My bees are passing up the water bowl and drinking my hydroponic solution! Additionally, I found my queen finally! She was laying an egg. She was the only bee that didn’t have her head in a cell but her rump was. 
. The second brood box is taking off. I’m not sure I’ve put in enough hive beetle traps. I keep finding more beetles. Ordered veroa treatment equipment but am clueless when to begin. But the hydroponic solution is packed with nutrients yet causes my concern as I live next to a stream, it’s rained, and I have water out. Lots of bee worries today. 
Hi Martha.
For some reason seem to often like the nasty scum stuff. My drink at the edge of my pond or pond waterfall. I usually don’t add new water except in the summer when it drops an inch from evaporation.
I’ve seen bees sucking it up from some really scummy swamp edges. They seen to often go for water with character n favor 
…
Congrats on the Queenbee spotting. With my old eyes that’s a seldom occurrence in my 6 hive apiary. That’s the fun or not fun of older crappy eyes. I keep trying n score several times per summer but usually look for tiny white larva instead ! I’ll take any obs I can get … 
.
Not a clue whether that Hydro H20 agua is good/bad/ or indifferent. I really would panic 
. If your eating veggies grown in it the water can’t be too bad 
Nitie nite,
Gerald
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Hi Martha - my bees ignored my freshly filled bucket of water all last summer, and went for the accumulated scum in a pot with a rotted strawberry plant instead! So I just made sure I topped off their strawberry swamp now and then.
About treatment, I’m still sorting out my schedule too, so I’d refer you to Randy Oliver’s awesome website called scientificbeekeeping.com
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Headed to YouTube now! Thanks!
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Well today the Italians were robbed by the ferels! I ordered a new bottom stand because of the veroa treatment coming and the entrance on the flow hive bottom board not accommodating other standard equipment. The bees kicked out my paint stirers as an entrance reducer. So they are at the ready in case of another siege until my new stuff arrives. Thanks for all the help with my worries about my new bee colony.