# BEE'S!



## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

About 4 days ago I noticed a few honey bees flying around my compost pile, landing on an old pear that I had dumped and decided to feed them with some syrup to see if/how many more would show up for a free meal.

I was blown away when they came in by the thousands every day and since then I've feed them almost a gallon of watermelon syrup each day, I've never seen so many in one place other than in a hive or swarm.

We have so few of them around here now a day that I try to feed them whenever they show up just to make sure they have enough to feed on. When I would pick one of the the plates up and shake off the bees to pour more syrup on, they would crawl up on my hand and cover it before I could get the plate sat back down. Was pretty strange, could feel all those little tongues lapping up the syrup I had intentionally smeared on my fingers.


I intended to take pictures of my fingers with bees hanging off them but realized that my phone was in the wrong pocket and by the time I had fished it out I had shaken most of them off.


In the bottom of one of the pictures you can see one of the plates that had been lapped dry, when both are full, you can't see anything but a circle of bees climbing on top of each other to get at the syrup.


FOR YOU BEE KEEPERS
I dont know if this is a good thing or bad, does it mean that they are starving or that there are more bees around here than I had thought?


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Very unlikely that they are starving, most likely just a dearth period, is anything blooming at all in your area right now?

If it is warm enough, bees will find any unprotected sources of sugar or honey, sometimes they will even rob weaker hives. If there really are no other good sources, they can fly for miles for a good source, and they have nothing else to do, really.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

Nothing blooming around here, we had a hard freeze a few weeks ago and around a dozen or so nights with frost, everything is just about dead for the winter. 

Its nice to have them around and will keep feeding them until they stop coming or I run out of syrup.


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## Cotton (Oct 12, 2013)

With that many coming in they are fairly close, probably less than 500 yards. If you sit in a chair and watch them come and go you can get the direction the bee tree is in. A tip, while they are lapping syrup sprinkle flour on them. A white dot is easy to see against trees as they fly away.

If you find the tree you can have a hive out for when they swarm in the spring.


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

*Get a hive!*

I would consider getting a hive, if I were you. I know you need a queen, but maybe there is one there as well.


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## Cotton (Oct 12, 2013)

You can buy bee "pheromones" to bait a hive with. If you know where the "bee tree" is at, or even within 100 yards, you can capture the spring swam with a young queen.

http://www.dadant.com/catalog/queen-rearing-nuc-boxes-lures/honey-bee-lures

This isn't rocket science&#8230; folks have been doing this for thousands of years, not that hard. From "Dadant Beekeeping Supplies" you can get everything you need to start out. A little expensive the first go around but after a couple of seasons you'll be selling about $300 of honey per hive. The best part, the bee's do all the work!

I've posted before, my first attempt was a bit bumpy. Getting back into it this winter, getting 5 nuc boxes, and have located a wild hive to capture a swarm from in the spring, with a young queen.

Posted about it here.

http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f114/bees-close-28308/

Someone like "hashbrown" could give you even better advice!


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

Getting a hive is on my list, hopefully I'll get to it in the spring, I'm going to keep feeding when they show up in hopes that the hive will swarm on one of my fruit trees this spring.

I showed my daughters a swarm in one of them several years ago but I've hardly seen a bee since then. I'd like to get a hive of those guys, they're about as gentle a bee as I've ever seen - with the exception of a hive in my dads back yard I helped a friend catch last year. He rewarded me with 8 araucana chicks for the trouble.

I have another friend that keeps bees and between the two of them I likely wont have too much trouble coming up with a hive.



Cotton said:


> With that many coming in they are fairly close, probably less than 500 yards. If you sit in a chair and watch them come and go you can get the direction the bee tree is in. A tip, while they are lapping syrup sprinkle flour on them. A white dot is easy to see against trees as they fly away.
> 
> If you find the tree you can have a hive out for when they swarm in the spring.


Already did it, after they drink up their fill they lift off, circle 3 or 4 times and take off to the southwest. The only problem is that everything in that direction is posted private property - even the half mile ling drive way leading up to the house so finding the hive is going to be a nogo.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

Appreciate that info, will educate myself over the next few months and see if I can be ready.



Cotton said:


> You can buy bee "pheromones" to bait a hive with. If you know where the "bee tree" is at, or even within 100 yards, you can capture the spring swam with a young queen.
> 
> http://www.dadant.com/catalog/queen-rearing-nuc-boxes-lures/honey-bee-lures
> 
> ...


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