Awesome! I love seeing the ins and outs of bee work. Amazing little guys.
For all of you BA / Coweta people, there is a guy that parks on the corner of 101st S and 193rd E in a blue truck during most days that always has lots of honey for sale.
Nothing like local honey. Helps the allergies too!
Nothing like local honey. Helps the allergies too!
Isn't there some parasite killing off all the honey bees? Or has that problem been dealt with?
Well, Varroa mites have been a problem for years, but I think you may be talking about the combination of a fungus and a virus that was discovered last year. When both pathogens are present in a bee colony, the fatality rate is often 100%. Here's an article: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/07/science/07bees.html?ref=todayspaper
My friend's dad gave me a jar of honey from his hives a couple of years ago. I thought it tasted way better than anything bought at the store.
I've also been getting milk from Chupp's out in Inola. Its awesome.
Sounds good. We get all of our milk from Braums just because it's handy, hormone free and we go through about a gallon every two days or so between all of the kids.
I've talked myself into getting some more of that honey I was talking about too now... can't wait to put some on toast and I think there is still some leftover cornbread in the pantry.
Bee update .... thanks to Rolando and honeybee for all the help
since I don't have any combs with honey to help feed. put out a few lumps of local honey purchased at $16 a jar. bees went nuts over it. made a crude feeder by punching holes in a plastic jar. filled it one to one ratio, sugar to water. the bees have accepted it and are at home feeding.
earlier the two white lids was loaded with bees attacking the honey.
since I don't have any combs with honey to help feed. put out a few lumps of local honey purchased at $16 a jar. bees went nuts over it. made a crude feeder by punching holes in a plastic jar. filled it one to one ratio, sugar to water. the bees have accepted it and are at home feeding.
earlier the two white lids was loaded with bees attacking the honey.
You don't have to feed bees honey, though that is what they prefer. You can make a simple syrup by mixing sugar with water. Light syrup is 1:1 ratio sugar to water, heavy syrup is 2:1 sugar to water. I suggest that you buy "First lessons in Beekeeping" by Keith Delaplane. There are many good resources on the net. There are quite a few beekeepers around Tulsa, find one that will take you under his/her wing. Tulsa also has a strong Beekeeping club. I've met a few of them at the State Beekeepers meeting.
already checked, it's legal to keep bee hives in Tulsa City limits.
similar to how one is allowed to keep a small number of chickens.
hive is placed in far corner of yard to keep bee's flight path away.
just checked sugar water left out this morning. put out two cups sugar with two cups water. almost all gone. bees hitting it hard. perhaps these bees will survive the winter after all.
looks like I'll be buying a 45lb bag of sugar next Sam's trip.
will be putting feeder inside a top super real soon.
putting out honey to jump start bees was our resident bee expert Honeybee's idea.
he said to put out a few frames of honey if I had it. since I don't have access, I put out a few table spoons of purchased local honey. Worked like a charm.... bees attacked the honey and they have not stopped feeding since.
similar to how one is allowed to keep a small number of chickens.
hive is placed in far corner of yard to keep bee's flight path away.
just checked sugar water left out this morning. put out two cups sugar with two cups water. almost all gone. bees hitting it hard. perhaps these bees will survive the winter after all.
looks like I'll be buying a 45lb bag of sugar next Sam's trip.
will be putting feeder inside a top super real soon.
putting out honey to jump start bees was our resident bee expert Honeybee's idea.
he said to put out a few frames of honey if I had it. since I don't have access, I put out a few table spoons of purchased local honey. Worked like a charm.... bees attacked the honey and they have not stopped feeding since.
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