UPDATE. We did another inspection of the flow frames and my OH did manage to get the frames out without too much flexing or cracking the comb, using two tools and going slowly slowly.
It was good we looked at the frames we thought we might take were not full in the middle. And frames we thought might not be full from the end view were actually completed capped.
So we took just one frame and the bees are steadily working on filling it again.
With a broken elbow I can’t get into my suit and pitch in, but evidently under the frames themselves the bees have put in a lot of hiney.
Keen to try to get get into my suit this week during our expected winter heat wave in Qld and assist with a brood inspection.
I am so glad that you tried again, and found it successful and worthwhile. Thank you so much for the feedback. I wish you huge success with your future harvest and a speedy recovery for your elbow.
It was never in question that we’d not try again, but I had a feeling that with some advice it might be easier. The two tool trick certainly was a winner.
It’s awesome to come somewhere and get quick answers from experienced beekeepers
My question is: Is it okay to let them fuse frames together? Inspections can easily be done via the FloHive windows and by closely examining bees coming in and out of the box which I do regularly. It’s not that I am afraid to break frames apart. I have all the equipment and have been doing just that and never even have gotten stung. But as an animal keeper I respect that these are not domesticated pets that seek human attention, rather are creatures hardwired to be left alone. So, if there are any adverse affects on letting them do their thing: gluing frames, I would like to know. If there is, please advise. Thanks!
You can’t accurately inspect the center portion of the middle frames of the Flow super for capping through the end window. If the center is uncapped in an arc (happens frequently), you may end up flooding the hive with a honey leak when you harvest. That kills bees, as others have discovered.
Looking into the freshly opened hive reminds me somewhat of an ant nest under a paver or rock that you lift up or roll over. It looks like a great disturbance, but they seem remarkable at fixing it all up again. Both Hymenoptera, which accounts for some similarities I guess.
They do fix it up very fast- but I always feel slightly bad when I mess with their hive set up. Just like I feel sad for all the things that live under rocks when I pick the rock up and throw entire civilizations into chaos… Still: it must be done.
Keeping bees in a way that respects the hive as much as possible and with as little human interference as possible is what many beekeepers want. However, it’s not enough when it comes to the flow super to only watch from the outside, I think (in my limited experience so far).
If talking only about the honey super, what you can see from the outer observation windows is not a good representation of what’s happening across the frame itself.
I too watch my hive every day and love doing so. The frames I thought were ready to harvest (from the window view) were no where near fully capped in the middle. And two frames I thought probably not full (again judging only from the window view) were actually fully capped across the frame itself, them having just not worked all the way to the edge of these frames.
Slowly slowly.
I think it a matter for everyone to eventually work out for them selves as to what suits them or works best.
I take an end frame completely out first. Hive tool…fingers…hive tool…fingers. Then move the other frames side ways. If you can get them to move an inch or so side ways it is just a matter of …hive tool…fingers…hive tool… fingers just slowly working the frame up.
I do agree with most that the flow frames are much more difficult to remove than the ordinary frames.
It’s imortant to pry loose your flow frames from the queen excluder and bottom frames first. At least twist the box and loosen the QX.
You can’t easily lift your flow frames if the bees glued them to what’s underneath.
Well I have had to do some math but if I read correctly do not open hive if it is less than 22° c (which is 71°f for me ). But 71°f is a beautiful spring day. My winters could easily have days that are 32°f (freezing) . I guess my question would be, considering animals adapt to their environment, what temp do I not want to open hive in US?
The minimum temperature to open a hive is 22C or 71F. Thinking for a moment, You wont find anywhere that suggests eggs and brood will survive a lower temperature. So opening a hive at lower temperatures is a NO NO. That is the reason in cold climates that bee keepers use that temperature figure and ‘lock down’ the hives till Spring time. You will find heaps of the same advice, using different ways of saying it, but you can also ask a local bee keeper who will telly you the same information.
It is the brood and eggs that will die first, but with their death it can mean the death of the whole colony as the next generation will die.
There is a lot on the forum about brood chill and colony deaths from exposure to cold.
Cheers
I agree somewhat with @Peter48, it is ideal to let the temperatures get above 70F before going into the hive for an extended inspection. Bees don’t really adapt to lower temperatures in the way I think you mean. They may still fly on colder sunny days, but once the temps get down to the mid-50s, they start clustering in the hive. You really don’t want to disturb a clustered hive, as they are putting a lot of energy into keeping the colony warm.
Having said all that, I kept bees for many years in the UK, and it could sometimes be hard to find a day with 70F+ any earlier than late spring. We needed to inspect for disease and swarm prevention before that. The main risk with inspecting in colder weather is chalkbrood disease from chilling the brood. To prevent problems as much as possible, I would wait for a sunny day with no wind, and inspect as quickly and gently as possible. As long as temps reached the mid-60s, it didn’t seem to hurt the bees at all. You have to be a lot more careful when it is cold though - no lingering over searching for the queen or eggs, no leaving frames out of the hive for a few minutes etc. Probably not easy for a beginner to do though.
Good information. Thank you. I inspected today but the hive was very angry so I left them early. I have not used smoke yet but would that be advisable on an angry day?
I use smoke with every inspection, unless there is a good reason not to. One good puff in the entrance, 2 under the lid, wait a minute or two, then start. If you weather today may have been stormy, or threatening storms, that could also explain the bad mood of the bees. In any case, I strongly recommend developing your bee smoker skills.
Thank you @Dawn_SD. It had rained earlier in the day and was still overcast. Are they grumpy because they are inside all day? It was also a bit later in the day so maybe too many bees home?
Both of those are likely sources of aggression. However, bees are legendary weather forecasters. Much better than Watson (the IBM AI) or the weather channel. They are also very conservative. If the weather has been rainy, or might become rainy, you are better off not going into the hive unless you have an urgent reason (feeding etc).
