It warmed up today (into the 60s) and was very bright with a lot of sunshine. We noticed that several drones were going to and from the hive. In fact, it was easy to spot them. All we had to do was watch the hive entrance for a minute and we could easily see at least 3 or 4 drones during that amount of time. We don't know why we saw so many drones. Usually, we almost never see any.

It has been cold and rainy ever since we put on the new hive components. It may warm up to the high 60s or mid 70s in the day but drops to the mid 30s or low 40s in the night. This seems to kill a lot of bees. I guess that the ones returning home when the sun goes down must get too cold before they can get in the hive. Also those on the fringe of the cluster in the hive must die as we see the bees removing the dead (bees and even brood sometimes) during the day. It sorts makes for a mess in the apiary. The hive still seems strong as there are a lot of bees in it and a lot of flight activity with nectar and pollen returning during the day. We have noticed a problem with yellow jackets. My neighbors haven't landscaped their backyard yet and it has grown into tall weeds. my guess is that there is a large underground yellow jacket nest next door. I feel sorry for the poor landscape guy who stumbles across it with his lawnmower or weedwacker one of these days. Sometimes the bees will attack the yellow jackets and sometimes they just ignore them as if they are too busy to care. We always crush every yellow jacket we see around the hive (another good use for the hive tool). Besides, I'll admit my prejudice against those little devils. From being stung by them on my grandparents' farm in Runge,Texas as a kid, I figure I still can kill about 15 more before we are finally even.

We removed the miller feeder due to the fact that, even though it is screened and ventilated, it seemed to collect an awful lot of condensation during these cold nights on the underside of its clear Plexiglas bottom (which then dripped down onto the super frames). We just left the inner and outer covers on the super instead. The miller feeder will be put up until early spring.

Today we lit the smoker and unstacked all of the LH hive components. We moved each of the frames into my two new brood boxes carefully one frame at a time. We installed our new screen bottom board and two new hive bodies. We then put 10 new frames with foundation in the old hive body and stacked it on top of the new hive bodies. We put the super (full of honey) on that. We topped off the super with our Miller feeder, inner cover and telescoping outer cover. We threw away the old rotted bottom board. We also removed the nine frame spacers from the old bottom hive body and then threw it away. The LH looks better than ever with new and freshly painted parts.

We each wore our veils but Dustin wore only cut-offs and socks. I was a little smarter and wore a white sweat shirt, white warm-up pants, white socks and rubber gloves. When we started unstacking the hive, we soon had so many bees buzzing around us that it looked like volunteer dimple counters at a Palm Beach vote manufacturing err "vote re-counting" session. With so many bees being upset, it was only natural (and quite fitting I might add) that Dustin finally received his first sting of the year. It was about time they decided to sting him instead of me. He soon went and got on shoes and a shirt. We did notice, however, that there were several stingers embedded in the back of my sweat shirt when I changed clothes inside. That's just like those bees... try to do something nice for them and they "stab" me in the back. Must have been those few remaining liberal bees (probably have been listening to too much yellow jacket propaganda).

I completed construction of my new IPM/screen bottom board. It's been raining too much to mess with the hive but I'll install the new bottom board when it dries out some.

I began construction of a new IPM/screen bottom board very similar to that shown on the plans from Beesource.com. I will replace the old bottom board one my Langstroth hive with this new screened version once it's complete.

Completed construction of my lightweight Styrofoam deep brood chamber. My inspiration for this design came from an article "The Beehouse and its Beehive Part 5" by Dr. Bob Horr in the September 2000 edition of the American Bee Journal (pp 729-731). The deep brood box weighs only 7 lb (3.2 kg)!

We had to add wood strips on the underside of the miller feeder's Plexiglas to support it, These supports and a few more coats of clear silicon should have fixed the leak. We installed it back on top of the Langstroth hive to let the silicon caulk completely dry. Just as we were putting the top back on the hive, a thunderstorm approached. For the first time, I witnessed my bees' mad scramble to return to the hive before the rain struck. It was quite a sight to see with masses of bees diving to the hive entrance.

Dustin and I removed the miller feeder to repair the leak. We decided to use our smoker for the very first time ever since we bought it in June of this year. The bees are much more subdued when the smoker is going. We were going to put our new brood box between our two existing brood boxes but we put it on top of them instead. Mr. Stowe also told us it was time to remove our CheckMite+ strips as he had put them in earlier than he originally told us. We noticed that the frames in the upper brood box were entirely full of honey (and heavy).

We also removed the entrance reducer as the bees seem to be bringing in a lot of honey and pollen. The entrance was getting too crowded and bees couldn't get in and out very efficiently. The bees were in a holding pattern like the jets at Houston's Intercontinental Airport.

Dustin and I built a Miller type feeder and a deep brood box this weekend. We tested the feeder for leaks with water. Upon finding everything was ok, I installed it above the super. I put about 2 1/2 cups of sugar syrup in each side. I came back 30 minutes later and it was gone! So I refilled it with 4 cups of sugar syrup in each side and then found out that it has a leak as syrup started to run out of the bottom hive entrance. We decided to leave it alone and let the bees clean all the syrup up. Once its gone, I'll remove it and fix that darn leak! It is neat to be able to remove the upper covers and look down into the super (the feeder has a transparent bottom). The feeder also lets me fill it with no danger of the bees coming out of the top of the hive.

We plan to put the new deep brood box (with 10 new foundation-only frames) in between the upper brood box and the super. We're hoping the bees will draw out the foundation and maybe even start some brood in it. This would give us frames with which to start our Top Bar Hive and Observation Hive next spring.

Today was the last day for the top bar hive. Robber bees overpowered our weak hive, stole all of the honey and killed all of the remaining TBH bees. This leaves us with just the Langstroth hive. We'll probably just leave our bees in it this winter and start over in the TBH and OH next spring with package bees. I still want to make a Langstroth Hive that has observation windows. But first, I think I need to get a new bottom board for the LH. I want to get one that is screened and has a removable, slide out wood bottom tray. Maybe I'll just make one. I think I'll also make a Miller-type top feeder too.

The bees removed all of the honey from the frames in the observation hive and the top bar hive in one day! Wax cappings littered the floor of the observation hive. We swept it all out to discourage wax moth larvae. We removed all of the now empty frames and put them back into the honey super (now cleaned of all the burr comb and excessive propolis). We put the LH up on cinder blocks and added the empty honey super to the top of it. I got stung again today.

We removed each bar in the top bar hive and searched for our queen. She was no where to be found. All we found were combs of honey. With no queen, these bees are doomed.

We then decided to remove one of the honey supers from the LH and clean it so that the frames and box were free of propolis. We put three honey frames in the observation hive and the remaining six in the TBH. Robbing commenced during the process and we'll just let the bees clean out these 9 super combs. I got stung again today.

Dustin: Today we also saw a worker picking up and carrying off a wax moth larva and dropping it off in the grass. Good, I hope they rid the hive of them.

We got another hive today! Mr. Jim Stowe of the Montgomery County Beekeepers Association was kind enough to sell us one of his hives for only $50. The hive came complete with Buckfast queen and bees. It consists of:

• (2) deep brood boxes (with 9 fully drawn frames each)
• (2) medium super boxes (with 9 fully drawn frames each)
• a bottom board
• an inner cover
• a telescoping cover

He also treated the hive today with CheckMite+ strips and terramyacin. We'll have to remove the CheckMite+ strips in 6 weeks. Thanks Mr. Stowe for being so kind!

We drove Dustin's pickup out to one of Mr. Stowe's apiaries in Conroe and backed the truck up to within 10 feet of the hive. We all suited up and Mr. Stowe lit his smoker. We didn't end up needing it but it was a good precaution. We wrapped duct tape around all of the seams between each hive body to prevent them from separating on the way home. We then stuffed a rag in the entrance of the hive. Dustin and I lifted the hive into the back of the pickup. It was heavy! We placed a cement paver on the top cover. I made the mistake of removing my veil a little too soon and received a sting to the side of the forehead. It didn't hurt that much (my wife said she was surprised it hurt at all considering the bee stung me in my hard head). We then drove home slowly and stayed off the freeway. We got home and placed the hive in our apiary on some cinder blocks. We removed the duct tape and the rag from the entrance. We then filled an entrance feeder and fed the bees. So begins another new chapter in our beekeeping experiences.

I noticed that wax moth larva have invaded the hive once again. They hide in between the glass and the screen over the glass. They also spin webs around dead bees on the floor of the hive. I haven't seen any on the combs though. All of the capped brood cells are now uncapped. I suppose all of the young bees hatched.

I examined the combs today. The bees have started capping some of the honey and it seems we have capped brood and some previously capped cells that are now open. I hope this means bees are hatching.

I refilled the division board feeder. I scooped out the few bees that had drown and put a small ¹/₂" wide x ¹/₄" thick x 10"long piece of wood into the feeder to act as a float for the bees to climb back onto if they happen to fall into the syrup.

I also noticed some capped brood cells. Finally!

The bees have decided that the top of my water pond filter is the best place to get a drink of water. There's an entire pond to drink from but they want to drink off the lid of the filter instead. The water sprinkler leaves the lid with water on it each morning. I guess my bees prefer fluorinated and chlorinated water.

I finally posted some photos of our new 3-frame observation hive.

I decided to junk the Plexiglas cover for the TBH. It was too wide now that I have mounted the observation hive next to the TBH and made it difficult for me to get my svelte figure in between the two hives.. I found that the Plexiglas, although it was dark tinted, still allowed too much of the sun's rays to reach the hive. In fact, it's been so hot that the Plexiglas had begun to warp and became very brittle. I replaced the Plexiglas with two 1/2" thick sheets of Styrofoam insulation. This insulation is the type used in walls of houses and is coated with a thin plastic sheet on both sides. I put one sheet directly on top of the bars with four bricks holding it down at the corners. To this I added another sheet held down with four more bricks. This provides plenty of insulation (two Styrofoam sheets plus a 3" air gap) and weather (as if it's ever going to rain again) for the TBH. I plan to use this same material inside the cover doors for my OH.

Speaking of the observation hive, I finally developed my photos of the OH and began scanning them. Assuming my slave master wife doesn't pester me with too many chores, I should have them posted on the web site this week. Feel free to email her and let her know how she should really try to take it easier on her old man. Just don't tell her I told you to do so (I still want to be able to sleep at night without having to keep one eye open). I still need to figure out a way to get some bees for my OH.

I removed one of the TBH's bars today to trim it as the bees were not obeying my specific instructions and had begun to attach a comb to the screen covering the window. After a quick trim and a thorough scolding of the bees, I replaced the bar. It did, however, appear that some of the bees had the same sneer on their faces that I see when I ask one of my yard lizards children to take out the trash. In my 16 years of parenting, I've noticed that children and generally most cats seem to have the same general disregard for my explicit instructions. Now my bees better not start in on me! While in the hive, I also noticed that the queen was doing fine and many of the combs were full of honey and pollen.

The robber bees found the observation hive and invaded it. They maliciously and without regret killed all of my remaining OH bees. I couldn't even find a trace of the OH queen. Not only did they wantonly commit murder, but they also have a warrant for grand theft as they cleaned out a full quart of the sugar water. Well the OH is as empty as Hillary Clinton's bed head for now. From the school of hard knocks, that's more lessons learned.

The top bar hive is, however, very active. The bees continue to build comb like Al Gore raising funds at a temple and are storing both honey and pollen faster than China can store US nuclear secrets . They seem to guard their hive well (obviously, US nuclear labs could learn something here) and it seems that the hive has a very good division of labor (comrade).

The TBH seems to be doing well. The bees are busy building comb like crazy and I saw many foragers returning with loads of pollen.

The Observation Hive seems Janet Reno'd confused. The bees are all just standing around the queen on the middle frame. They don't seem to be going up to feed from the jar nor do they seem to be building any combs. In fact, I haven't seen one bee enter or leave the hive. Well, there goes the corporate Sue Bee honey endorsement money. I guess they'll have to give back all those miniature honey bear squirt bottles.

We let the queens out of their cages in both hives. We put the top frame back on the observation hive and removed the bottom frame. We also removed the screen over the entrance. This was in an effort to let the bees find the entrance for the OH. Tomorrow we'll put the bottom frame back in the hive so that the OH will have all three frames.

I am still amazed at the gentleness of our bees. We worked them today in only shorts (it was 100F!), no shoes, no shirt, no veil and no gloves (no underwear -- oops). The bees crawled all over my hands and landed on my arms and legs but never stung me or Dustin.

I received the two Starline queens by USPS Express Mail service at about 8:30 AM this morning. The queens were each in a queen cage with attendant bees. There were placed inside of a plain 8.5" x 11" Express Mail envelope. The envelope had holes punched (with a standard hole puncher) around 3 of its edges. I'm amazed they survived being mailed like this. I had read that queens will make a clicking sound when in their cages and it's true they do! And no I wasn't hearing things or in a state of delirium (this time).

This evening, at about 5:30 PM, Dustin and I installed the queens in the hives. So, as of today, we are starting over with two hives. I think we have learned enough to make a go of it with the TBH, but we'll have to plenty to learn to make a success of the observation hive. 

Somehow I hope to split the few bees I have remaining. One group will go into the observation hive with one of the queens. I'll put on the entrance feeder and screen the entrance to keep them in with her for a few days. (Hmm, reminds me of my honeymoon, plenty to drink and locked up in a condo with my new wife for 3 days.)

The other queen will join the remaining bees in the top bar hive. I'm feeding my remaining bees via a division board feeder in the rear of the hive. I'm also feeding "all comers" via the entrance feeder I mounted on a shelf. This seems to be reducing the amount of bee deaths at the hive due to fighting. At this point, I need each and every bee I have.

I called my supplier (York Bee) and told them my tale of woe. They said that I could :

1. Get a refund of my purchase (minus the $13 shipping) or
2. Wait a couple of weeks to see if the weather could cool off a little so they could try another shipment (and pay $13 for shipping again) or
3. Wait until March/April of next year and consider this an early payment.

I decided to give it a couple of weeks to see if they'll be able to ship again.

In the mean time, I built what I think is a neat 3-frame observation hive. I'll post photos of it soon. I want to thank Barry Birkey for making available plans for an observation hive on his web site (beesource.com). Although I didn't follow his plans exactly, they certainly made it easy to add a few minor modifications. I'll post my plans soon here.

Now, if I could only get a queen and some bees.....

I called York Bee and ordered another 3 lb package of bees with a new Midnite queen (marked and clipped). If the weather cooperates, they will ship the bees on 8/8/00 and I should get them on 8/11/00.

Hopefully, we've learned our hard lessons and this new package will survive the remaining summer months and through the winter.

This time we are going to do some things different.

• We will use only a division board feeder located in the rear of the hive this time. The entrance feeder just seemed to promote robbing and bee fighting. (It's like parking your Lexus in East LA with the keys in the ignition.)
• We will make the entrance opening even smaller, approximately 3/4" x 1". This will make the hive interior easier to defend.
• We will place 4 standard frames in the middle of the hive for the bees to use to build their brood comb. We just can't risk brood comb falling off the bars again.
• We will leave top bars for the remainder of the hive. All of the top bars have been retrofitted with beeswax-coated wooden strips that have been nailed into slots in the top bars.
• We won't be opening the hive any more than absolutely necessary. Now that the hive has had interior lighting installed (and the Beetter Hives and Gardens folks have finished the photo shoot), we'll just view the bees through the observation window from now on. (OK yes, I am a bee voyeur, but at least I didn't watch Survivor or Big Brother on TV.) This will put less stress on the bees and keep out robbers.

As we said we are just "beeginners" and evidently haven't quite made that jump to "beekeepers". Well next week we'll go back to being "bee-havers".

Maybe I'll build a bracket that I can  install on the fence that will accept my entrance feeder.

The interior chain lights work perfectly and really allow me to see easily into the hive. The bees haven't begun drawing comb on the frames and I doubt they ever will unless they can raise some new bees.

Late this afternoon, I cleaned out the front yard bird bath and dumped the honey from the first fallen combs in it for the bees to find.

Well, I've had the bees for a month now and unfortunately, they are probably worse off than when I first got them. I have learned a lot in this short time however and hope that August will prove to be a better month for the bees. With a new cover arrangement that keeps the hive cooler and frames with foundation for the brood chamber, I hope to increase their strength.

PS. Saw my first bats in the neighborhood at 9 pm tonight. I saw perhaps a dozen. They would fly at small rocks thrown up into the air. It reminded me of sea gulls going after popcorn. Guess I will start that bat house project after all.