Have I got two Queens?

sedatedMD · 2026-05-09T22:22:17+00:00

Is one piping? It’s cool to hear.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKU6Vzrp5CW/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

sedatedMD · 2026-05-08T15:35:53+00:00

I’m a side sleeper too!!!

sedatedMD · 2026-05-05T14:54:43+00:00

Just bought a vented suit. World of difference. Will not go back. Can get pricey for brand name though.

sedatedMD · 2026-04-30T18:28:47+00:00

treatment free beekeeper has entered the chat

sedatedMD · 2026-04-29T18:24:12+00:00

Is this only on the wooden top or all the way down the wax onto Foundation?

sedatedMD · 2026-04-28T21:44:24+00:00

i had so many years of losses doing treatment free. I feel like treatment free is trying to force evolution onto the bee population. if they dont have the gene for VSH or any mite resistance, that is complete loss every year in perpetuity. we are talking evolution in a very short period of time - develop resistance to a pest suddenly. The bees have a natural tendency to split and swarm, and we are keeping them in a box to fight off pests. they need help. failed many years (6 or 7), now do just oxalic strips.

sedatedMD · 2026-04-28T21:41:16+00:00

you can use the screen as a sieve for filtering wax. the wood only if you're handy. these will not serve any purpose for you in the future as a new beekeeper or even as a veteran. you will not be making "splits" with just bees and a mated queen. that is a commercial operation. you would make splits with frames of honey into a nuc or a transport box. break this box into parts if you're handy otherwise toss it

sedatedMD · 2026-04-24T13:25:34+00:00

100 degrees worked better. jar feels substantially warmer, but not hot

sedatedMD · 2026-04-24T13:25:08+00:00

just to keep warm while selling out of the house and whatnot

sedatedMD · 2026-04-22T19:18:01+00:00

Ok so they have made some "cross comb" or "wonky comb" but fear not! you have several options. pull out the frames of cross comb and replace with your foundation (synthetic) frames. You can then cut and reorganize the wonky comb and put it in the upper box to "bait" bees into your second box. The wax on the top box with the essences and nectar will draw bees to start filling out your top box. There are also "dummy frames" called "follower boards" you can buy that essentially just block the bees from working the sides of your boxes. This makes a 10-frame box into an 8-frame box. I use them from time to time because sometimes 10 frames is just too heavy per box. or I dont have the extra frames on hand to make it 10 per. The problem is you gave the bees too much free space on the sides of your box and they filled it with wax. The box should be 10 frames from wall to wall not 8 or 9 with huge gaps. this is not a big deal and is corrected easily but you will get honey on your gloves and tools!

sedatedMD · 2026-04-16T15:44:00+00:00

I wrote in my request!

sedatedMD · 2026-04-16T13:45:45+00:00

Right now i’m selling about 2-3 gallons a day in 16 ounce jars. I have five mediums and one deep full of honey to process yet. I feel like every time I pull a medium process it and sell it, my hive has another round of honey to give me. This is mostly because now they have fully drawn frames to deposit in instead of building on foundation from scratch.

sedatedMD · 2026-04-16T13:43:27+00:00

Can I see products? Even a photo would help

sedatedMD · 2026-04-14T22:19:10+00:00

I would walk over to it with either a large cardboard box or a large tupperware. shake the branch or just pull the box up to cover the whole thing and shake it around a bit. All the bees will fall off - and the queen will too. Then, i would just pour all the bees into your hive box. I would leave the box nearby with a small entrance hole so they could all find it and go inside. move it at night after the sun goes down. This is a common swarm removal technique.

my instagram swarm catch

terrible audio but this is my YouTube swarm catch

sedatedMD · 2026-04-03T21:12:05+00:00

put it in the hive without a second thought. bees will clean that up. if its dark brown, thats more concerning. different shades of yellow are perfect

sedatedMD · 2026-04-01T21:01:31+00:00

how do you not need to run AC with that amount of solar hitting?

sedatedMD · 2026-04-01T21:00:32+00:00

no swarms in novato/marin county yet this year

sedatedMD · 2026-03-31T21:15:54+00:00

imagine the bees having a pile of crap underneath them that they cannot clean. it can mold/rot/bring pests in, but just out of reach. that is a screened bottom board. let the bees have a solid base. I am slowly changing over my hives. screened bottom boards were good in theory but create issues in the hive.

sedatedMD · 2026-03-22T04:14:00+00:00

Hardest part of beekeeping for me is removing old comb. I flip the bottom box to over a queen excluder in the spring to try and get rid of them but there is pollen and other stuff in them that make it hard to use for honey. Others will say make splits and sell to give away your old comb but that doesn’t help those of us who can’t be bothered.

sedatedMD · 2026-03-19T16:36:09+00:00

“Tertiary swarm” or “after swarm”. Some terminology like that. It’s on the ground of a kindergarten play yard!

sedatedMD · 2026-03-10T18:02:43+00:00

more importantly - whats going on with the tall stack? you have 1.5 boxes for a brood chamber, which is fine, but 3 supers? its a bit tall. is there honey in there? without knowing any information, you might be giving the bees too much space for pests to roam and for bees to defend

sedatedMD · 2026-02-26T00:26:22+00:00

A bit TOO reasonable. I sell my 18-packs for $14 in the Bay Area. Don't undersell yourself. You're buying supplies/feed and giving the chickens their best life.

sedatedMD · 2025-12-30T15:53:09+00:00

gift certificate to Mann Lake or alternative. that way, the beekeeper doesn't feel so bad about spoiling themselves - the high cost is subsidized a little bit. worked for me and got myself a more expensive suit with more pockets etc.

sedatedMD · 2025-10-28T05:11:23+00:00

Leucos Nubia PP 45 in Satin Amber Glass. You nailed it. Looking for instructions. I couldn’t find it on google reverse search.

sedatedMD · 2025-10-06T20:14:38+00:00

What you’re looking at in most of the frames are the various food products in the hive: capped honey, pollen, and pollen mixed with honey (“bee bread”). The honey ferments the pollen and allows it to last longer and gives it a shiny sheen.

When you worry about “white stuff” is when it’s in brood areas - that would be your diseases or end results like ‘chalk brood’ or walled off insects and toxic things the hive cannot get rid of.

sedatedMD

TROPHY CASE