❸ Rooftop hive: First inspection in 7 years!
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- Опубліковано 6 лют 2025
- S03E26 Helping a new beekeeper take over a hive that has not been managed in 7 years! I was expecting the worst but we got a very pleasant surprise. The hive bodies were rotten and had collapsed partially into the bottom board. The bees were using an entrance where the hive rotted and broke open. I've limited cutting stuff out to share with the beekeeper!
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Some of the links may contain affiliate links, which I may earn a small commission on, if purchases are made through that link. This will not add to your price. Thanks for your support. - Наука та технологія
I didn’t miss a second of it and now I’m watching your other videos. Your personality does it for me. Very compatible to mine.
Thanks so much for watching and taking the time to comment!
I am understanding that bees have survived without treatment for 7 years! Amazing what bees can do without human intervention!
@@suzanneguiho4882 they are incredible! They may have swarmed or even died out but another swarm may have found it and that hive was still going!
@@BrianCooper901 I am sure that they have swarmed. Could be that there were dead outs but more came. That is their normal cycle of life especially with varoa threated bees🤷♀️
Those genetics must be amazing
We did a mite wash in a following video and they are pretty amazing!
@@BrianCooper901translation for layperson? Lol
@@angelmartin7310 Varroa mites are a big pest and disease vector for honey bees and one of their biggest threats to their survival right now. We sampled about 300 bees to get a percentage of mites on the bees. If that number is low they must be managing them somehow (genetics?) If that number is too high the hive can collapse and die. I hope that clears that up if not let me know. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
I found that initially you feel bad and try your best not to crush any but in a hive that has 20,000 bees you have to accept it's going to happen, if there ever was a colony that needed more space it's that one, great job.
Thanks for commenting! We did get a chance to add a super the following week.
What wonderful mentorship, well done. I find that sometimes, Beekeepers eat their own young and can be quite mean, especially on social media. This was a very informative video and I really appreciate how supportive and kind you are with your mentee. Thankyou :)
Thank you for the kind words! I appreciate you taking the time to comment.
I have had the pleasure of dealing with two abandoned hives. One was abandoned in a woods, had definitely died at some point, and had a swarm move in. Your literally have hive components disintegrating as you try to free the frames. The frames themselves can often snap and come apart!
I'm impressed as how careful you were with the old hive parts. I would recommend phasing out the old frames. You can do that by running half of the old frames and half of box as new frames. You have to add a second deep box for each box in the hive, but it lets them draw out the new stuff so you can phase out the old stuff during spring/autumn consolidations.
I came into the inspection thinking it would be a cut out like what you experienced. I'm glad they were in such good shape. I like the plan to cycle out the frames and I was hoping to get a lot of that old comb out. The trick here is that our bees seem to stop building out comb after the summer solstice as the flow ends. I'm not sure if you saw the next video that relates to this hive or not but we ended up having to make a split so we have the hopes they will build out some new comb in the second hive but we will see. The plan is to pull all the old stuff out in the spring and get them on new comb like you mentioned by alternating comb with foundation then when that's drawn pull out the drawn comb where we can. Thanks for taking the time to share your experience and commenting.
You're a very good and patient teacher! Good job!
Thank you! I appreciate you taking the time to comment.
If you can split the boxes before pulling frames the combs come out way easier.
We tried. The boxes and frames were so propolised together we could not separate the two. It was rather hard just doing a frame at a time with 7 years of propolise fusing them together. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
Surprised there wasn't more bridging. Kudos for being gentle with the hive and bees. Bees are really amazing creatures.
I was surprised to find it in the shape it was too. I am really glad it wasn't in worse shape but we prepared for the worst. The bees are amazing and that hive is still alive and doing well the last time I visited. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
I knew that guy was gonna get stung from the minute I realized the guy who knew what he was doing was fully suited. Stings hurt. Suit up!
He learned!
I usually dont wear a suit just a veil as my bees are very chilled out, I got a swarm in one of my traps and I knew they were not any of my bees, the very second I lifted the trap off the cleat there was action and I got about four or five stings in the same second, I jumped off the ladder and just made it in time to my vehicle and got suited up, by the time I got back out it seemed as though the whole trap had emptied and they were bumping me, I managed to get them into a box and walked about a quarter of mile away before they left me, the spines on the headveil of my suit and the suit was covered in stingers, I left them until nightfall then went back and sealed them up and moved them to an area well away from my colonies, I re-queened them as I was certain they were Africanised, it worked and I eventually had a chilled colony, I suit up everytime I go near a swarm trap now!
@@AndrewAHayesI am a new person and just started learning about the basics -I am interested in the Africanize 🐝 bees and how can you tell if they are the Africanize type- thanks! Your friend-Meloni
@@AndrewAHayes
It's nice you are teaching someone how to do the job
Full of honey what is the difference between drown larva and mites larva
@@angelalott9370 I think I started saying something and got distracted in the video about that! If I'm understanding the question the Drone larvae typically attract more varroa mites. Since the drones are typically between the frames when you do an inspection you break those cells open and you can see if there are mites on the drones. If you see several there is a good chance there is a mite infestation. If that's not what you were asking let me know and I'll try to answer your question. Thanks for watching and commenting.
@Angela Lott Thanks! As part of our local beekeeping club we offer to mentor new beekeepers and this is my first year doing so. This situation was a little different as I actually found the hive and worked to find out who was managing it to be able to make this happen. It's been a very good experience so far and I think he's going to be a very good beekeeper. Thanks for watching and commenting.
I’ve been learning as much as I can about this but I’ve got to say this video had me hooked. I didn’t miss a second of it and now I’m watching your other videos. Your personality does it for me. Very compatible to mine. Thank you so much for your videos and knowledge!! 🤗🤗🤗
I'm glad you enjoyed the video. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
Unbelievable the shape this hive is in.
It was a lot better than I expected! Thanks for watching!
Those are some very sucsessful, happy bees. Amazing!!! 7 years?!?!?! Mind blown.
I know!! I was very impressed with what we found. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Seriously intense in the middle. Lovely!
Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
I've watched dozens of these videos over the years and I actually learned a lot from this video. Thank you.
That means a lot! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment.
Man, does this bring back memories. A local lady inherited a colony from her brother that hadn't be messed with for about the same length of time -- maybe 6 or 7 years. She didn't know much about bees, so I coached her like this fellow is doing. I brought along several of my boxes to transfer the combs into temporarily. They were in 3 deeps and all were in good shape except for wax and propolis which she took to her garage to clean. Then after several weeks we put them in the original boxes. We added a medium super of foundation onto the 3 deeps for the bees to fill with honey. It was late June or early July so a flow was just about to start. We lived in a area of western Montana where there was nothing but knapweed for miles around. It is considered a noxious weed, but it makes great honey. Thanks for the video. Cheers, Bob
I'm glad I could bring back some memories for you! Thanks for sharing your story that is awesome!
What a very calm hive
For the work we were doing they were very calm especially at the beginning. Thanks for watching!
I always look forward to your videos... great job and great presentation. Beautiful area ....
Thanks Greg! And thank you for taking the time to comment, I appreciate it.
Thank you so much.Your video and recording kills are the best BEST I have view 2 years. I have learned more in just one of your video when I had In 2 years of others combined..your video filming skills and explaining smis are unbelievable. Thank you so much.your honesty and communication is great
Thank you! It's always great to hear that my videos have helped. Thanks for taking the time to watch and comment.
❤;b b😂😂😂😂
Just found your channel. I'm a bee fan, but not a beekeeper. I watch a ton of beekeeping UA-camrs, and I learned more in this video than I have in quite a while. You earned a subscription.
Thanks so much! That means a lot. I appreciate you watching, subscribing and taking the time to comment. Thanks for being a bee fan too, that can be just as important as being a beekeeper.
If you're a bee fan, then I encourage you to visit a local bee keeping group. That will be that, you'll be hooked!
@BrianCooper901 ya I subscribed because of this video also
@@tarampryce1372Me too!!!☝️
AMAZING video and great information even for people who want to just sit and admire what you all Bee Angles do. I want so bad to put bees on my land but I know physically I cant lift that stuff but I sure love seeing your videos and learning. Great work .
That is so nice of you to say. Thanks so much for watching and taking the time to comment!
Thank you for making these great videos. It's always a pleasure to watch @@BrianCooper901
You could always try with a Long Langstroth horizontal hive. That way you never have to lift a box, just one frame at a time.
I totally agree with that recommendation!
This was an absolutely fantastic video - thank you so much for sharing this. I have to admit to being super invested in the journey of this person and their beekeeping journey!
Glad you enjoyed it! I'll keep recording when we go up there so I can keep sharing. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Thanks!
Thank you! Your superchat is my first and I really appreciate it!
I was literally waiting for you to step in that tray of water through the whole video. Amazed that you didn't 🤣🤣🤣
Luckily missed it this time around! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
I use a wipe on water based polyester clear coat for my hives, I like to keep the natural wood colour.
Wow those boxes are full of bees, I guess you will be making splits very soon!
I love the look of the wood when it is stained or just has poly. Our observation hive is stained with poly. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
Excellent video! What an amazing young man. He gained so much confidence throughout the project, a joy to watch. You are An excellent beekeeper and an amazing instructor! Thank you both for this wonderful video! God Bless the bees!
Thank you very much! That mean's a lot I really appreciate you taking the time to comment.
Anyway when you pull that stinger out use a little bit of mud on the stinger site this will pull the Poison out I've been using this mainly for yellow jackets stinges. My wife and I went out on a hike 🚶♂️ she got s9
Good tip! I'll give that a try next time. It's tricky on the roof top hive since we have no mud but I can try that at home. Thanks for watching!
Awesome video. Only thing working around the ole container on the ground with water in it was killing me lol
Haha! I probably should have moved it! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
Seven years with no check and those bees must be super healthy. Id love to get my hands on some like that.
There is a good chance they swarmed several times, but this is probably like having a hive in a tree with a good size cavity. We are lucky enough to have them not too far from us so hopefully we are getting some of their genetics in our bees. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
I liked the video! Keep up the good work. It's always nice to see a new beekeeper being helped out and taught new skills.
Thank you I appreciate the kind words and you taking the time to comment and share your experiences.
wow what a spectacular hive
It was pretty incredible to dive into! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
These are so calm. Kenyan genetics are no joke....tough and agressive
We were glad to see they weren't too bad. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Aim for success, not perfection. Never give up your right to be wrong, because then you will lose the ability to learn new things and move forward with your life.
Well said thank you!
Fantastic ! Such an informative video, I love bees. Thank you both for sharing this with us. 😊
Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
Beekeeping intrigues me i wouldn’t mind getting into keeping a hive, keep up the good work
I'd encourage you to do it if you are interested. It's been really rewarding. Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@BrianCooper901
I am thinking about it I live in the in the countryside in the UK so loads of pollinating plants around me,
I got interested after having to buy a bee suit remove a big wasp nest from our garden
This was super interesting. Lots to learn and see. I would love to have bees In my garden and make a wild flower garden also as my grounds back onto public/family green space and our small stream so I could put the wild garden on the public land that covers the outlet grass. Something to consider.
I had wanted bees for a long time before I got them. If you can find a local bee club to get involved in they could help you on your way to becoming a beekeeper! It sounds like you have a perfect place to keep bees. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
At first I was a little sus. But, it's in insanely good condition for 7 long years. Edge to edge, both sides, capped honey is a beautiful thing.
I was very surprised at how good of shape the hive was in! I was fully expecting to have to do a cut out and transfer. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
Cool video but i had to look away some because of all the motion. Got sea sick 😊 Thanks for sharing the experience
Sorry for all the motion! Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Great video great job thanks
Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
A newbie of seven whole years has got to be the record for being a newbie lol. I'm glad he's trying to learn now but you probably have to be okay with getting a bee sting or two? 😂 And please get that honey!
We did end up getting some of the honey in some follow up inspections. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
Did you ever hear if it swarmed after they got to their new home?
It appeared they had swarmed recently before we ever got into the hive. It's safe to assume they swarmed several times since they had not been inspected in 7 years. They are doing fine as of today. We did do a mite check and harvested some honey which I've included in some other videos that I put in the playlist for it. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
I am new to watching your video n will watch more. I am interested n just watching videos and thats it lololol. Im extremely petrified of them as i watched my own mother get stung by a nest of under ground yellow jackets. The size of the nest was about 5,000. I will NEVER forget the screams and seeing her covered. Was very horrifying as a 9 y.o. 2 yrs later my brother put a piece of wood over a bumblebee hole in the ground just under the water spout. My stepdad told me to go take it off n i told him, Glen(my brother) put it there make him take it off. My step still told me to so i done it. I was nailed by one of those huge bees not once butvtwice on the upper lip just under my nose. My mom hadnt been home at the time or she would have had my uncle come take care of them. She was so made at my step. Your probably wondering, why didnt step go n remove it. He is almost blind soooooo, yeah. Anyways the next day my mom ended taking me to the er cuz in the mean time it looked like i had been physically abused lol. I was hugely ugly swollen bloodied(yes bloodied) and bruising had started. They did see the bite marks (which saved my moms butt lol) cuz the hospital HAD called CPS. They didnt start a case. Just told my mom to follow up like the dr said. The stings had been so harsh. These 2 incidents has left this woman fearing bees for the rest of my life. Watching killerbee guy (Reed) has gotten me to the just watching n thats it. My fear is sooooo raw. My friends have watched me panick, shaking, sweating over a couple bees near me. I run for cover. Ive had to be put on meds for this to calm me. Watching more n more of different videos as well helps me to relax. Watching your friend on this vid made me cringe. Hope he was ok. Sorry for the story book lolololol. Just sharing.
Thanks for sharing your story! I'm glad our videos can help you get through some of that trauma! I have strong memories of getting stung by several yellow jackets when I was a kid.
In the brood chamber you turn the 3rd 4th and fifth frame opposite direction.
The reason the last one was a problem
Good catch!
Noticed that too.
Man how exciting this would be, but man, I know I would be DREADING the propolis absolutely cementing everything together.
It was rather exciting. I had fully expected it to be a cut out after being in there for so long.
some of the comments on this are wild 😂 anyway this was such a great video, i still hope to keep bees someday when i have my own house so i've been eating up all the youtube content i can. this video taught me so much. i'm also really glad to see knowledge being shared so freely and so well, and to see someone step up to do a job like this just because it needs doing! the kids are alright. thank you for sharing this video! can you explain more about laundering the stingers in clothing, i'm very curious about it. do the stingers themselves get into your other clothes and re-sting you to make you allergic? do you have to sit and pick them out so they don't stay in your washing machine?
Thanks for taking the time to watch and even read all the comments! I realize I didn't cover the laundering well enough, so that is a great question. If you wash your bee suit with other family members clothes they could get low doses of bee venom and have an allergic reaction when they get a larger dose (a regular bee sting,) at least that is my understanding and what I have heard. I do not know how common it is but I always take the precaution and I typically wait for all the laundry to get washed then I wash my suit last and separately and I open the washing machine to allow it to dry fully. We typically do laundry once a week so this gives it several days to dry out. I believe all that is really required is to not wash them in the same load but we are attempting to be extra safe. Thanks again for taking the time to comment.
I wanted to add if you have the opportunity you may want to seek out a local bee club to gain some experience before you get bees. Our club has an apiary for folks to gain hands on learning.
@@BrianCooper901 thanks for replying! hmm i can see how that might happen with the bee venom, better to be safe than sorry. that's a good idea, i will definitely look in my area for beekeeping clubs so i can see some of these fascinating things in person.
Very interesting video, thanks!
Very slow, gentle bees. Was it a cold day?
Typically, I find that when there's a lot of cross-combing, I do much less damage by cutting between the frames with a long, sharp knife such as a thin bread knife. Prying frames apart increases the risk of tearing large lumps of comb out of the frames. It all depends on how much cross comb there is, to be honest.
It was warm that day I think they were just calm until we got into the brood chamber. Great tip on not tearing large clumps of comb!
@@BrianCooper901
Thanks!
My tiny black feral bees here in Tasmania are cross-comb champions! My inspections take ages due to the work I have to keep doing to keep the cross comb in order! My friends keep telling me to get a new queen, but my girls are so well adapted and productive that I just put up with them being a bit grumpy and making all that cross comb. I just work with what I have, to be honest, and it's fun!
No parasites/beetles at all? Wonder if it had to do with the propolis build up, the location, dumb luck, or obviously the strength of the colony
I think with all our inspections we only saw 2 small hive beetles, but we did see wax moths at one point. It may just be a combination of all the things you listed. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
I know nothing about beekeeping but I've always been curious and wondered if i might have a piece of land where i could keep a hive in the future. From a complete newbie's perspective, this was a really fascinating process to watch. I'm curious if they have boxes that keep fewer frames to control the weight when you have to move them (you mentioned 8, but maybe 6 would be more my speed). I'm disabled and joint and nerve damage prevents me from lifting heavy things.
They do make 6 frame boxes that are plastic and styrofoam (Apimaye) but they are bit more expensive. I use 8 frame boxes personally some use all medium boxes as well to reduce the weight. I also use 5 frame boxes to make nucs to sell to folks in our area but they may get tall. If you have the space I would really consider a horizontal hive also known as a long langstroth hive. They use regular frames but when you lift the lid you have access to the entire hive and it's only the depth of 1 frame so the most weight you are lifting at any time is 1 frame. www.horizontalbeees.com has many great hives available if you decide to go that route. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Dang, too bad you snuffed that queen cell. Perfect candidate for a walk away split. But anyway, at least you've got an aromatic bee box to set up a swarm trap. Swarming usually runs heavy every other year, and this is the "on" year. Nice vid, thanks for sharing.
I agree. I didn't realize that cell was charged and it was my mistake not looking. I didn't realize it until I saw the royal jelly on his fingers later. Luckily there was a queen in here and laying well. He didn't have any extra equipment at the time either to make a split unless we broke the whole setup in half which would have been possible but we lacked a bottom board that was intact. Thanks for watching and for commenting.
@@BrianCooper901 Actually you don't need a bottom board. Just close off the bottom completely, and use a shim to flip to a top entrance. I use a top entrance on all my equipment. It just solves so many potential problems. Food for thought, if you ever find yourself in that situation again. Thanks for responding.
@@davidmiller6010 That's a great idea! Thanks for sharing that I'll keep that in mind if I get in another situation like that.
Man man man I feel so bad for this kid
Do the drones do anything besides servicing the Queen
Awesome 7 year colony with multiple swarms. I would guess at least 3 a season and still healthy and striving. Some say that they won’t make it without treatments. Awesome! What part of the world are you in?
These hives are in West TN USA. I think the swarming and brood breaks are probably what helped it out. I'm not sure if you saw the other videos with the alcohol wash to check for mites or not but it was impressive to see how well they are doing.
@@BrianCooper901 I’m in the process of looking at all of your vids.
@@timothymitchell8310 Thanks!
Makes the young guy so all the grunt work. Lol
Oh yea! I do the teaching and he can do the learning and lifting!
They are the calmest bees I’ve ever seen.
They were very calm at the beginning but were a little more defensive as we got to the bottom but we did move their entire home so I would probably be defensive at that point too. Thanks for watching!
Great spot !
Thanks 👍
Looks like that’s at the university of Memphis. Would love to come see the hive sometime
That wouldn't be my call but I can ask to see what may be possible.
Right. I see Richardson Tower in the back and heard the train and low flying planes. Has to be U of M. I'd love to come by too.
I just wanna know what brand of frames those are! Can't believe how well they held up. Really awesome video through and through!
It appeared the original setup was all Mann Lake equipment.
PPE guys! 😊
Always! Thanks for watching!
You can tell this guy shas ready some beekeeping books and watched a bunch of UA-cam videos but hasn't been working with bees for very long.
The guy in the video it was his first time in a hive. The guy filming is a 3rd year beekeeper.
7 years l would say some resistant to the mites
Absolutely! We did a mite check later in the year and they did not require any treatment (there is a video in the playlist.) I do believe some of this is helped by them swarming which provides them a brood break. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
nice video
Thank you!
He needs to be taught how to use the flat side of the hive tool to “fulcrum”one frame away from the other, like the method you seem to be using. Using the “J” end to separate the frames will weaken, then rip the top bars off. Teach him the correct way, like the method you’re using, to separate the frames. Like you told him in the very beginning, use the “J” hook, away from the ends of the frame, to lift the already loosened frames out of the box. 😊
Thanks for sharing. I'll be sure to reiterate that to him next time. He seemed to be a very quick learner.
@@BrianCooper901, you are a very kind man to be helping him so much; its not always easy to find a willing mentor. Mine had lots he wanted to teach me, but he had a stroke and died a couple of months in-tried, but couldn't get another one assigned to me.
So, he's blessed to have you, and may blessings come your way for your loving heart.
@@Phyllistinegm I'm sorry to hear that about your mentor. Thanks for the kind words.
When i only wear the sleves i always get stung i. Thebsame place... i think i squish em when i bend my arm and they light me up
They seem to know where to find the skin and let you know really quick! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
Very calm bees
They did start out extremely calm and only got a little defensive when we got to the bottom, but that was to be expected with a hive that size. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Upper ventilation has proven to be unnecessary, the bee control the air flow and moisture levels in the hive. Top insulation is now recommended year round.
Is that everywhere? I've heard Fredrick Dunn say that about NW PA. I do like the idea of top insulation year round. I find if there is a queen excluder on it's good to have an upper entrance (through the ventilation hole) so the bees don't have to pass through the excluder and damage their wings. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
Love that you helped this guy good vid. What I question is how in the hell did this dude get a hive in the first place? He clearly did ZERO research before getting a colony. Like how the F do you not how to use a hive tool and have A HIVE for 7 freaking years good lord.
@Jason B Sorry I may not have been clear enough in the video to talk about the history of the hive. This is at a university so the hive was put there by a different person in the department and I don't recall if the original person moved on or did not have time for it. The new beekeeper has always observed them but didn't have the knowledge or opportunity to get in the hive to inspect them. This was his first ever inspection on a hive that he decided to take on and begin managing. I was actually impressed at his composure throughout the experience since it was his first time being in a hive. Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@BrianCooper901 I too was impressed with his passion for the bee's. He did a really great job on his first time in the box and I think he will be teaching other newbees in the near future. And don't get me wrong, I'm no expert as I'm only a few months ahead of him in my own learning curve. Btw, Great video! I Look forward to more like it.
@@BrianCooper901 Amazing Job Sir. That makes more since.
It's strange that you prop the lids, in the UK we have lids that have two mesh vents that also stop robbers getting in.
Several folks actually offset the boxes here as well to let the bees get more air through the hive. The humidity is often 80% here so I feel like it helps but I don't know for sure if that's true. I figured as much attic space as I can give them as a buffer from the sun would also be beneficial.
Why didnt you put the new empty super under the full super so you force the bees to go to the empty new super. I always rotate the full supers to the top of the hive so the bees will have to travel through the new super.
I believe that is what we ended up doing. That's my preferred way as well they draw it out faster that way. Thanks for watching!
@BrianCooper901 I've been a bee keeper for over 40 years so I see just about everything. But I do enjoy your videos.
That's awesome you've been in it for so long! Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Humans like to think we are necessary for everything but for some reason forget these creatures were surviving long before us.😂😂😂
@@BrianGenX75 yea they seem to be able to survive without much input.
@@BrianCooper901 still appreciate your education on them! Super interesting. Hugs sir!
No way that hasn't been opened in 7 yrs .I'd bet my left nut
I have worse hives after one season. I also have a 2016 inner cover and it's literally falling apart, these frames aren't even dark from bees walking on them .
Well I have been beekeeping 4 years and all I know is what I was told by the person that works there. I think it being on the roof may be helping prevent rotting. There were several frames that were very dark and one that was broken. I was expecting worse too. Thanks for commenting.
My question is why has no one touched it in 7years? That's crazy.
This is at a university and I think the person that started them originally may have moved on. This person was willing to step up and take it over luckily.
@@BrianCooper901 So some guy that whent to the university had bees there, but then left 7 years ago. Then the bees been alone for 7 years before this guy decided to take over the responsibility of them? That kinda explaines it.
I have to say I find it really unresponsible of the last beekeper to just leave them there without getting someone to take over first. Same goes for the university, they should have called someone inn to take over the bees at this spot or to transport them to another apiary.
Awesome that this guy is taking over and really cool to se that amount of bees and resources. I been looking in to beekeping for years and as soon as I got a home on a property that allows it I'm getting me a few hives.
@@SindreEide93 I don't clearly know the full history of the hive and only discovered it myself recently and many others on campus didn't know it existed. I'm just glad there is a good steward involved in it's upkeep and I'll do everything I can to help him learn how to maintain the hive.
I hope you find a place soon so you can get started! We are in town so are somewhat limited but I think some of the best forage is in parts of the city.
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
@@SindreEide93lots of assumptions there. What if the original person did arrange a new caretaker and its that person that hasn't followed through.
The only solid ground here is the positive that these two people have taken up the call and doing a great job.
Why you standing in front of the hive?
Not a lot of bee wax . Hive bodies look good like it was just painted 😮. Was the hive empty for 7!years and bees just found it about 2 months ago because it looks really nice
From what I've been told there were bees occupying the hive since it was put there. Judging by the lack of pest damage I think that very well may have been the case! Thanks for watching.
I would shake out all the bees from the super and put a new super with all empty frames and harvest all that honey then , put the empty frames back on with the old super box
Did you get a chance to see the next video? The goal of that day was just to get them in new equipment. Checkout the rest of the playlist for what we did next!
@@BrianCooper901 It was great to get such a strong hive given. That was a lot of value. Yes I did watch all the videos. Big disappointment that the split didn't work out well. I need to watch that one again and see how the split failed. I will be making splits this next spring
What camera setup are you using? I need a good quality hive inspection camera because I cannot remember everything going through them and this is really good video quality and you have both hands free
I have a DJI Osmo action 1. The 2 was weird and it looks like the Osmo action 3 looks like the 1 that I have. It never overheats and the batteries were cheaper than the GoPros. They share the same mount as all the others so you can get a universal kit that has the chest mount. I use just the chest mount strap not the shoulder straps as they are too cumbersome. That's why I started doing it to review what I was doing and sometimes look at it before the next inspection to see what needed to be done. Good notes help out a lot too. Thanks for watching!
😂😂😂 I was wondering why you didn't tell him about that short sleeve shirt.
He learned!
Is this Memphis? The buildings in back coupled with the nearby train and low plane noise sounds as if you're on the campus of The University of Memphis.
@sk8queen That's a good guess!
I don't think he's ready for beehive he's not into it like you think he is but he did a nice try I mean you got all those cubes but he's mad because he got stung and he said they'll deal with it you don't change the setting you keep it all the same he's not sure that the bees are smart but they're also OCD they like everything their way it will change😊
Thanks for the reply! The responsibilities of caring for the hives dropped into his lap and this was his first time ever in a hive. He has learned quite a bit since then and seems to be doing well. Thanks for watching!
It really seems like youtube has downgraded 1080p quality, unless you PAY.
It may be my camera? It is a bit older but seems to be crisp on my screen.
Really smart put a t-shirt on and working with bee's really smart nice
He told me he had a suit but couldn't find it. I think he ended up doing fine.
I heard him saying he doesn't need one right
Sleeves kid sleeves!!!!
He has learned! It was his first time in the hives ever.
Don’t wear dark colours or sunglasses when handling bees ( because they instinctively think you are a bear or other large animal).
No sudden jerky movements, slow and steady and they will barely notice you.
Good tips thank you!
Them being fine for 7 years certainly raises the mite and SHB question. Based on what everyone says about that stuff, those bees shoulda been wiped out at the 3-4 year mark.
They are very impressive!
Making things sound so much difficult than they are
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
@@BrianCooper901 you're welcome 😒
The smoke doesn’t seem to calm them down
It had been a long time since they had been inspected and we were probably really upsetting them.
For those who are new to these videos, would it bee possible to break down common items in video? Please
I'm not sure I fully understand what common items you may be referring to. If you can expand on what you are looking for and I'll see what I can do! Thanks
New goals!!! I am gonna do 10 long term hives!!! I am gonna let them sit for 10 years. I am gonna open them all on the first year, than 9 of them the next year and do that till I have it where I open one hive a year and they will be 10 years old.
Interesting idea.
In today's environment you will be extremely lucky if you don't lose the hives. With the mites ,hive beetles wax moths and wasting disease if you don't inspect and treat your hives especially for mites you may not have many hives survive over a few seasons.
Another concern is swarming, a hive left for the period of time you are talking about may become weak from swarming and produce multiple queens and swarm out or leave the hive so weak they can't produce enough nectar or honey to survive the winter.
I wonder why the hive was neglected for 7 years?
I don't know the full backstory unfortunately but I'm just glad there's a new beekeeper that'll be taking care of them.
Do there come a follow up?😮
Hopefully we can do one soon. We did one that we did not video just to confirm the eggs were capped workers and they were. It was a quick in and out. I'll be sure to record the next one to share. Thanks for watching.
These guys work like 3 years old child. Look how he's holding his tools😅
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Why not harvest on this day?
I fully expected to be doing a cut out to get them in new equipment. I'm surprised it went as well as it did. I didn't even consider we would be able to harvest at that time.
I like to twist the boxes to break them. It keeps frames from coming up
That's a good technique. I forget to do that from time to time.
It’s hard to keep focus when you got a bunch of bees around lol. I do dumb stuff all the time lol
Does that not crush many bees?
This hive is so crowed it will most likely swarm if you dont split it.
I believe it had already swarmed judging by the amount of brood but if you watch the next video we did run into a need to split.
Where did you find this helper man😅
It was the first time he had ever been in a hive of bees. We all have to start somewhere.
I wish I knew what the “technical” bee 🐝 keeper terminology is but maybe when you use a word you can explain what it means when you use them in a video please sir
I'll try my best to explain in a little more detail as I do future videos. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment.
Find the queen!what is he?! All he thinks is honey
Folks get into bees for different reasons. I think the question was about honey but his real excitement is with the biology of the bees.
Cool!
Thanks for watching!
Really cool video. But C'mon Brian do you really have extra colonies to sell? 😂😂😂 That makeshift pond is why architects and structural engineers dont sleep well at night. Talk about an unexpexted point load. Maybe they planned for it since there was a greenhouse close by.
Haha yes it's a big one! Luckily the roof structure is concrete!
Where did this take place?
West TN
Why isn’t the guy that is learning wearing a suit like the pro guy? Maybe you discussed it and I missed it?
I was told he had one but didn't find out until I got there that he couldn't find it. I should have driven home and gotten my extra suit, but he didn't seem scared off by it but learned from it.
You are obviously an experienced beek but I would have thought you would not have let a newbie beek do a full inspection with you without a bee suit especially as the hive hadn't been opened for 7 years. Getting stung twice doesn't do much for a newbie's confidence.
I agree. He mentioned he had a suit but couldn't find it after I was already there. I probably should have drove home and got my extra but he seemed okay with it and brushed it off. But you are right I'll always have an extra in my car in case the situation arises again.
Pffftt he was pretty wussy after just the first sting. He'll have to get used to it
@@tarampryce1372
Some people can have no reaction to the first sting or two but if allergic they can have serious consequences if stung a few more times.😮
I would like to say that I really appreciate/respect your reply back to this comment. Not everyone takes criticism well, even if it's intended to be constructive. Kudos to you for acknowledging how you as a mentor have learned and grown from this experience; and, that you're willing to change/adjust for the future. I definitely did hear you mention on his first sting that he should/may want to use a suit in the future. You handled it well, coached him through the sting, gave him a break, etc. Overall this is an excellent learning video! 👏 Glad you didn't just edit the stings out either, it is all part of the process. Great job!
Don't be a Sally. Obvious the bees were chill
If you visit your girls frequently, you don’t need to taste it through the veil. And yes, my husband thinks I’m nuts too. That’s why he’s standing back taking the video on my channel…. Lol
You are braver than I am! Thanks for watching and taking the time to share!
@@BrianCooper901 ❤️❤️ it was a pleasure. I got a couple of shorts on here where I took off the bee suit. My husband thinks I’m nuts but really I was just hungry. 🤣🤣🤣