vsh - form your own opinion

[maddydog]

To be fair I don't find treatment much of a hassle.

Neither do I, even more importantly, done correctly it works.

maybe in 5/20/1000/100000 years time beeks will be bemoaning the resistance of varroa to oxalic

 

[Finman]

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Ok. Many have had Lasi queens one year. What are feelings about them? At least they have been selected stock, even if some had EFB.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Sounds like you are catching them at the point of population explosion.

Well I had a look inside today. Today is day 13 post first vaping so most of the capped brood should be clear.
Fourth vape due Friday
They are a smaller colony admittedly but there are five frames of BIAS so they are fighting back and fingers crossed

 

[Erichalfbee]

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Ok. Many have had Lasi queens one year. What are feelings about them? At least they have been selected stock, even if some had EFB.

I have two VSH carnies and a LASI
The two carnies are small colonies and have few mites
The LASI colony has the lowest drop of all the others

 

[Millet]

I have none of these genetically modified bees lol, i vaped two colonies last week one dropped around 14, mites over three days the other nae on nothing do you think i can start breeding VSH Queens from these bees..

 

[Fusion_power]

- small colonies
- high swarming
- not very productive
- poor wintering because cluster is small
- slow build up in spring

I am more critical of my bees by far than you are finman. My bees do swarm more than I like. I can control the swarming tendency, but at the cost of effort expended in early spring to make splits from all large colonies. This is the reason I crossed a few Buckfast queens with my drones this year. I am hoping to moderate the swarming tendency.

My bees are reasonably productive so long as I prevent them from swarming. I consider 60 kg to be a decent crop for this area given that the average most beekeepers get is 30 kg.

My bees actually winter very well, but they do so with small colonies typically covering 3 Dadant frames. My winter lasts from roughly Nov 1st to about the 25th of March so just under 5 months. There are usually flight days every 3 to 4 weeks so no long periods confined to the hive.

They are absolutely NOT slow at spring buildup. I am running 32 mm frame spacing and 5.1 mm cell size foundation. Between the them and having bees that get into high gear in a hurry, they hit max population in about 8 weeks. We have first pollen flow sometime around the 10th of February and the bees hit max population about the 10th of April. Peak population is 10 Dadant frames of brood which works out to at least 60,000 bees. Is that a small colony?

You missed the "aggressive stingers" complaint. I work my bees wearing a t-shirt and veil most of the time. You tell me if they are too hot.

Now lets talk about those bees of yours that can't seem to make any honey because rain is falling continuously. Why don't you have bees that forage in the rain?

 

[Finman]

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I have tried with one colony, which uses umbrellas. They can forage in the rain, if there is no wind. But flowers are full of water.

 

[Finman]

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The size of colony does not come from size of foundations. IT comes only from queen's ability to lay.

I count my hive size as boxes.

 

[Finman]

Peak population is 10 Dadant frames of brood which works out to at least 60,000 bees. Is that a small colony?

?

Number of cells tells nothing. Brood frames has honey and pollen too. Colony starves, if it does not have.

I use 3 langstroth boxes for brood. Lowest is usually pollen store. So are sidemost frames. And no excluder.

I bought a ladder. IT is very good when I handle top most boxes.

 

[Fusion_power]

I bought a ladder. IT is very good when I handle top most boxes

Perhaps you should consider getting some modern hives that don't require a ladder to work. I'm told that square hives are better than rectangular and deeper hives work better for managing bees. :O

We need someone to post a picture of a bee carrying an umbrella flying in the rain landing on a flower and yelling back at the hive "Its no good, the umbrellas work great, but the flowers are all full of water!"

 

[Finman]

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Strange. Everything what I do, should be done controversy. Then I would be like you.

I like hive towers. I do not like square Dadants.

I bought a ladder, 100 €, and then I should not use it?

And my bees should fly in rain...

What next....

Many have said that I should not move hives to better pastures.
.
.Possibly I should sit down and count mites and cells.
.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I have none of these genetically modified bees lol,

But you did try one?

 

[Millet]

But you did try one?

Yes i sure did Erica but it died.

 

[B+.]

Yes i sure did Erica but it died.

Queens don't just die Millet. She was either rejected by the bees because of injury or some other reason.
She was a daughter of Celle Queen 6-1-1037-2015. hygienic, but not tested for VSH

by the way; selection is not gm ;-)

 

[Millet]

Queens don't just die Millet. She was either rejected by the bees because of injury or some other reason.
She was a daughter of Celle Queen 6-1-1037-2015. hygienic, but not tested for VSH

by the way; selection is not gm ;-)

I do not have a clue why she popped her clogs P, all i know she was there alive and well one minute and then vanished after i moved the hive so she may have been damaged then but who knows, on the GM i know..

 

[Finman]

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I have list many queens when moved hives.
Frames move easily in poly hive and frames squeeze easily the fat queen.

I tighten the frames with foam plastic when I move hives with car.
.
.

 

[B+.]

I tighten the frames with foam plastic when I move hives with car.

Jamming rolled-up newspaper in the gap can help too
https://youtu.be/zXvHu5ZVOfc?t=24m36s

 

[Finman]

Jamming rolled-up newspaper in the gap can help too

Well thanks! That is good and new idea to me. Toalet paper is always in my car.

And beewax into box corners.

I have always foam plastic matress when I move hives. I close entrance with that.

 

[Millet]

Jamming rolled-up newspaper in the gap can help too
https://youtu.be/zXvHu5ZVOfc?t=24m36s

The nuc they where in is home made so the measurements are slightly out which resulted in the frames having to be slowly jammed in thus preventing any movement what so ever, if i got hit from and articulated wagon the frames would not have moved, i could even pick the thing up and tip it upside down and the frames would not fall out unless i hit them on the bottom bars with a hammer, i have moved hives several times over the years so i know how to do it properly and up to now this is the only Queen that has checked out on me.

 

[B+.]

i have moved hives several times over the years so i know how to do it properly and up to now this is the only Queen that has checked out on me.

c'est la vie