Thanks Bob! A beekeeper can learn a lot watching your videos! Everything you we’re saying makes sense to me. I love your integrity!! A lot of bee suppliers needs to practice what you said.
Bob, fantastic follow-up! So much learned, you run an amazing honest operation, love for quality bees as well, and happy customers! Please keep sharing!
All the BEEs i have are from swarms got away from populated area here in Wisconsin. Every Queen i have looks like the one BOB shown from his breeder Queen. They are black as a tire. I like them because they do good in the brutal winters up here
Bob, wow this is great information. I've raised my own queens and always wondered why I've had some superseded during introduction. Now I know, thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Thanks Bob, for another fantastic video! I'm learning a lot from watching your videos. I really like how you put the information screen sin with the video as we watch it!
Dark and Beautiful Queen! I really appreciate your videos Bob. Even though we are in two different climate and flora (Jamaica) a lot of your technical knowledge has helped a lot in my growth. So thank you!
You talking about your non straight rows of nucs . That is like planting potatoes they say you can always get more in a non straight row. LOL. You crack me up . Thanks
I think you've convinced me on age of mated queens Bob. I ran 40 minis this year and began catching them at 14 days when they had laid a few hundred eggs. I used several in my own yard and at least 2 superceded shortly after a successful introduction. Also sold a few at around 2 weeks and I'm not feeling too good about those. May have to get away from minis. A few rounds with an extra week each of laying could be a recipe for absconding or swarming in that tiny space. Either way, my Russians are late to the party by almost a month in spring anyway. An extra week for a settled-down queen has zero downside, and is going to benefit everyone involved. I just use bee money to feed my bee habit. :D Thanks so much for the time you put into videos. I know that's time you don't have for family and other interests. You have helped a good-many people, myself included.
I liked the soap box you were on Bob, I have been the recipient of some of those, poorly mated early packages and going backward in population due to supercedure at Sourwood bloom really hurts better to have a later package that continues to advance I would take that any day. Thanks for good honest videos.
Thanks for the video and honesty! I appreciate the truth about what to doin any situation even if it means killing the queen and replacing her to do what's best for the colony.
Very cool! You mentioned that a 14 day harvest of mated queens is a poor practice but I didn't catch what you think is a better practice for harvesting them. Thanks!
Thanks for the tip i never thought about bent queen excluders, but i now know be nice with them. I cleaned honey for another guy who does not use them, and wow brood in the supers i don't like. So now be a lot more gentle with them. I enjoy the comments also, but its about location. I am in Canada , Alberta so we now are feeding 2 to 1 sugar water as they are building winter stock bees now. I put my hives in a shed for winter and heat to +4 c. They winter till March then come out for the season, which is short here. Latest here for a split is July as they need time to build up for winter. thanks for sharing
I'm intrigued by northern beekeeping and wintering sheds. Your techniques have to be so much different. My first exposure to beekeeping was in Alaska where overwintering was very difficult.
@@bobbinnie9872 easy to explain my year in March out come the hives from inside then drop pollen paddies and feed to kick start them usually around May 1st there is lots of pollen and nector coming into the hive I make splits in early May then in July the flow starts it lasts about 4 weeks then over, then pull the honey and reduce down for winter again. Drop feed and pollen for winter stock. I look at 100 lb single hives for winter. I heat my shed to +4 or as close as possible cheers year over
I want to run this by you, when placing queen grafts you take top box and shake. All the bees down in bottom box then put on the queen excluder correct ? Then after bees all move back up you rotate boxes and put in the double scene. Then you rotate the boxes back put double scene above queen right box then put in the queen grafts is that correct is there any reason why you put queen right box on top for 24 hours can you just shake bees down queen exclude them then double scene then just put grafts in ??
Hi Andrew. For examples of how we do this I would recommend watching our video "How We Produce Queens" ruclips.net/video/c28O916sy48/видео.html. Thanks.
Have a ? On mY 4th i installed 2 nucs. On may 23 one nuc swarmed and i caught the swarm and today one of my best hives out of the 3 i have. Why did this happen
Many good tips in that video; keep them coming. I tried my hand at queen mating for the first time by purchasing and installing 3 virgin queens. I put 1 in a hive with a failing queen and 2 in mating nucs. The one that I put in the failing hive after killing the failing queen came back mated but the ones in the nucs failed to return. I actually ordered cells but they hatched a day earlier than expected so I ended up with around 8 hour old virgins. I think The cells may have been better. I will try moving the nucs away from my 3 hives next year. I have been completely unable to get my bees to draw any comb after July. I tried 1 to 1 syrup for a month with no success. I just switched to 2 to 1 in two hives because they are needing extra stores for winter.
Hi, Bob. Interesting and informative video, as always. Like many people I have started breeding my own queens. Part of the reason is cost, part is availability of queens when I need them. The main reason, however, it the poor acceptance rate I have seen when using purchased queens. It is hard to fault the queen breeders 100%. There is a lot of demand in the market and they are trying to meet it. Quantity over quality is not a good long term strategy, however. I would encourage the breeders to adapt their operations to meet demand without sacrificing quality. It will take time and investment, but it is a more sound long term strategy for their customers and so for their businesses. I love the country you live in. We moved from New Hampshire to the Pacific Northwest 30 years ago. We lived for about half of that time in the eastern edge of the Willamette valley and then in the Cascade foothills northeast of Seattle. We have been in the dry country in Walla Walla, WA for 13 years. This is our home, and we love it, but I get nostalgic for the green of the eastern mountains at the end of a long, hot, dry summer. Thanks and all the best, Stu
Hi Stu. I lived in Rogue River, Oregon for five years and then closer to the coast for five years. Pollinated in the Willamette Valley a lot and a few times did apples near Wenatchee , WA. There are times when I miss the west but I really like it here. Thanks for the comment.
Ha Bob great video what do u do with the laying worker nucs. I just installed 5 new mated queens I was going into them this week end to check to see if they have started laying will be 1 1/2 week from release how soon would u say I should waite,. Thanks
Hi Frances. We shake the laying workers out and use the drawn comb in other nucs or colonies.I think 1 1/2 weeks is plenty of time to check on your queens.
Great lessons as usual Bob! Can you tell us how you handle the laying workers nucs, specifically the combs? Are the cells stretched out due to the drones being produced in the worker cells? Will a new queen also measure these cells and relay an unfertilized egg? Do you allow the brood to emerge to reuse these combs or do you toss them? I have been studying the laying worker scenario and can't find these answers. Would make another great video! Thank you.
We shake the bees off the combs and add them to other nucs or colonies. The cells are OK. The cells don't become larger, the drones raised are smaller. A queen-rite nuc will clean up the mess and their queen will use them. In the end every thing looks normal.
Here's a virtual handshake Bob! 👋 There is a lot of information in this video, and I have several take aways. You did something that made me laugh and shake my head when I saw it, because I was misinformed and have been doing it wrong for years. Not going to say what it was! 😁 Thank you for another great video.
I think it was the frame spacing against the box walls is what you're referring to Jeremy... just a guess on my part since I've seen many videos where that space is not always maintained.
This is the first I have heard of the Caucasian Honey Bees. I just looked up their attributes but was wondering about their ability to over winter in New England. It looks like the caucasus region is very diverse. Not sure what their zone is. I bought a Saskatraz queen this spring when my hive went queenless and was down to two frames with a laying worker. I built an insulated layens hive and they are building up their numbers but I'll have to see how they fair thru our winter. Maybe i'll look into the Caucasian queen next spring.
Hello Bob, I am wondering if there’s a particular reason for using 5 frame nucs to breed queens instead of mini breeding nucs (I’m talking about the small polyester ones) like I’ve often seen. Do you note a particular difference in the quality of queens or does it simply work better for you and your team in general?
This may be a question but what exactly do you do with the frames of capped honey that is made from the syrup you are feeding them to build the comb as I’m guessing you harvest the honey they collect to sell and leave syrup honey frames for them over winter?
Hey Bob I hope all is well. Question for you. I noticed you used Apivar in some of your hives and I was curious to see how you liked it and if you have used it again? I did an alcohol wash last weekend and my count wasn't bad, but still enough that I felt like I needed to treat. I installed Apivar on 3/3 and after doing so realized that I might have shot myself in the foot because of how long you have to wait before you can add supers. I run 1 deep and 1 medium for brood and will be making splits so can I add mediums to be used for brood to my hives to give them some room to fend off potential swarming? I'm in central AR, Maples have already bloomed, dandelions everywhere, hives loaded with bees and brood, bees on 85 to 90% of all frames. My thought is that I can use the extra medium brood boxes as resources for my splits and swap them out for supers when the calendar lets me.
I've used Apivar several times in the past and have come to the conclusion that it is a maintenance treatment, which keeps your mite numbers from climbing, but does not do a good job of bringing them down if needed. They'll help as long as they're in there and taking them out early isn't a cardinal sin. Adding and then making splits with your mediums sounds like a good plan to me. Sounds like things are ready to explode on you.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks for the advice Bob I really appreciate it! I think I'll add brood supers end of next week and pull strips at 4 weeks. This will allow me to start adding honey supers mid April and do splits as well. If I would have done my mite checks earlier wouldn't have been a problem...lesson learned. Worst wash I had was 4 per 300. What do you recommend for spring treatments if needed?
Hey Bob. I am starting my 5th year keeping 11 hives in middle GA on 65 acres. I want to go to 20 this year. My question is what do you recommend on creating a drone congregation area by placing hives in different areas of my property. Example would be putting 1/3 of hives in 3 different areas 200 yards apart in a triangular pattern. I don’t have trouble mating queens but I do want to introduce different genetics. Hope my question makes since. Thanks ToddK of Gray Ga.
Hi Todd. I'm not sure 65 acres creates enough separation to go to the trouble unless one group is on one end and the other group is on the other. Creating a triangle does help if the yards are 1/4 mile or more. Although out-yards help, mating with drones from the same location will work.
Bob Binnie ok,thank you for that info bc I have not seen any literature or videos on how far apart hives should be to create the triangle drone congregation areas.
Hey Bob, unrelated to the video but how much sourwood do you average per hive each year? Next year I’ll have the opportunity to move about 10 hives to Franklin and I’m trying to decide if it’s worth it. I’m located in Clarkesville, I’m not sure what the sourwood flow is like here. Any input would be appreciated.
Some areas near Franklin do well and some don't. We have a lot of yards between Franklin and Dillard and they all did good this year. Probably a 70 pound average. The road north from Otto and Franklin isn't as good. There are fewer trees. Very soon is a good time to have a look around, the Sourwood trees are the first to turn red and they will still have their seed pods so you can easily spot them. The sourwood flows in that area are highly variable and you have to be willing to take the good with the bad. Good luck.
Bob, you said in the video at at minute 12:45 that you mix 1000 pounds of sugar in 250-275 gallons of water draw out frames of foundation in the fall is that right?
Without a flow, as mentioned, how much sugar syrup built out those frames and maintained that hive? I like how you focus on the queens performance and work the yards with that strict performance assessment, Far too often I give queens a pass. I try to cull and rebuild !
Hi Ian. That was 4 gallons of fairly thin syrup. 1.5 parts water to 1 part sugar. To be completely honest your way with queens may be more cost effective. We spend a lot of time re-queening and trying to fix the poor ones. It's just the way I started out a long time ago and still like to do it that way.
@@aCanadianBeekeepersBlog Well, to maybe catch the both of you with a question, this i great! For both Bob and Ian, I have about 20 hives at this time, most pretty healthy, and I harvested honey off about half my hives from earlier this year; so I have about 70 frames that were first run, built out in honey supers. Given my hive count will likely double next year, would you rather A: Use the built out frames for brood early, or B: Save them for honey supers? I am looking to grow the hives count and strength, am not expecting a super high honey count for another two years, am hoping to grow hive strength and numbers. Thank you guys both; I learn so much from you!! Paul.
Paul Romanowski id do both, but remember, beekeeping isn’t simply about doubling hive numbers, it’s about managing those hive numbers respectfully. So my comment to you is be sure to manage those cluster dynamics and your colonies will thrive. Watch this video of bobs and you can see exactly how he managed those factors.
@@aCanadianBeekeepersBlog Yes, I've been slowly building numbers, a lot is through cut outs and from swarm removals. I keep the better bees, and cull the mean ones and those who don't make a steady growth in their hives. I'm assuming this amount of hives not mostly thru splits, but from hive removals from houses. Thanks Ian, you guys are both an incredible help!! :-)
I noticed most all of your mating Nucs are near trees. We normally put hives in full sun to help with SHB but is it ok to put the mating Nucs in partial sun?
Weird question for you... Yesterday while checking for queens, I pulled a drone endophallus out of the abdomen one of my queens. Is that OK to do? First time I'd seen one in real life, so at first I thought she may be deformed. I realized what it was after pulling it out and was worried that I should have left it in there. What's the rule of thumb?
I bet you got a lot of queen requests after this video! That was a real gold nugget about queen acceptance and laying time! Wow! What would you think of queen producers offering 2 options to customers: 1 with cheap queens that just started laying, and then 1 with premium quality queens that have been laying for 3+ weeks? That way, the more risk-tolerant people can have something cheap, and the ones who want to be dead sure of quality can pay more for it? What would you have to charge for premium queens for a viable business, or how would you do the math on it? Every time RUclips suggests a video by my favorite beekeepers, I always add it to "Watch later" so I remember to watch it; but for yours I created a special playlist called "Rewatch" because there's so much information! Every time I watch your videos, I get tempted to move down to Georgia for a season or two and get hired into your beekeeping crew. Pardon my enthusiasm, but *thank you* Bob! Sean Govan
Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to help other beekeepers. Do you have any idea where the queen came from that Jessie put down for a dirt nap? It looked like it had this year's blue dot on her abdomen but I could have been mistaken. After finding one of my hives queenless yesterday morning I did scream "No" when the order was given to take her out. Keep up the good work !!!
Jesse put the blue dot on her so she would be easy to spot in the video. They definitely raised her from an emergency cell. Either our cell failed to hatch or they didn't except the virgin.
I was wondering if you would consider a video on handling Queens. Picking them up, marking them, releasing them. As a second year keeper, I would like to have that skill. You make it look easy.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks Bob I'm in Florida and will be doing my last graft on the 17th.This spring in Feb. i had lots of swarm cells to rob out and they made great Queens and i had no swarming.I will call you in Jan. about your Queens for sale.
Are you using an electric pump for that syrup? I'd love to see your feeding setup in a future video. Thank you for taking the time to throw these videos together, very insightful 👍
Occasionally wee do. When we see ants under a nuc we just pick it up and move it two feet. If they are persistent we put a pinch of ant bait under the nuc in such a way that the bees can't get to it.
I've heard Beetle Barns work. Luckily we don't have a severe beetle problem and the only defense we concentrate on is trying to keep our bees in full sun which definitely helps.
@@zionhoneybeesfarm1235 Without knowing where you are located I would suggest that it's normal for this time of year. Our bees have stopped rearing brood for the most part and anything that comes in now will go into the brood nest.
Steve-O!!!! I cant wait for more bee videos!!! I have about 30 nuc boxes that need filling this year. I am going to be trying out the OTS method. Hope your friend gets better!!
What a wealth of knowledge you keep sharing. This winter I plan on going back over all your videos. When you have big hives along side some nuc, if the virgin queen that came out of a nuc can come back and goes into a big hive and they will kill her instantly. If she came back to the wrong nuc that doesn't have a mated queen they probably would not ball her right away. There are a lot of little things that probably make a difference in getting mated queens back. Thanks Bob for sharing
There are four yards surrounding this mating yard, one in each direction. One yard of twenty-four, two of forty-eight and one of thirty two. That's just way it's laid out in that area. I would have been happy with two yards.
Both have desirable traits depending on your goals. Italians overwinter with larger clusters and are easily stimulated to rear brood. Almond pollinators and early package shakers need large colonies early and look for this trait in their bees. The lighter queens are also much easier to spot than the dark queens and beginners like this. The downside of course is the cost in food and resources that Italians burn up. Caucasians and Carniolans are more frugal and overwinter on less stores and tend to be more hardy in cooler or cold climates. In other words they starve less when left unattended in early spring. Both of these catch up to the Italians eventually with Caucasians generally swarming less and Carniolans generally swarming more. All need to be understood and managed according to their unique traits.
I'm just wondering why you're raising caucasian progeny? I had the impression that caucasions weren't as popular in the US anymore (due to their propensity to collect propolis in particular).
I am new beekeeper but still trying very very hard to understand just made the box but nothing else. Plz can you guide me from where to start. Thanks for the knowledge you share u are great man. Wating for your reply. GOD bless you and your family.
Hello Sohaib. Watch our video "Bee Keeping Equipment For Beginners". It will help you a lot and then you can comment back with any questions you may have. ruclips.net/video/SRNFXMMdE1Y/видео.html
@@bobbinnie9872 had am issue with feral hive that killed 2 queens and made their own. Had success when killed their queen and intro new queen 7 days later. Had to remove their QC. Guess they figured they had no choice anymore
Talking dragon flys my best mating yard has return rate 95% or better ... Yard has alot dragon flys down in along a marsh .. One thing it doesn't have is yellow jackets dragon flys keep them under control . i watch them dragon flys hunt low honey bees head up as they come out . other yards yellow jackets can be a problem .. Im in the north really dont see a dearth drone population just grows all summer .. My best queens can be mated in aug September .. Going by honey production seems later in the season their mated better they produce honey ... On our fall flow now ..
You are good man. I watched your all videos.. I'm live in Turkey (Anatolia) and My family came Turkey from Caucasia..in Turkey we have 5 diffrent type bees live same area 1.) Trakya bees ( %78 carniol % 22 Anatolian) 2.) Caucasian Bees living Near the black Sea high and cold area. 3 Anatolia bees living center of the Turkey 4.Iran bees living east border 5. Syrian bees living southwest .. 1980 year Turkish Association Bees make project try to Caucasian bees send every where in Turkey.. This project failed.. Caucasian bees need cold air and high altitude.. All Queen and bees dead.. www.researchgate.net/profile/Devrim_Oskay He knows every detail of this project.. He has PhD he love to answer all questions.. God bless you sir.
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I learn so much from your videos...thanks!
Thanks Bob! A beekeeper can learn a lot watching your videos! Everything you we’re saying makes sense to me. I love your integrity!! A lot of bee suppliers needs to practice what you said.
Thanks Don.
I love the deep insights, and the quotes from the elders, it really brings the story out.
Thank you for another great video!
Thanks.
I really like the way you just tell it like it is, no bs.
Yeah, other channels censor things like culling unwanted queens.
Thanks.
Bob, fantastic follow-up! So much learned, you run an amazing honest operation, love for quality bees as well, and happy customers! Please keep sharing!
Thank you.
All the BEEs i have are from swarms got away from populated area here in Wisconsin. Every Queen i have looks like the one BOB shown from his breeder Queen. They are black as a tire. I like them because they do good in the brutal winters up here
Excellent as always thank you for sharing your experience of knowledge.
Thank you.
Bob, wow this is great information. I've raised my own queens and always wondered why I've had some superseded during introduction. Now I know, thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Thanks for the comment.
I could had used that italian queen. I had to much rain this year.
Thanks for the video. Learned new things.
Have to watch it again.
Thanks Bob. Outstanding video as usual. 🐝safe and keep your smoker lit!
Konrad
Thanks, I think it's still smoking.
Thank's for the follow up bob.
Thanks Bob, for another fantastic video! I'm learning a lot from watching your videos.
I really like how you put the information screen sin with the video as we watch it!
Thanks, I was wondering if the screen info shots were OK. Thanks for the comment.
Great videos and very good presentation, just excellent and I love it, thx
Thanks so much for taking time out to share your knowledge !!!!! It has been so valuable to me and lots of other people again than you god bless !!
Thank you.
Dark and Beautiful Queen! I really appreciate your videos Bob. Even though we are in two different climate and flora (Jamaica) a lot of your technical knowledge has helped a lot in my growth. So thank you!
Thanks for the comment
Thanks for the follow up. And what a great follow up it is! Thank you VERY much..... Phillip Hall
Thanks Phillip.
You talking about your non straight rows of nucs . That is like planting potatoes they say you can always get more in a non straight row. LOL. You crack me up . Thanks
I think you've convinced me on age of mated queens Bob. I ran 40 minis this year and began catching them at 14 days when they had laid a few hundred eggs. I used several in my own yard and at least 2 superceded shortly after a successful introduction. Also sold a few at around 2 weeks and I'm not feeling too good about those. May have to get away from minis. A few rounds with an extra week each of laying could be a recipe for absconding or swarming in that tiny space. Either way, my Russians are late to the party by almost a month in spring anyway. An extra week for a settled-down queen has zero downside, and is going to benefit everyone involved. I just use bee money to feed my bee habit. :D
Thanks so much for the time you put into videos. I know that's time you don't have for family and other interests. You have helped a good-many people, myself included.
Hi Joe, thank you. I'm glad your "habit" is sustainable.
Excellent video Bob. What a wealth of information!
Thanks.
Thank you for sharing your knowlage !!!
I liked the soap box you were on Bob, I have been the recipient of some of those, poorly mated early packages and going backward in population due to supercedure at Sourwood bloom really hurts better to have a later package that continues to advance I would take that any day. Thanks for good honest videos.
Thanks, sounds like we're on the same soap box.
I thank you and always appreciate the information you’re willing to share with us.
Tank you.
Whoops, I missed a key. Thank you.
Bob Binnie at Blue Ridge Honey Company you’re telcome!!!!! Lol
Thank you, so much valuable information one after another. My brain is very happy today thanks to all the knowledge you gave me.
Thanks.
Thanks for the video and honesty! I appreciate the truth about what to doin any situation even if it means killing the queen and replacing her to do what's best for the colony.
Thanks.
Great video. Thanks
Always great information!! Thanks Bob!!
Thank you.
Very cool! You mentioned that a 14 day harvest of mated queens is a poor practice but I didn't catch what you think is a better practice for harvesting them. Thanks!
Research has shown that twenty-one to twenty-eight days is much better.
@@bobbinnie9872Sweet! Thanks for getting back to me Bob! I appreciate that information 🐝🐝
Thanks for the tip i never thought about bent queen excluders, but i now know be nice with them. I cleaned honey for another guy who does not use them, and wow brood in the supers i don't like. So now be a lot more gentle with them. I enjoy the comments also, but its about location. I am in Canada , Alberta so we now are feeding 2 to 1 sugar water as they are building winter stock bees now. I put my hives in a shed for winter and heat to +4 c. They winter till March then come out for the season, which is short here. Latest here for a split is July as they need time to build up for winter. thanks for sharing
I'm intrigued by northern beekeeping and wintering sheds. Your techniques have to be so much different. My first exposure to beekeeping was in Alaska where overwintering was very difficult.
@@bobbinnie9872 easy to explain my year in March out come the hives from inside then drop pollen paddies and feed to kick start them usually around May 1st there is lots of pollen and nector coming into the hive I make splits in early May then in July the flow starts it lasts about 4 weeks then over, then pull the honey and reduce down for winter again. Drop feed and pollen for winter stock. I look at 100 lb single hives for winter. I heat my shed to +4 or as close as possible cheers year over
Another great video Bob awesome keep them coming.
Thanks.
Good video Bob. Thanks for sharing friend.
Thanks.
Hey Bob when would be a good time to collect pollen here in Cleveland county NC?
I want to run this by you, when placing queen grafts you take top box and shake. All the bees down in bottom box then put on the queen excluder correct ? Then after bees all move back up you rotate boxes and put in the double scene. Then you rotate the boxes back put double scene above queen right box then put in the queen grafts is that correct is there any reason why you put queen right box on top for 24 hours can you just shake bees down queen exclude them then double scene then just put grafts in ??
Hi Andrew. For examples of how we do this I would recommend watching our video "How We Produce Queens" ruclips.net/video/c28O916sy48/видео.html. Thanks.
Have a ? On mY 4th i installed 2 nucs. On may 23 one nuc swarmed and i caught the swarm and today one of my best hives out of the 3 i have. Why did this happen
Hard to say without being there.
Many good tips in that video; keep them coming. I tried my hand at queen mating for the first time by purchasing and installing 3 virgin queens. I put 1 in a hive with a failing queen and 2 in mating nucs. The one that I put in the failing hive after killing the failing queen came back mated but the ones in the nucs failed to return. I actually ordered cells but they hatched a day earlier than expected so I ended up with around 8 hour old virgins. I think The cells may have been better. I will try moving the nucs away from my 3 hives next year. I have been completely unable to get my bees to draw any comb after July. I tried 1 to 1 syrup for a month with no success. I just switched to 2 to 1 in two hives because they are needing extra stores for winter.
Lessons learned. Beekeeping offers endless opportunities.
Hi, Bob. Interesting and informative video, as always. Like many people I have started breeding my own queens. Part of the reason is cost, part is availability of queens when I need them. The main reason, however, it the poor acceptance rate I have seen when using purchased queens.
It is hard to fault the queen breeders 100%. There is a lot of demand in the market and they are trying to meet it. Quantity over quality is not a good long term strategy, however. I would encourage the breeders to adapt their operations to meet demand without sacrificing quality. It will take time and investment, but it is a more sound long term strategy for their customers and so for their businesses.
I love the country you live in. We moved from New Hampshire to the Pacific Northwest 30 years ago. We lived for about half of that time in the eastern edge of the Willamette valley and then in the Cascade foothills northeast of Seattle. We have been in the dry country in Walla Walla, WA for 13 years. This is our home, and we love it, but I get nostalgic for the green of the eastern mountains at the end of a long, hot, dry summer. Thanks and all the best, Stu
Hi Stu. I lived in Rogue River, Oregon for five years and then closer to the coast for five years. Pollinated in the Willamette Valley a lot and a few times did apples near Wenatchee , WA. There are times when I miss the west but I really like it here. Thanks for the comment.
Thanks guys! What do you do with the duds? Those units that didn’t make a queen and have laying workers.
We shake the laying workers out and add all of the drawn comb to the other nucs.
Ha Bob great video what do u do with the laying worker nucs. I just installed 5 new mated queens I was going into them this week end to check to see if they have started laying will be 1 1/2 week from release how soon would u say I should waite,. Thanks
Hi Frances. We shake the laying workers out and use the drawn comb in other nucs or colonies.I think 1 1/2 weeks is plenty of time to check on your queens.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks Bob hope u keep doing the videos they are great and thanks again hope you and your family have a good week
Amazing video yet again, Bob! Loved the ending message lmao
Thanks, it's one of our favorite sayings.
Congratulations Bob. I am seeing your retail honey in more and more retail stores.
I hope it is successful for you
Thanks Joe.
Great lessons as usual Bob! Can you tell us how you handle the laying workers nucs, specifically the combs? Are the cells stretched out due to the drones being produced in the worker cells? Will a new queen also measure these cells and relay an unfertilized egg? Do you allow the brood to emerge to reuse these combs or do you toss them? I have been studying the laying worker scenario and can't find these answers. Would make another great video! Thank you.
We shake the bees off the combs and add them to other nucs or colonies. The cells are OK. The cells don't become larger, the drones raised are smaller. A queen-rite nuc will clean up the mess and their queen will use them. In the end every thing looks normal.
Here's a virtual handshake Bob! 👋 There is a lot of information in this video, and I have several take aways. You did something that made me laugh and shake my head when I saw it, because I was misinformed and have been doing it wrong for years. Not going to say what it was! 😁 Thank you for another great video.
Hi Jeremy. I hope you'll tell me the next time I see you. You've got my curiosity up.
I think it was the frame spacing against the box walls is what you're referring to Jeremy... just a guess on my part since I've seen many videos where that space is not always maintained.
@@bobbinnie9872 I'll probably be down next month Lord willing. I'll tell you then. 😀
Great video once again!!
Did you do a bucket video yet explaining the caps or just poke holes?
Do you ever bulk feed? Outside?
Not yet, it's coming soon (I hope).
This is the first I have heard of the Caucasian Honey Bees. I just looked up their attributes but was wondering about their ability to over winter in New England. It looks like the caucasus region is very diverse. Not sure what their zone is. I bought a Saskatraz queen this spring when my hive went queenless and was down to two frames with a laying worker. I built an insulated layens hive and they are building up their numbers but I'll have to see how they fair thru our winter. Maybe i'll look into the Caucasian queen next spring.
The Caucasians we have originated in the mountains on the Russian border with Georgia. I would think they would overwinter well in your area.
Hello Bob, I am wondering if there’s a particular reason for using 5 frame nucs to breed queens instead of mini breeding nucs (I’m talking about the small polyester ones) like I’ve often seen. Do you note a particular difference in the quality of queens or does it simply work better for you and your team in general?
The queen can lay longer in a larger box which makes it easier to judge her brood pattern and also makes her a better queen at the time of caging.
Great video
Very good video.
Thank you.
This may be a question but what exactly do you do with the frames of capped honey that is made from the syrup you are feeding them to build the comb as I’m guessing you harvest the honey they collect to sell and leave syrup honey frames for them over winter?
Yes, all frames drawn out with syrup are left with the bees.
Bob, do you put anything in your syrup like a supplement or an essential oil.
Not often. Occasionally we'll use Pro Health from Mann Lake.
Hey Bob I hope all is well. Question for you. I noticed you used Apivar in some of your hives and I was curious to see how you liked it and if you have used it again? I did an alcohol wash last weekend and my count wasn't bad, but still enough that I felt like I needed to treat. I installed Apivar on 3/3 and after doing so realized that I might have shot myself in the foot because of how long you have to wait before you can add supers. I run 1 deep and 1 medium for brood and will be making splits so can I add mediums to be used for brood to my hives to give them some room to fend off potential swarming? I'm in central AR, Maples have already bloomed, dandelions everywhere, hives loaded with bees and brood, bees on 85 to 90% of all frames. My thought is that I can use the extra medium brood boxes as resources for my splits and swap them out for supers when the calendar lets me.
I've used Apivar several times in the past and have come to the conclusion that it is a maintenance treatment, which keeps your mite numbers from climbing, but does not do a good job of bringing them down if needed. They'll help as long as they're in there and taking them out early isn't a cardinal sin. Adding and then making splits with your mediums sounds like a good plan to me. Sounds like things are ready to explode on you.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks for the advice Bob I really appreciate it! I think I'll add brood supers end of next week and pull strips at 4 weeks. This will allow me to start adding honey supers mid April and do splits as well. If I would have done my mite checks earlier wouldn't have been a problem...lesson learned. Worst wash I had was 4 per 300. What do you recommend for spring treatments if needed?
Hey Bob. I am starting my 5th year keeping 11 hives in middle GA on 65 acres. I want to go to 20 this year. My question is what do you recommend on creating a drone congregation area by placing hives in different areas of my property. Example would be putting 1/3 of hives in 3 different areas 200 yards apart in a triangular pattern. I don’t have trouble mating queens but I do want to introduce different genetics. Hope my question makes since.
Thanks ToddK of Gray Ga.
Hi Todd. I'm not sure 65 acres creates enough separation to go to the trouble unless one group is on one end and the other group is on the other. Creating a triangle does help if the yards are 1/4 mile or more. Although out-yards help, mating with drones from the same location will work.
Bob Binnie ok,thank you for that info bc I have not seen any literature or videos on how far apart hives should be to create the triangle drone congregation areas.
Hey Bob, unrelated to the video but how much sourwood do you average per hive each year? Next year I’ll have the opportunity to move about 10 hives to Franklin and I’m trying to decide if it’s worth it. I’m located in Clarkesville, I’m not sure what the sourwood flow is like here. Any input would be appreciated.
Some areas near Franklin do well and some don't. We have a lot of yards between Franklin and Dillard and they all did good this year. Probably a 70 pound average. The road north from Otto and Franklin isn't as good. There are fewer trees. Very soon is a good time to have a look around, the Sourwood trees are the first to turn red and they will still have their seed pods so you can easily spot them. The sourwood flows in that area are highly variable and you have to be willing to take the good with the bad. Good luck.
Bob, you said in the video at at minute 12:45 that you mix 1000 pounds of sugar in 250-275 gallons of water draw out frames of foundation in the fall is that right?
That would be correct as long as it isn't too late in the season.
Without a flow, as mentioned, how much sugar syrup built out those frames and maintained that hive?
I like how you focus on the queens performance and work the yards with that strict performance assessment,
Far too often I give queens a pass. I try to cull and rebuild !
Hi Ian. That was 4 gallons of fairly thin syrup. 1.5 parts water to 1 part sugar. To be completely honest your way with queens may be more cost effective. We spend a lot of time re-queening and trying to fix the poor ones. It's just the way I started out a long time ago and still like to do it that way.
Except you transport your hives more than I do, so requeening becomes more critical. Transport during a superceedure never works
@@aCanadianBeekeepersBlog Well, to maybe catch the both of you with a question, this i great! For both Bob and Ian, I have about 20 hives at this time, most pretty healthy, and I harvested honey off about half my hives from earlier this year; so I have about 70 frames that were first run, built out in honey supers. Given my hive count will likely double next year, would you rather A: Use the built out frames for brood early, or B: Save them for honey supers? I am looking to grow the hives count and strength, am not expecting a super high honey count for another two years, am hoping to grow hive strength and numbers. Thank you guys both; I learn so much from you!! Paul.
Paul Romanowski id do both, but remember, beekeeping isn’t simply about doubling hive numbers, it’s about managing those hive numbers respectfully. So my comment to you is be sure to manage those cluster dynamics and your colonies will thrive. Watch this video of bobs and you can see exactly how he managed those factors.
@@aCanadianBeekeepersBlog Yes, I've been slowly building numbers, a lot is through cut outs and from swarm removals. I keep the better bees, and cull the mean ones and those who don't make a steady growth in their hives.
I'm assuming this amount of hives not mostly thru splits, but from hive removals from houses. Thanks Ian, you guys are both an incredible help!! :-)
That would be chapter 6 "Queen Rearing".
I noticed most all of your mating Nucs are near trees. We normally put hives in full sun to help with SHB but is it ok to put the mating Nucs in partial sun?
It depends on the time of year and situation for us. I also prefer full sun but do like a backdrop of trees or shrubs for virgin queen orientation.
Weird question for you...
Yesterday while checking for queens, I pulled a drone endophallus out of the abdomen one of my queens. Is that OK to do?
First time I'd seen one in real life, so at first I thought she may be deformed. I realized what it was after pulling it out and was worried that I should have left it in there.
What's the rule of thumb?
I honestly don't know if our removing it would hurt the queen. My guess is that it would not.
@@bobbinnie9872 I'll report back in a couple weeks after she hopefully starts laying.
I bet you got a lot of queen requests after this video! That was a real gold nugget about queen acceptance and laying time! Wow!
What would you think of queen producers offering 2 options to customers: 1 with cheap queens that just started laying, and then 1 with premium quality queens that have been laying for 3+ weeks? That way, the more risk-tolerant people can have something cheap, and the ones who want to be dead sure of quality can pay more for it? What would you have to charge for premium queens for a viable business, or how would you do the math on it?
Every time RUclips suggests a video by my favorite beekeepers, I always add it to "Watch later" so I remember to watch it; but for yours I created a special playlist called "Rewatch" because there's so much information! Every time I watch your videos, I get tempted to move down to Georgia for a season or two and get hired into your beekeeping crew. Pardon my enthusiasm, but *thank you* Bob!
Sean Govan
Are any of these queens for sale and how would I go about ordering some?
We will queens next spring, possibly taking orders by Feb.
@@bobbinnie9872 ok thanks! I will contact you in February then.
@@bobbinnie9872
Will that be caucasian queens? Your website just shows carniolan.
Website says you don’t ship queens (local pickup only)? You’re a bit far away from Las Vegas :(
@@moebees3060 They will be the same type of queens shown in this video. We'll need to update our website.
Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to help other beekeepers. Do you have any idea where the queen came from that Jessie put down for a dirt nap? It looked like it had this year's blue dot on her abdomen but I could have been mistaken. After finding one of my hives queenless yesterday morning I did scream "No" when the order was given to take her out. Keep up the good work !!!
Jesse put the blue dot on her so she would be easy to spot in the video. They definitely raised her from an emergency cell. Either our cell failed to hatch or they didn't except the virgin.
I was wondering if you would consider a video on handling Queens. Picking them up, marking them, releasing them. As a second year keeper, I would like to have that skill. You make it look easy.
I'll put it on my list. Thank you.
What type Queens are they and are you going to sell any and are they mated
Thanks Bob for sharing! Love your videos! So September is your last graft of the year?
Thanks. Yes,We're hoping to graft next week for the last time.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks Bob I'm in Florida and will be doing my last graft on the 17th.This spring in Feb. i had lots of swarm cells to rob out and they made great Queens and i had no swarming.I will call you in Jan. about your Queens for sale.
I'm perplexed? no just a big question?? but you have, all those nucs for queens, where do the drones come from?
There are several established beeyards in the vicinity.
Are you using an electric pump for that syrup? I'd love to see your feeding setup in a future video. Thank you for taking the time to throw these videos together, very insightful 👍
I actually have a video on that in mind. Thanks.
Do you have problems with ants when sitting those nucs on the ground? I'm in south Alabama and we are constantly battling sugar and fire ants.
Occasionally wee do. When we see ants under a nuc we just pick it up and move it two feet. If they are persistent we put a pinch of ant bait under the nuc in such a way that the bees can't get to it.
I'm having good luck with beetle barns. Do you use any kind of traps in your hives?
I've heard Beetle Barns work. Luckily we don't have a severe beetle problem and the only defense we concentrate on is trying to keep our bees in full sun which definitely helps.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks Bob!
Hey Bob I have a single deep hive queen is there but I notice dem back filling the brood next how do I fix and also suggestions
@@zionhoneybeesfarm1235 Without knowing where you are located I would suggest that it's normal for this time of year. Our bees have stopped rearing brood for the most part and anything that comes in now will go into the brood nest.
Steve-O!!!! I cant wait for more bee videos!!! I have about 30 nuc boxes that need filling this year. I am going to be trying out the OTS method. Hope your friend gets better!!
Thank you once again. Are you using wax foundation? If so what brand?
We use "Rite Cell" plastic foundation from Mann Lake.
What a wealth of knowledge you keep sharing. This winter I plan on going back over all your videos.
When you have big hives along side some nuc, if the virgin queen that came out of a nuc can come back and goes into a big hive and they will kill her instantly. If she came back to the wrong nuc that doesn't have a mated queen they probably would not ball her right away. There are a lot of little things that probably make a difference in getting mated queens back. Thanks Bob for sharing
Thanks Russell
Seth has a Queen eagle eye!
How many drone producing colonies do you have around your mating yard?
There are four yards surrounding this mating yard, one in each direction. One yard of twenty-four, two of forty-eight and one of thirty two. That's just way it's laid out in that area. I would have been happy with two yards.
Wish y’all shipped queens. Nice videos
We might ship next year, not sure yet. Thanks.
I second that
Hello, what is the difference between and italian queen and a caucasian? Why do you like them better?
Both have desirable traits depending on your goals. Italians overwinter with larger clusters and are easily stimulated to rear brood. Almond pollinators and early package shakers need large colonies early and look for this trait in their bees. The lighter queens are also much easier to spot than the dark queens and beginners like this. The downside of course is the cost in food and resources that Italians burn up. Caucasians and Carniolans are more frugal and overwinter on less stores and tend to be more hardy in cooler or cold climates. In other words they starve less when left unattended in early spring. Both of these catch up to the Italians eventually with Caucasians generally swarming less and Carniolans generally swarming more. All need to be understood and managed according to their unique traits.
@@bobbinnie9872 THANK YOU
I'm just wondering why you're raising caucasian progeny?
I had the impression that caucasions weren't as popular in the US anymore (due to their propensity to collect propolis in particular).
I talk about that in our video "Introducing Caucasian Bees Into Our Apiary". ruclips.net/video/eHKD94TW2p0/видео.html
I am new beekeeper but still trying very very hard to understand just made the box but nothing else. Plz can you guide me from where to start.
Thanks for the knowledge you share u are great man. Wating for your reply. GOD bless you and your family.
Hello Sohaib. Watch our video "Bee Keeping Equipment For Beginners". It will help you a lot and then you can comment back with any questions you may have. ruclips.net/video/SRNFXMMdE1Y/видео.html
😷Nice video thanks again Sir☝️
Thanks.
Ha what are the temp there in sept when they stop drawing comb. Is that why they stop drawing comb because of the temp Thanks
They will draw comb until the fall pollen flow wanes. I believe they have a sense that the season is coming to an end.
Do you ship Queens to AZ and how much?
We are not currently shipping queens. Not sure about next year yet.
@@bobbinnie9872 ok thank you
So Bob, if you start selling queens and if my math is right, you'll be selling them on a 28 day cycle instead of a 14 day cycle, correct?
Correct, 28 days or more is best but 21 days is also a lot better than 14. It takes extra time and labor to do this but it's worth it in the long run.
87% is pretty good .. I myself would like 97% better LOL BUT 87% is pretty good
I liked your 100% awhile back even better.
when you add the queen you don't seem to worry a out the hive making queen cells
If the queen is released in a timely manner they will usually abort cells that have been started.
@@bobbinnie9872 had am issue with feral hive that killed 2 queens and made their own. Had success when killed their queen and intro new queen 7 days later. Had to remove their QC. Guess they figured they had no choice anymore
there is nothing between the lid of the jar and the frames?
Correct
that's a lot of bees
Humm (5:51) I would have use that Italian queen, he-he.
I would like to have a queen of yours
Talking dragon flys my best mating yard has return rate 95% or better ... Yard has alot dragon flys down in along a marsh .. One thing it doesn't have is yellow jackets dragon flys keep them under control . i watch them dragon flys hunt low honey bees head up as they come out . other yards yellow jackets can be a problem .. Im in the north really dont see a dearth drone population just grows all summer .. My best queens can be mated in aug September .. Going by honey production seems later in the season their mated better they produce honey ... On our fall flow now ..
Interesting, thanks.
Bob please never destroy an Italian Queen on Camera,
In Jamaica where I am they are a Blessing,
Feeling sad cant take my mind off it.
That was messed up
You are good man. I watched your all videos.. I'm live in Turkey (Anatolia) and My family came Turkey from Caucasia..in Turkey we have 5 diffrent type bees live same area
1.) Trakya bees ( %78 carniol % 22 Anatolian)
2.) Caucasian Bees living Near the black Sea high and cold area.
3 Anatolia bees living center of the Turkey
4.Iran bees living east border 5. Syrian bees living southwest ..
1980 year Turkish Association Bees make project try to Caucasian bees send every where in Turkey.. This project failed.. Caucasian bees need cold air and high altitude.. All Queen and bees dead.. www.researchgate.net/profile/Devrim_Oskay He knows every detail of this project.. He has PhD he love to answer all questions.. God bless you sir.
Thank you very much.