Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Sunken Dreams But Happy Endings

Those of you that follow my blog will remember that we rescued a hive living in a hollow tree that was scheduled to be cut down. It was a dream of mine, to one day, be able to "drum" the bees out and into a hive where we could "watch" over them, (so to speak). Drumming is a technique used many years ago to get honeybees out of tree logs and into man-made hives. I've seen this done on videos but I can't seem to find them again :/
From the pictures I've taken at the entrance of the log hive, the girls seem to be doing fine, with the exception of the varrora mite I see on one of them in the photo above :/ (on the left) can you see it?
A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I were inspecting some of our yard hives and decided to take a peek in the log hive to see how they were doing.....

Anticipation was mounting for us both! But we were a bit suprised they didn't boil out from the opening.........
Nothing! Just a few bees meandering around! What could be wrong? When we sealed them up last summer this hive was overflowing with bees!
Hmmmmm.........

This is so disappointing! I knew at this point there would be no drumming at all for this log hive! :( Pesky wax moths!
I started taking out the comb to see how many bees were still here and hopefully *bee* able to save the ones that are left.


The farther inside I went the more bees I saw, but it was a good way inside :/
My husband cut away the log so I could get farther inside. The more comb I pulled out and the closer into the bees I got, I started vacuuming them up with the bee vac. Notice I had to remove my veil, it was in my way, but I did cover my head and hair ;)

It was nice to start getting brood, eggs and a little pollen and honey. This will go into frames in their new home.
I noticed the bees seemed to be going into a different part of the log, but I couldn't figure out where......then I remembered! Duh, they were going to the very end of the trunk! My husband helped me move the vac to the other end and I finished vacuuming the rest of the girls up, hoping and praying I had gotten the queen and she was alright!


Back into my veil/hat (it's dark and I didn't want them crawling on me)I brushed the girls from the vac into their new home. They were closed up til the next morning when I'll check to see if I got the queen.

And I am SO thankful, I did! She is healthy and BeeUtiful!!!!
Can you see her? Isn't she lovely??? Honeybee Queens are the sweetest things ever!!!! ;)I hope you enjoy your beekeeping experiences as much as we do!

Until Next Time!
BEE JOYFUL!!!
Julie ;)

26 comments:

  1. I know not being able to drum them out was very disappointing - I was looking forward to seeing how it works too. But it's really awesome that you were able to get the queen and rest out of the log safely. I hope that hive will thrive for you. It looks like it took quite some time to complete it all!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you so much for saving this hive and sharing their story with us.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Penny, It was disappointing, but I'm so thankful they are out and doing better now.


    Thank you Charlotte, for being interested and reading about them. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow, what a great effort to save those bees! Excellent job. We need every bee we can keep safe and healthy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Stevie! BTW I absolutely love your blog! Thank you for dropping in & commenting on mine! ;)

      Delete
  5. That's a great story Julie! I enjoy your stories and pics.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Jared!!! You are such a great "friend"! I enjoy your blog as well!
      Thinking of you and your sweet family, always!

      Delete
  6. Greetings! Vегу usеful aԁvіce in this paгticular aгtіclе!
    It іs thе lіttle сhangеs ωhіch will makе the most impoгtant
    changes. Many thanks for shаring!

    my website - http://webthoitrangvn.com/may-anh-giu-lai-cac-giay-phut-hanh-phuc

    ReplyDelete
  7. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I could not resist commenting. Very well written!


    My web page www.agri.kmitl.ac.th

    ReplyDelete
  9. wonderful issues altogether, you just gained a new reader.
    What would you suggest about your put up that you simply made some days in the past?
    Any certain?

    Also visit my weblog http://www.casacomal.tv

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hello would you mind stating which blog platform you're using? I'm looking to start my own blog
    soon but I'm having a difficult time making a decision between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design seems different then most blogs and I'm
    looking for something completely unique. P.
    S Apologies for getting off-topic but I had to ask!

    my blog; http://takilla.com/wikilla/index.php?title=Omega_Juicers_Linked_Articles

    ReplyDelete
  11. Aw, this was a really nice post. Finding the time and actual effort to produce a very good article… but what can
    I say… I procrastinate a whole lot and don't seem to get nearly anything done.

    Feel free to surf to my website http://dron.com.au/

    ReplyDelete
  12. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  13. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  14. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  15. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Wow, awesome weblog layout! How lengthy have you ever been running
    a blog for? you made blogging glance easy. The overall look of your web site is magnificent,
    as well as the content!

    My page ... snoring mask

    ReplyDelete
  17. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  18. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  19. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  20. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  21. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  22. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Greetings I am so glad I found your web site, I really found you by accident,
    while I was browsing on Google for something else, Nonetheless
    I am here now and would just like to say many thanks for a fantastic post and a all
    round entertaining blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t
    have time to read it all at the minute but I have book-marked it and also added your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read more, Please do keep up the great jo.


    Also visit my blog post; http://pennystockcrowd.asia/blogs/viewstory/10583

    ReplyDelete
  24. It will also help you prevent infestation of worms by filling gaps in your food storage. By sealing cracks and doorways around the perimeter of your home, you will be able to protect your house from worms. You can find more details about beekeeping startup on its original website.

    ReplyDelete

Labels