2012 ??????????

[oliver90owner]

I know all the pros and cons

Bet you don't - until you try them!

 

[drstitson]

"As for maintaining Status Quo, I'm all in favour of preserving institutions but I think they've had their time"

well so far this month have supported the preservation of (by going to gigs):

Deep Purple
Whitesnake
Motley Crue
Def leppard

and Saxon next week.

 

[Cazza]

"As for maintaining Status Quo, I'm all in favour of preserving institutions but I think they've had their time"

well so far this month have supported the preservation of (by going to gigs):

Deep Purple
Whitesnake
Motley Crue
Def leppard

and Saxon next week.

HWMBO would be very jealous. Personally I'd prefer to save my hair cells for my old age.

Cazza

 

[sugarbush]

I am selling package bees in order to raise money for some new equipment. I have 400 3 lb packages to sell.

 

[mbc]

I am selling package bees in order to raise money for some new equipment. I have 400 3 lb packages to sell.

How are you going to fill 400 packages from 0-30 hives( I assume those figures are out of date ?)? Are you also raising the queens ? and at what stage in the season do you intend to fill your packages ? ( perhaps relate the timing in terms of a common flowering plant - maybe dandelion )
I've always been interested in package bee production, the timing, the equipment involved ( do you have a "shaker box" ?), the tax on the bees the packages are taken from, and the subsequent use of the packages. Why have they never taken off ( to such popularity )in Europe ? Sorry theres so many questions, hope you can answer a few.

 

[sugarbush]

How are you going to fill 400 packages from 0-30 hives( I assume those figures are out of date ?)? Are you also raising the queens ? and at what stage in the season do you intend to fill your packages ? ( perhaps relate the timing in terms of a common flowering plant - maybe dandelion )
I've always been interested in package bee production, the timing, the equipment involved ( do you have a "shaker box" ?), the tax on the bees the packages are taken from, and the subsequent use of the packages. Why have they never taken off ( to such popularity )in Europe ? Sorry theres so many questions, hope you can answer a few.

I buy them and truck them 1000 miles north to resell. All package production is done in the south. The outfit I am buying from runs 10,000 hives. So the package is an easy means to keep them from swarming when they first come off of citrus pollination. Otherwise they would have a lot of swarms around and that would be a huge problem.

They buy queens by the 1000s from a queen producer, They shake brood combs from the busting hives into the packages and add the queen along with a can of HFCS. They load them on my truck and I drive to New England to deliver them. They are all pre-sold before I head north with them. It is a good way to make fast money with very little of my own money invested.

As far as setting back the hives, The migrators make their money on pollination contracts. Because their hives are always on the move they don't want them huge, usually just a deep and a half. Some hive will get shaken twice in a single season in order to keep them in the deep and medium boxes.

 

[countryman]

good health and plenty of time to enjoy my bees

P.S. and time for a beer or two and barbie in the evening sun

 

[MartinL]

If I plant a honeycomb outside my house, will it grow into a beehive?

You might find a wasp Nest grows instead!

 

[BeeJayBee]

You might find a wasp Nest grows instead!

It probably wouldn't last very long if it did

 

[AmericasBeekeeper]

Goal is more beekeepers for me. I try to add 60 to 100 per year. this is the fourth year at that rate.

 

[drstitson]

"Goal is more beekeepers for me. I try to add 60 to 100 per year"

Do you buy them in or build/rear them yourself?

 

[Griff]

Healthy and Happy bees ----------Thats all.

 

[MartinL]

"Goal is more beekeepers for me. I try to add 60 to 100 per year"

Do you buy them in or build/rear them yourself?

Trying to rear myself, trouble was they were too docile and I lost 60% to wasps last year. Might consider buying in royal blood this year!

Have someone very close who makes hives, frames etc so just buy cheaply, (no post) and assemble myself.

Must get more nucs this year.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Trying to rear myself, trouble was they were too docile and I lost 60% to wasps last year. Might consider buying in royal blood this year!

Which members of the royal family do you have in mind,for raising your new beekeepers from.

 

[oliver90owner]

I was just going to post 'had someone lost the thread?'but thought better of it at the time. Seems fair game now....open season, and all that!

 

[rink123]

I want to have more bees and no stings just like 2011

 

[Hombre]

I am selling package bees in order to raise money for some new equipment. I have 400 3 lb packages to sell.

You can see how we start doing the figures here, before realising that things are definitely a bit different in the States.

Your explanation made good sense and was a nice insight into the mechanics of your own enteprenurial operation and the synergy of packages and the pollinators method of minimising swarming.

Thanks.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

I see this poll is going to close on 29th March.


Ye gods! The year will be half over by then!
If people can't decide what they want out of the year till 3 months in, I suggest they look up the word, "prevarication".


Or get more therapy.

 

[Skyhook]

I see this poll is going to close on 29th March.


Ye gods! The year will be half over by then!
If people can't decide what they want out of the year till 3 months in, I suggest they look up the word, "prevarication".

I will, but I've got various things I need to do first, plus I want to read as many dictionary reviews as possible to make sure mine is suitable.

 

[MartinL]

I see this poll is going to close on 29th March.
Ye gods! The year will be half over by then!............

But will we have had any winter by March?

Looks like my hives are starting to build early, bringing in pollen (in small quantities) already!