are going to collect tons of nectar.

Bat fungal infection

This is not bee related, but it is interesting. A fungal infection called white-nose syndrome is wiping out bat populations in the Northeast. I put out my bat house, I'll be curious to see if I can attract some bats this year.

As creepy as some people find them, bats play important roles in plant pollination, seed dissemination and pest control. One little brown bat can consume 1,000 mosquito-size bugs in an hour. Their appetite for pests spares U.S. farmers an estimated $1 billion a year in crop losses and insecticide costs.

White-nose syndrome first appeared in 2006, in a cave near Albany, N.Y. Hibernating bats were found with a white substance on their faces and wings. All were emaciated; many were dead.

Some were clustered near the cave entrances or flying nearby long before they should have left hibernation and before enough insects had emerged to sustain them.

Genetic analysis revealed the fungus to be an unknown member of the cold-loving Geomyces genus. A similar fungus has been seen on bats in Europe, but it has not killed them, Haskew said. It's possible the fungus was somehow transported into North America and began spreading among native bats that have no natural resistance.

The fungus is not known to affect humans, and scientists are only beginning to learn how it affects bats. Some suspect it is an irritant that causes them to awaken frequently during hibernation. A Bucknell University study found that infected bats were waking every two to three days. Disease-free bats rouse every 10 to 18 days.

The frequent disruptions apparently cause the bats to burn too much body fat. They leave the cave too soon in search of food that isn't there, and they starve.

By 2007, the contagion had spread to more caves in upstate New York. By late winter 2008, it was devastating hibernation sites, or hibernacula, in Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut. Hundreds of thousands of bats died, 90 percent to 100 percent of each colony.

Trex Bottom Board

Of all the parts of a beehive, the bottom board takes the hardest beating. This is one of the reasons that most people paint the entire surface of their bottom boards (as opposed to just painting surfaces that are exposed to the elements). Surprisingly, I have not seen any bottom boards made of anything more durable than wood.

Therefore, I am toying with making a screened bottom board out of Trex. Trex is an extremely durable product that is made from wood and plastic fibers. It is a very popular material to make decks out of because it holds up so well outdoors, but I have not seen any beehive components made from Trex. Trex is pretty expensive, but I was able to salvage a few short pieces from a dumpster at a construction site last summer. I already used some of it to make a pretty cool Trex birdhouse. Below is a pic of a rough prototype. I can't wait to finalize assembly and throw it under one of my hives.

Can CCD be prevented by supplmental protein?

There was an interesting article in The Economist this week that struck me as a bit dismissive of Colony Collapse Disorder. There may be merit to the argument put forth, but that is for the scientists to decide. The article suggests that feeding bees supplemental pollen that is rich in protein may significantly combat CCD. In other words, CCD can be mitigated by a healthy honeybee diet.

The evidence offered is that almonds have a low protein content, and more than half the hives in the USA end up in California performing almond pollination each year. CCD meant that there were not enough bees to pollinate the almonds and contract prices went from $35 per hive to about $200 per hive. This caused many beekeepers to feed their bees supplements to keep them healthy to chase those higher fees. The protein supplements introduced into the bees' diets appear to have led to a surplus of bees available for this year's almond pollination.

This year’s Californian bee glut, then, has been caused by a mixture of rising supply meeting falling demand. The price of almonds dropped by 30% between August and December last year, as people had less money in their pockets. That has caused growers to cut costs, and therefore hire fewer hives. There is also a drought in the region, and many farmers are unlikely to receive enough water to go ahead with the harvest. Meanwhile, the recent high prices for pollination contracts made it look worthwhile fattening bees up with supplements over the winter. That may help explain why there have been fewer colony collapses.

The rise and fall of the managed honeybee, then, owes as much to the economics of supply and demand as it does to the forces of nature. And if the nutrition and disease theory is correct, next year’s lower contract prices may see beekeepers cutting back on supplemental feeding, and a resurgence of CCD.

Again, I can't speak to the merits of this "diet centered" argument, but it does not seem completely absurd to me. My bees have had no CCD related problems, but in Maryland we have really good pollen sources.

First inspection of 2009!

Since we had some decent 60 degree weather in central Maryland, I was able to inspect both my hives for the first time in the new year. My expectations prior to inspection that hive #1 would be fine, and hive #2 would be nearly dead. After all, hive # 2 was knocked over for an unknown amount of time, rained on while knocked over, and was very light (i.e. low of food stores) when I put it back together. I did notice some activity, so I knew that hive #2 was not completely dead, but I figured it was just a matter of time.

Much to my surprise, both hives are doing extremely well. The stronger of the hives is hive #2, which as a fair amount of honey left (although don't ask me where it came from). Below is a shot of a frame from hive #2, showing the queen.



My gut at this point is that hive #2 may throw off an early swarm. Therefore, I am hoping just to use them to draw out comb this year, and get my first honey crop from hive #1. I guess the third year is the charm!

Beeswax Lip Balm

For my birthday, I received this lip balm kit. It comes with all you need (even the beeswax) to make 24 containers of lip balm. 12 of the containers are the "lipstick tube" type and 12 are small jars.



So far, I have made four containers worth (two of each type). It was really easy and it only takes about 10 minutes or so to melt the wax and carefully pour it into the containers. You don't need a fancy wax melter, I just used a queenline honey jar and a saucepan with some hot water. Then you just have to wait for it to dry into its solid form. It comes with a variety of flavoring oils so you be creative.

This time I made a peppermint flavor, and it turned out really cool. I am really looking forward to making some more lip balm with wax from my own bees!

Free hive tools!

I received a flyer in the mail from Brushy Mountain Bee Farm. The folks at BMBF are giving away hive tools for the holidays, but you can request yours anytime during 2009. You just use the code "FHT" (free hive tool?) when you place an order, and you will get one. You have to order something, of course, and they will only give you one regardless of how many times you order during the year. I order stuff from them, and they have good products. I also have a brushy mountain hive tool, but I really only use it to pack pine needles in my smoker. I prefer the maxant style hive tools, but you can buy those from brushy mountain as well.