# Installing Package Bees Today!



## wardarden (Jan 17, 2006)

I am really excited and nervous!! We drove about 2 1/2 hrs one way on Saturday to pick up my package of bees in Clarkson KY. It has been so very cold in Tennessee this weekend that I decided to keep them in the front hall closet and feed them until this afternoon. Chance of overnight freezes are over now. Does anybody have any advice they can offer? This is the first hive I have had since I was 12 years old (back in the 70s!). I had told my mom that I would like to keep a hive again. She passed away right before Christmas and as we were cleaning up we found that she had finished her Christmas shopping and she had purchased me a beginners hive kit. :angel: So it means alot to me for this to work. :help: 

I have a question. How soon should I add the second brood? I have been reading (since I forgot most of it since the 70's!) and it says as soon as they have the foundation built out to add another brood. When I was young I remember the hive only having 1 hive body and 1 super that we robbed from 1 time, then because of some nosey neighbor kids I had to move it out to the country and they didn't last long on their own. 

Can we expect to get a honey harvest this summer, or should we wait until next year?

Will this hard freeze cause havoc on the bees pollen/nectar supply?

OK enough questions for now!

Thanks!


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## Wisconsin Ann (Feb 27, 2007)

Hi there! I'm sure this will work out for you with your Mom looking down on it all and cheering you on.

As to advice....I can only tell you what we did when we had bees a few years ago. 

Started the package of bees into the deep early April (it was bloody cold up here that year). 3# package. italians 

hive started with straight from the factory frames and foundation. They had to draw it all out themselves. We fed sugar syrup for the first weeks until there was something blooming/growing a bit. didn't open the hives for the first 3 weeks and then only peeked in fast to see if they were okay.

If I remember correctly, the little beggars needed the second brood deep at 3 weeks. Anyway...we put on the 2nd deep for them when we saw comb being drawn on the outside couple of frames and added a super. They immediately started to draw the 2nd deep AND the super.

By June we had added a couple more supers on each. We were drowning in honey that first year. Took off supers middle summer, and then again in late fall. man oh man did we have honey. filled 2 5 gallon containers and all the quart jars I could find. (now...that's not a lot by most standards, but it was our first year with bees). Oh. and they had swarmed once early summer so we had 2 hives by then(that's a story in itself)

Our bees were out in the middle of farm and marsh land. Lots of trees. Lots of water. Lots of sunshine. Lots of things blooming all summer/fall, so they had a HUGE supply of nectar/pollen. clover and wild flowers everywhere if there was nothing else for them. so...that's kind of an ideal condition for bees in Wisconsin.

We wintered them by feeding sugar syrup again, and leaving some frames of honey in the hives. worked pretty well. Didn't lose anybody that first year.
2nd winter was NASTY and we lost 3 of the 5 hives we had by then.

Good luck with your bees


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## wardarden (Jan 17, 2006)

Ann, thanks so much for your encouraging words. I got it done. All bees in place. I went out this morning and looked around the hive and did not see any activity. I tried to listen very carefully and could not hear them either. They got kindof loud in my hall closet. So worried that maybe they had deserted me I barely lifted the first top, could not see any bees through the hole, then lifted the inner cover and saw a bunch of bees in the area of the queen cage. I hope they are doing OK. 

How long does it usually take the bees to consume 1 quart of sugar syrup 2:1, does anybody know??

When you add the second brood, do you use the same full size as the hive body?


Thanks,


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I figure it takes our bees two weeks to empty a gallon of spring (1:1) mix syrup.
Being your in some part of Tenn. I would give them two deep brood hives. Add the second one when they have at least 7 frames of the first one done.

Can we expect to get a honey harvest this summer, or should we wait until next year?

If we have a good normal summer and you are lucky, MAYBE. I would wait till next year.

_Will this hard freeze cause havoc on the bees pollen/nectar supply?_

Well YA!!!!! The freeze just killed all the blooms, The pollen and nectar sources.
 Al


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## Wisconsin Ann (Feb 27, 2007)

I'm sure the others on this forum will know the answers more fully than I do, but I'll give the second one a shot...(don't know about the quart of syrup)

We always used deeps for brood and mediums or shorts for the supers. There are a number of apiaries that use mediums for brood. It's easier to cart them around; If you need some brood for a new hive you just take a medium from one of your other hives (most have 3 mediums intead of 2 deeps for brood from what I've seen); you only need ONE size frame and body instead of all sorts....and other reasons.

Seems to me the queens like the deeps. :shrug: We tried mediums once and the laying pattern was strange....but lots swear by mediums. 

You also asked about the freeze/thaw cycle screwing stuff up....Yup. It does. But mother nature is pretty good about providing food. and bees can gather from fence posts in a drought, seems like. We've had a strange winter, too. thaw (70s in january and then -10 in February with 2ft of snow) Same thing March and so far in April. However, I've been seeing more buds on old rose and raspberry bushes (unusual) and the early spring flowers are popping up all over again. 

We just put some packages into hives this morning. We gave them some frames of drawn comb, and three frames of capped honey (from last year)each hive. Happy critters. Hopefully they will stay happy.


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## wardarden (Jan 17, 2006)

Hey Alley,

Thanks for the reply, do you think the 2:1 syrup mix I have is too heavy? :help: 


_


alleyyooper said:



I figure it takes our bees two weeks to empty a gallon of spring (1:1) mix syrup.

Click to expand...

_


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## Severian (Oct 22, 2006)

wardarden said:


> Hey Alley,
> 
> Thanks for the reply, do you think the 2:1 syrup mix I have is too heavy? :help:
> 
> ...


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Normally 2:1 syrup is fed in the fall to hellp fill the hive with winter stores. It is better than nothing in the spring when we are having the freeze we are having now.
1:1 is fed in the spring to stimulat the queen into laying and get the workers to draw comb on new foundation. If your bees are drawing comb they will use more syrup faster. Get a free gallon pickle jar from a pizza shop make a row of 1/16 inch holes in the cap and set it over the intercover hole and put a deep around it with the outer cover.
I also like the 2 gallon pails I get free from a bakery with 1/16 inch holes did the same as the jar except I use a shim between the pail and inter cover hole.




































I was reconditioning these hive bodies but worked well when some one asked for pictures of how I set the pails on a shim.

I'm 60 years old and the deeps are  heavy. I tried the 3 mediums and for me :flame: WHAT A PAIN IN THE NECK. every time you inspect the hive and want to see the queen YA just about have to pull 30 frames to find her. 
If ya find the 10 frame deeps to heavy, go with 8 frame equipment from bushy Mountian.

 Al


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## Timber (Jun 15, 2003)

Alley I see you have top entrances on many of your hives. Is this just for winter entrances?

I'm getting package bees for the first time for my replacements.
I was reading an article on the Gullette package where they rubber band the queen cage to a foundation and put the whole package (box, bees in all) in the hive. Has anyone done this? Thoughts?

Bee Culture Mar 2006

Timber


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I have the upper entrance year around on my hives to improve the venting all seasons. I have also started drilling a 3/4" hole in the hives about 4 inches below the handle for venting. When I feel the bees don't need the venting I use 3/4" dowel cut an inch long and close the hive holes. I also do that in the fall with weaker hives when robbing may start.

My package install method is here.
http://homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?t=118072

 Al


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