@@bobbinnie9872 I think when we quit learning in any profession, it's time to hang it up. I've driven commercially for 23 years, & am STILL learning new stuff!
Bob ,I'm in western Australia and am a broadacre cropping farmer also running stock . I find your take on beekeeping very down to earth and advice you give is no nonsense unlike a lot of beekeeping channels and Facebook pages. The only thing I don't like is that you don't have enough videos, but I guess that's why I like your videos because your busy doing it not just talking about it.
Hi, Bob. I am strictly a small time hobbyist. After my first couple of years I switched from a mix of deeps and mediums to all mediums. I was able to cut down all my boxes and a lot of my frames. It was one of the best decisions I have made. The flexibility of being able to put any box or any frame wherever I need to is great. I can’t run single brood boxes very well, so most of mine are two mediums deep. I routinely do what you call taking from the poor and giving to the rich. The colonies from which I take brood build up over the rest of the year, especially with feeding, and are in good shape for winter. Thanks for the video. Stu
I'm a hobbyist in east central Alabama. I see a lot of sourwood trees here but never try to isolate sourwood honey. In this area they bloom in mid June and are finished by the first of July.
Bob, Another great video. I have been keeping bees for 11 seasons now and I always learn a few good tips from your videos. I am impressed that you can identify honey by taste. Keep up the good work!
You mentioned an unusual year...well, here it is the 13th of July and I'm just beginning to see a decent flow (eastern KY)...mostly clover. I thought a dearth was coming, but the bees are really bringing it in now. Nature is so unpredictable. Thanks for sharing a super video.
The flow is mostly over here in Central Virginia. My wildflower honey this year is white. Bob I really enjoy the videos. I'm gonna have to come to the store one day. Keep up the good work
Interesting to see escapes used to clear bees used to separate a particular flows timing. Keeping the sourwood as pure as possible thru a lot of effort/hard work shows you are true to your craft. You have some lucky bees and customers. I'll be driving to north GA in 3 weeks.
Here in the Northeast our flow has been all over the place as well. It started out looking like we were going to have a bumper crop this year and we went into a two week extremely hot and dry spell with no rain dried up all nectar sources and the bees started eating everything they had stored. Just a crazy season for sure. Hopefully, your sourwood flow will come on strong and you will have some good production. I don't believe I have ever had sourwood honey. But I would definitely be interested in buying a bottle from you. Thanks for sharing.
I am super amazed by your videos. I am a commercial beekeeper from Arizona. I am learning a lot from you. Thank you very much.. would love to move to your area and work for you.
Arizona is a beautiful state. I grew up visiting many relatives both in the north and the south regions of the state. Hotter than blazes in the south though. You would find north Georgia to be much different.
Bob, thanks for a great video. I like the thought of putting a number of supers on one hive to clear them out. I might have to try that. I live in Northeast PA and this year I got a lot of Honeysuckle honey and then they switched over to clover. Honeysuckle is a very light color and really tastes great.
@@bobbinnie9872 Well I've never had it tested, but when I was a kid growing up we would pull the honeysuckle flowers off and pull the stem out and suck out the nectar. This honey tastes just like it, and I have lots of it blooming down along the road when they are bringing in nectar. I can see them flying down the road from my barn. It's about the only thing in bloom at that time. So I don't label it as such because I'm not sure. I do know it is really, really good.
Bob, for the first time I am going to move 4 single deep hives about 35 miles North for "Bamboo" honey. I am getting these 4 hives ready by making sure they are full of bees and I am putting mixed medium frames of drawn and foundation over them now, just to get a jump on building out the comb. I got about 2 weeks until the knotweed blooms. Really no flow here right now and I put 1 to 1 sugar water over them. I have bass wood trees here but they have not bloomed yet in SE Ohio. Most of these were 2 deep hives but I have condensed them down to one. My honey supers are mediums. I know you are extremely busy but any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you for your videos very interesting and helpful.
Bamboo honey? Sounds like you live in Asia. Everything you mentioned sounds familiar. Our biggest problem when building single story colonies with 1 to 1 sucrose before a flow is a greater tendency for swarming but we do it anyway because of the stimulative effect it has when drawing out foundation. If our brood nest is already drawn out we are conservative with the feed before a nectar flow. It seems like your strategy is sound. Good luck.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks Bob. It's Japanese Knotweed, an evasive plant. Don't know if it is in same plant family as Bamboo, but I have read where beekeeps call it that.
Hello Bob, thanks for the great video and sharing that beautiful sceneries around your hives. So, what happens to the basswood honey? Can you use them for feeding the bees after honey harvests are complete? Also could you tell me when can people order some of the sourwood honey and how to order them. Thank you
We will sell it at our store, possibly mixed with our other wildflower. It blends well with other honey. We will have Sourwood for sale on our web site soon, perhaps three weeks. www.blueridgehoneycompany.com/
im coming up to see my son in cullowhee on the 30th of july. we are gonna head your way in north georgia and hope to see and visit you all. hwy, 441 baby! cant wait to come to blue ridge honey co. thanks for video Bob1
Thanks for the videos! I'm a hobbyist but want to try to get some sourwood honey next year. I think I found a decent stand of sourwood but it's a five hour drive one-way. I know it's always a crap shoot with Ma Nature but how do you assess the potential for an area? I think sourwood is very underutilized resource here.
The yards that traditionally do the best for us are between 1800 and 2300 ft elevation with rich top soil although it does produce at lower and higher elevations.
July 16 here in southwest WV and sourwood bloom is practically over. It seems to be very difficult to get mostly pure sourwood for same problem you see this year. If you don't take the earlier honey supers off, the bees willmove the early stuff up and put the good sourwood down close to the cluster --- they are not so dumb! ;-)
Do you ever have issues with hive beatles ruining your honey, after leaving the escape boards on for 2-3 days. I'm located in N Al. and thinking of switching to escape instead of fume boards. Please keep the videos coming!
We only have problems if we are delayed for some reason. Pollen and brood are the hive beetles favorite food. Without these two things present you should have a few days. Also consider that all the bees occupying several supers don't leave overnight. Perhaps don't go over one or two supers at a time if hive beetles are a problem in your area.
I find your videos educational and entertaining Thank you for sharing with us I just got in to beekeeping and I have a question after I watch a lot of your videos, How many acre does the plantation should be to collect honeys from one yard like 15 or 20 bee colonies? Thank you again for taking a time to answering my questions.
Hi Beky. It of course depends on what is planted.For example an acre of good clover will give a flow to at least one colony. Keep in mind that the bees will go well beyond the borders of your property.
Ha there great video I think you do wonderful, and I really enjoy watching them, I under stood the bee escapes u put the new suppers under them, in the last yard on this video did u put the supper under the full ones or on top of them, we have 1 flow here where I live in Virginia, it is April to first part of june after that nothing, also is there wire in the foundation of your suppers or is it for comb honey I have 4 frame extractor and its hand spun I have blow outs unless I have cross wired the frames. in the video it looked like comb honey foundation it was real pretty. Thanks for every thing u are great please keep the videos coming have a God Blessed Day
Hi Frances. The newer frames being drawn out are Rite Cell plastic foundation. It doesn't blow out like the wax foundation does. The older shallow frames were made up with crimp wire foundation. Thanks.
Im a huge fan of sourwood honey and Ive tried it from five or six apiaries, including blue ridge and cloistered. But I never knew it was supposed to be a lighter color and i have actually liked the darker ones. Could that be the sumac I was tasting? How did you learn the taste of the different flowers? Did you collect the various nectars to try them pure?
Like many honeys Sourwood can be different from different regions which probably has a lot to due with the soil, elevation and weather patterns. In a good year when it flows strong it is generally lighter. In our area there is always the possibility of Sumac or Basswood mixing in. Basswood actually will makes it lighter and Sumac will make it darker. They're both good honeys but taste very different. After 30 tears of producing Sourwood I've become very familiar with what it should taste like in our area.
I know u are busy but hope u see this I live in virginia, I did some splits with the double screen boards the queens did not make it back i cant buy queens right now to hot to mail them if i bought queens when would u do your last splits is september to late it is 100 degrees here, last year i got queens and they were over heated and they did not lay when i recieved them the other question the foundation for the honey do u wax them for the bees or does the bees use them like they are Thanks so much for your time your wisdom on bees just all u do it is great have a wonderful day God Bless You
Early Sept. is not to late as long as you have plenty of brood to work with. The later it is the more brood you need. We're usually done splitting by mid August. We don't add wax to foundation if we put it in fresh. We buy tit prewaxed. If it left over from last year we add wax again.
Thank you for sharing Bob always good content.Question if you move the uncapped basswood and or clover honey above the escape when you pull it do you run it thru a honey dryer ? 🐝safe and keep your smoker lit!!!! Konrad
Hi Konrad. We have a drying room that we move all extracting supers into before extracting. For more on this see our video "Removing Moisture in Honey Before Extracting". ua-cam.com/video/B2-w4P8BPsQ/v-deo.html
Thanks, we have mostly Carniolan but we're beginning to integrate Caucasian. You can order a factory model double screen board from www.mannlakeltd.com/ item # ww-180
Once again a wonderful video thank you for the information. I always wondered how to tell what nectar sources are being forage on. I have a quick question what is your acceptable moisture content?
Do you send a sample to Texas A & M to get tested for purity or do you just go by experience. Have a friend who had some 92% pure sourwood from central NC last year.
We have a very particular wholesale customer that has our honey tested there each year. It was over 92% and 93% the last two years but I don't believe it will be quite that high this year. It still tastes good though.
Excellent video, two questions, First "how long can you leave a super full of honey sitting above a bee escape?" and two, "How do you store all those supers after the honey season is over?"
In our area we can leave supers for a week if need be. We rent cooler space at a local food bank. They don't charge us much and it keeps things completely pest free.
Love your videos. I have tasted sourwood before and yes, its pretty good. Does your sourwood ever make it to Atlanta? Where might I get a 5 gallon bucket?
We don't have any Sourwood available at this time because we made none in 2021. Hopefully in 2022 we will have some available at our store in Lakemont. It blooms in July.
I get asked that one a lot and in general no. You get better at not getting stung. You also get where a sting is welcome. Can't say how many times I've been stung where I'm already hurting. Elbow for example. It actually makes it feel better. I never thought I'd be preaching apitherapy but it actually does help but only temporary.
@@mikeries8549 Hey Mike, That was the main reason I started to keep bees, I wanted to get that sting therapy. Now, I do not push to get stung instead enjoy to honey my bees are making. Besides, I really enjoy my bees.
Excellent video as usual! What kind of foundation are your running there? Do you add extra wax or will they draw it out like that as is? Thanks for sharing!
We use Rite Cell from Mann Lake and only add extra wax if it is not fresh. In other words, if we have foundation on and it doesn't get drawn out we add wax the next season because the bees probably stripped it off the year before.
sent you email, thanks man. Planning to move to Asheville in a few years to expand the honey bee farm. gonna call it mile away honey. So the supers will go to a good place. Any other stuff you want to sell keep me in mind...i want to go big in Asheville.
great video, I would like to see a video about Bear Fence for protecting the bees, I noticed you have some round rods and long insulators. I put up the tee post from T supply using the yellow plastic insulators, the insulators quickly become brittle and I have to replace them regularly. Also what size charger will keep bears out? thanks
Hi Monty. We have had many of our yellow insulators for almost twenty years without problems. The trouble may be with the brand. I recommend a charger rated for thirty miles or more. We do have a simple bear fence video, "How to protect bees from bears" ua-cam.com/video/k8-tmulErMAh/v-deo.htmlttps:
Hi Bob … love your videos! Do you put empty supers on top of filled supers or between deeps and filled supers? I helped manage 4-6 hives for a few years with a friend with poor equipment and old comb - you can guess the outcome. My son (14) and I are going to start an apiary in our orchard next year. I have learned more art and nuance from you than what I get from books and most other online bee experts. I am more confident in pulling the trigger. Thank you!
Hi Eric. We usually top super so it's easy to check for space on the next trip. A study at UGA showed that honey production is the same wether top or bottom supering.
Bob an observation from the bee landing on one my hives, some of my bees seem to be loading pollen on their thorax instead of the back leg sacs . What is that about?
I'm not sure about loading pollen on the thorax. Sometimes a bee gets covered in pollen because their hair will hold on to pollen from the flower they forage on.
I saw a question below that i would like to hear an answer to. What a bout hive beetles? I'm in North Mississippi and hive beetles are terrible here. A bee escape seems like it would leave the honey open to the beetles. I would love to use them but am worried about being slimed out. Thanks for the videos.
Pollen and brood are the hive beetles favorite food. Without these two things present you should have a few days. Also consider that all the bees occupying several supers don't leave overnight. Perhaps don't go over one or two supers at a time.
Bob, thank you so much for all the videos! Do I understand correctly that you like to see 10 frames of brood about one week before the flow, and you bring them up to that strength from the smaller colonies if needed?
In a single story deep brood chamber it would be best to stuff it up to ten frames of brood just as the flow is starting if possible. If I'm boosting colonies with bees and brood from other, possibly smaller colonies I like to do it just as the flow is starting if I can to lessen the chance of swarming. If you boost to soon it can cause robbing.
I resisted because I was given a stack of plastic from a guy who said , "here...they tear up the bees wings and ...". Looked in his yard and the guy who said he quit using excluders had a wire wooden bound excluder on every single hive. People tend to fib a little.
We use them on singles but not on doubles. They do contribute to swarming under some circumstances and can inhibit honey production on some doubles. Some colonies seem to work as if they are not there and others seem to be held back. I prefer metal bound excluders but admit that the plastic ones seem to work OK.
Great videos, thank you! Quick question...when you add brood from weaker hives to strengthen for the flow, how many frames of brood does each deep have and how long before the flow are you adding it? Thanks again for your great videos.
In this video some of the single story colonies actually ended up with 10 frames of brood. Ideally we try to add brood 5 to 7 days before the flow starts. If done to soon singles with an excluder are more likely to swarm. Doubles without an excluder aren't so bad. We pack them too but usually not as much as the singles..
@@Nemanja_Ljeskovac Timing is important. If they peak before the honey flow they will probably swarm. We try to have much of the brood hatching as or after the flow begins.
I do like Basswood although some people don't. It has a distinct and unusual taste that can surprise people. In our retail store where we may have 8 or 10 different flavors for customers to taste it usually ranks below the middle in sales.
Interesting idea, stacking them all on one hive. I agree, fighting is basically a non issue as long as that brood box is full of bees. Do you pick a smaller colony to provide a boost or similarly, a strong ?
Aren't Bob's videos great!? You and Bob and Joe May are some of my favorite teachers on UA-cam! Oh, and Devin Rawn, but I haven't seen anything from him in a long time. I hope you're having a great day up there!
Hi Ian. We actually do both but a surprising amount of bees seem to go back home so the affect isn't as dramatic as you might think. I have a question for you. Do you do anything in summer to keep the sucrose syrup in your tanks from fermenting? By the way, I thought the "Quality Feed" seminar was excellent. Thanks.
Well , good question. No I have not done anything before now. After Robs webinar, I’m thinking twice about being so casual with my sucrose syrup hold over. I quit using corn syrup completely because of the known hmf problems but hadn’t considered the same with sucrose. My tanks are in open sunlight. I have covered the full tank with a reflective tarp. I also dumped a gallon of HBH onto the top layer which seems to have prevented that top layer mold layer . I’ll also take Robs advice and cut this hold over syrup with new syrup 1:8
As warm as winter was this year the Tulip Poplars are about 2 weeks early. Do you think Sourwood will be early this year as well? When do you think it will start?
In our area the poplars don't seem to be early with some things actually running a little late. The warm spell we're having at the moment will probably move things back ahead though. I've learned to never try to predict theSourwood flow. Too much can happen with the weather between now and then.
Hi Nemanja. This is actually on my list of videos to make. I have plenty to say about it as I run and appreciate the good points of both. Hopefully this spring. Thanks.
Thanks. We use a Parmak "Magnum 12" charger along with a 20 watt solar panel and battery regulator purchased from Amazon to charge a car battery . The fence wire is "Turbo Wire" purchased from JeffersVet Supply, www.jefferspet.com/. Also see our UA-cam video on bear fences. ua-cam.com/video/k8-tmulErMA/v-deo.html
Do you think it's okay to remove the comb and foundation replace it with New foundation or do you think that the woodwork is contaminated to a large extent also
Newish beekeeper here - @ 10:30 you mention that you would have "all mediums"... do you mean that you would have all mediums - even for the brood box? Or just eliminate the shallows for supers and have all mediums for supers (still retaining deeps for the brood box)?
I like deeps for brood boxes and mediums for extracting supers. I was able to achieve that this year because someone bought all my shallows and I built more mediums.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thank You for the great videos and knowledge that you are passing on. I have been going from the start with Deeps for brood boxes, and mediums for supers. I got side tracked and did a few 8 frame hives.. but I think that in the future they might be useful for my small operation to go from a Nuc to the 8's to the 10's... As we get older - those deeps get Heavier... want to be able to do this until I am not able to. Love your videos on your build methods Thank you for everything
Great video. I guess that I will never taste Sourwood Honey; I am so far away from North Carolina and the stuff sold online could be inverted sugar instead. I think the long spring and consequently sort summer has to do with the sun solar cycle, we are on the solar minimum cycle that may last until next year (2021).
The best elevation is between 1800 and 2300ft in our area although good crops can be had at other elevations. 85°f is a good temperature with at least some moisture in the soil.
@@bobbinnie9872 thank you for the reply is it just the temperature conditions at those elevations? I’m trying to plant some on my property in PA for my bees. The elevation by itself doesn’t make sense. It has to be temperature profiles or something moisture related. Thank you for your expertise.
Im sorry Bob i meant the clover and sourwood blend .. or basswood and sourwood We never get much more than canola in volume up here . Rarely clover and alfalfa or borage . I would think clover would make a good blend it isnt very strong and overpowering . Its interesting to see you get a crop off of trees 🌳
Different regions can have a different color. Even within our own area we can have different results. I believe it has a lot to do with the soil and it's different every year. It can range from a champagne color or a light tannish gold to even a slightly dirty dishwater look. Oddly enough the very light and clear colors are considered the most desirable but they don't always have the best character.
Bob, thank you. I’ve never had any sourwood honey and want to try it so badly. I started beekeeping about 3 years ago as a hobby and just have to get my hands on some sourwood honey. Thanks so much for your videos I’m sure that you’ve forgot more about bees than I will ever know!
Sourwood honey is preferred over basswood by most and it does sell for more money but basswood does have a loyal following and is not bad honey. I enjoy it myself.
Bob, I'm sure that you have used blowers, to blow the bees out of your supers, can you tell me why you don't like them? No second trip and no escape boards or fume boards to store, carry to the yard and put on and pull, clean and store at the end of the season.
We actually carry a blower with us most of the time to clear out the persistent bees hanging on if need be, or blow out duds if we need too. We like escapes because there's much less mess. The bees clean up all the broken burr comb before they exit. There's also much less robbing if done properly. This may not be a problem in smaller yards but in larger yards they can really get stirred up with the smell of fresh honey in the air with a blower. When we used to work out of town a lot we would usually use fume boards or blowers. I've actually used them a lot.
We use flat lids made from HDO plywood and we do leave them on year round. HDO made with Douglas Fir is the best material for lids that I know of but it is hard to find in some areas.
So far I've talked to close to 1000 beekeepers and every single one of them had bees the make "the best honey". My bees are substandard and make honey slightly less "best". Curtiss Orchard down the street has won three world contests in a row. So it's not that bad... Now lets talk about prices. My competition charges 50-75% higher prices on the same product only its in a freak show circus setting. That orchard is a tourist trap. Want to see a picture of my grandson as the cowardly lion in wizard of oz? Go to Curtiss Orchard and you can do it too...
So i notice there are no inner covers but the majority of videos i watch of smaller beekeepers almost always have one. Is there a time to use them or a time to go without them?
Most commercial beekeepers use migratory covers which don't require inner covers. They're good for stacking on trucks and are more efficient. However, Telescoping tops with an inner cover protect the hive better and are more desirable for beekeepers with smaller numbers..
I never figured out how to describe the flavor of honey. I actually like basswood honey, but some people don't. It's unique and the flavor can sometimes surprise people. It's not the best seller in our store where customers can sample all of the varieties we offer but the people who do like think it's one of the best.
Yes, for two reasons. Each super holds more weight with less frames which improves efficiency and the combs are more apt to be completely uncapped when using our automated extracting equipment.
If you follow NASA weather forecast this winter they were saying that the solar flares were going to be below normal… Meaning less radiation to keep earth warm.
Commercial beekeeping is a lot more than I thought it was. Your years of experience are so obvious. What a lot to learn.
I'm still learning.
@@bobbinnie9872 I think when we quit learning in any profession, it's time to hang it up. I've driven commercially for 23 years, & am STILL learning new stuff!
Bob ,I'm in western Australia and am a broadacre cropping farmer also running stock . I find your take on beekeeping very down to earth and advice you give is no nonsense unlike a lot of beekeeping channels and Facebook pages. The only thing I don't like is that you don't have enough videos, but I guess that's why I like your videos because your busy doing it not just talking about it.
Hi, Bob. I am strictly a small time hobbyist. After my first couple of years I switched from a mix of deeps and mediums to all mediums. I was able to cut down all my boxes and a lot of my frames. It was one of the best decisions I have made. The flexibility of being able to put any box or any frame wherever I need to is great. I can’t run single brood boxes very well, so most of mine are two mediums deep. I routinely do what you call taking from the poor and giving to the rich. The colonies from which I take brood build up over the rest of the year, especially with feeding, and are in good shape for winter. Thanks for the video. Stu
Thanks for the comment. I know a beekeeper with 2500 colonies that only runs mediums.
Your palate is impressive and your integrity is second to none!!
Thanks, but Sourwood and Basswood are actually so different that almost anyone could tell the difference.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge. It’s been very helpful to myself and others.
Thank you.
Thank you for sharing - I'm a new beekeeper and all of your videos are so great!
Thanks.
Thanks Bob for the video.
You are very welcome
Another great video Bob hope the north ones work out for you and get a lot of sour wood honey. 🌱🌸🐝🍯
Thanks.
Mr. Bob, you are more than wonderful, greetings to you.
Greetings!
I'm a hobbyist in east central Alabama. I see a lot of sourwood trees here but never try to isolate sourwood honey. In this area they bloom in mid June and are finished by the first of July.
Bob, Another great video. I have been keeping bees for 11 seasons now and I always learn a few good tips from your videos. I am impressed that you can identify honey by taste. Keep up the good work!
Thanks.
You mentioned an unusual year...well, here it is the 13th of July and I'm just beginning to see a decent flow (eastern KY)...mostly clover. I thought a dearth was coming, but the bees are really bringing it in now. Nature is so unpredictable. Thanks for sharing a super video.
Thanks, we're making more clover than I can remember in this region also.
Thanks for sharing your management of your hives, very informative. I will have to get me a jar of sourwood honey, don't have any in our area.
I hope it lives up to the hype for you.
The flow is mostly over here in Central Virginia.
My wildflower honey this year is white.
Bob I really enjoy the videos. I'm gonna have to come to the store one day.
Keep up the good work
Thanks, let me know when if your come.
Water white up in illinois too
marijuana honey 2020
Great vidio bob very educational .
Thanks.
I just started bee keeping this year and I feel overwhelmed at times trying to figure out one hive! This is amazing to watch.
Skill comes with time. You'll get it.
1:30 in and I feel the same way!!! Just when it all starts making sense....😂
Thanks for your sharing knowledgeable that I haven't been know Sour wood is so much nectar in our Chin State and in Burma.
Interesting to see escapes used to clear bees used to separate a particular flows timing. Keeping the sourwood as pure as possible thru a lot of effort/hard work shows you are true to your craft. You have some lucky bees and customers. I'll be driving to north GA in 3 weeks.
Can’t wait to order some of that Sourwood Honey! You’ve quickly become one of my favorite conveyors of bee knowledge. Thank you.
Thank you.
Definitely my favorite conveyor of bee knowledge!
Here in the Northeast our flow has been all over the place as well. It started out looking like we were going to have a bumper crop this year and we went into a two week extremely hot and dry spell with no rain dried up all nectar sources and the bees started eating everything they had stored. Just a crazy season for sure. Hopefully, your sourwood flow will come on strong and you will have some good production. I don't believe I have ever had sourwood honey. But I would definitely be interested in buying a bottle from you. Thanks for sharing.
Your comment sounds like a beekeeping reality show. We'll have sourwood on our web site soon. www.blueridgehoneycompany.com/
I am super amazed by your videos. I am a commercial beekeeper from Arizona. I am learning a lot from you. Thank you very much.. would love to move to your area and work for you.
Arizona is a beautiful state. I grew up visiting many relatives both in the north and the south regions of the state. Hotter than blazes in the south though. You would find north Georgia to be much different.
Thanks so much for the information, I really appreciate it.
Thanks.
Great stuff Bob i like the way you roll.Good luck on your honey crop!
Thanks 👍
Bob, thanks for a great video. I like the thought of putting a number of supers on one hive to clear them out. I might have to try that. I live in Northeast PA and this year I got a lot of Honeysuckle honey and then they switched over to clover. Honeysuckle is a very light color and really tastes great.
Interesting. Our bees rarely work honeysuckle here.
@@bobbinnie9872 Well I've never had it tested, but when I was a kid growing up we would pull the honeysuckle flowers off and pull the stem out and suck out the nectar. This honey tastes just like it, and I have lots of it blooming down along the road when they are bringing in nectar. I can see them flying down the road from my barn. It's about the only thing in bloom at that time. So I don't label it as such because I'm not sure. I do know it is really, really good.
We always used supers from the year before sourwood flow and it seemed to make the bees seek sourwood over other blooms.
Bob, for the first time I am going to move 4 single deep hives about 35 miles North for "Bamboo" honey. I am getting these 4 hives ready by making sure they are full of bees and I am putting mixed medium frames of drawn and foundation over them now, just to get a jump on building out the comb. I got about 2 weeks until the knotweed blooms. Really no flow here right now and I put 1 to 1 sugar water over them. I have bass wood trees here but they have not bloomed yet in SE Ohio. Most of these were 2 deep hives but I have condensed them down to one. My honey supers are mediums. I know you are extremely busy but any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you for your videos very interesting and helpful.
Bamboo honey? Sounds like you live in Asia. Everything you mentioned sounds familiar. Our biggest problem when building single story colonies with 1 to 1 sucrose before a flow is a greater tendency for swarming but we do it anyway because of the stimulative effect it has when drawing out foundation. If our brood nest is already drawn out we are conservative with the feed before a nectar flow. It seems like your strategy is sound. Good luck.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks Bob. It's Japanese Knotweed, an evasive plant. Don't know if it is in same plant family as Bamboo, but I have read where beekeeps call it that.
@@mikesbeesllc Japanese Knotweed is Bamboo. Farmers call it Bamboo because that is what it resembles. I get lots of Bamboo and then Goldenrod.
Good luck on the sourwood. Really looking forward to ordering some. Thanks for the info.
Thanks.
Thanks Bob, for another fantastic video!
Thanks.
Thanks for sharing so much info!!
Hello Bob, thanks for the great video and sharing that beautiful sceneries around your hives. So, what happens to the basswood honey? Can you use them for feeding the bees after honey harvests are complete? Also could you tell me when can people order some of the sourwood honey and how to order them. Thank you
We will sell it at our store, possibly mixed with our other wildflower. It blends well with other honey. We will have Sourwood for sale on our web site soon, perhaps three weeks. www.blueridgehoneycompany.com/
Another excellent video Bob. 😀👍
Thank you.
im coming up to see my son in cullowhee on the 30th of july. we are gonna head your way in north georgia and hope to see and visit you all. hwy, 441 baby! cant wait to come to blue ridge honey co. thanks for video Bob1
Thanks, hope I catch you. I'm not always here.
We have a lot of lemon dill planted here. The honey has a lovely citrus flavor.
Well Bob I've seen all your videos At least twice some a lot more than that Keep sharing your knowledge how keep watching thanks a lot
Thanks, glad you like them.
Thanks for the videos! I'm a hobbyist but want to try to get some sourwood honey next year. I think I found a decent stand of sourwood but it's a five hour drive one-way. I know it's always a crap shoot with Ma Nature but how do you assess the potential for an area? I think sourwood is very underutilized resource here.
The yards that traditionally do the best for us are between 1800 and 2300 ft elevation with rich top soil although it does produce at lower and higher elevations.
8 frames in shallow frame super...good thick combs for extracting
Exactly.
July 16 here in southwest WV and sourwood bloom is practically over. It seems to be very difficult to get mostly pure sourwood for same problem you see this year. If you don't take the earlier honey supers off, the bees willmove the early stuff up and put the good sourwood down close to the cluster --- they are not so dumb! ;-)
I agree with that.
Do you ever have issues with hive beatles ruining your honey, after leaving the escape boards on for 2-3 days. I'm located in N Al. and thinking of switching to escape instead of fume boards. Please keep the videos coming!
We only have problems if we are delayed for some reason. Pollen and brood are the hive beetles favorite food. Without these two things present you should have a few days. Also consider that all the bees occupying several supers don't leave overnight. Perhaps don't go over one or two supers at a time if hive beetles are a problem in your area.
I find your videos educational and entertaining Thank you for sharing with us I just got in to beekeeping and I have a question after I watch a lot of your videos,
How many acre does the plantation should be to collect honeys from one yard like 15 or 20 bee colonies?
Thank you again for taking a time to answering my questions.
Hi Beky. It of course depends on what is planted.For example an acre of good clover will give a flow to at least one colony. Keep in mind that the bees will go well beyond the borders of your property.
Thanks for your videos, and inspiring us, my question is what kind of foundation do you use in your commercial operation.
Thanks again
Rite Cell from Mann Lake.
Ha there great video I think you do wonderful, and I really enjoy watching them, I under stood the bee escapes u put the new suppers under them, in the last yard on this video did u put the supper under the full ones or on top of them, we have 1 flow here where I live in Virginia, it is April to first part of june after that nothing, also is there wire in the foundation of your suppers or is it for comb honey I have 4 frame extractor and its hand spun I have blow outs unless I have cross wired the frames. in the video it looked like comb honey foundation it was real pretty. Thanks for every thing u are great please keep the videos coming have a God Blessed Day
Hi Frances. The newer frames being drawn out are Rite Cell plastic foundation. It doesn't blow out like the wax foundation does. The older shallow frames were made up with crimp wire foundation. Thanks.
Im a huge fan of sourwood honey and Ive tried it from five or six apiaries, including blue ridge and cloistered. But I never knew it was supposed to be a lighter color and i have actually liked the darker ones. Could that be the sumac I was tasting? How did you learn the taste of the different flowers? Did you collect the various nectars to try them pure?
Like many honeys Sourwood can be different from different regions which probably has a lot to due with the soil, elevation and weather patterns. In a good year when it flows strong it is generally lighter. In our area there is always the possibility of Sumac or Basswood mixing in. Basswood actually will makes it lighter and Sumac will make it darker. They're both good honeys but taste very different. After 30 tears of producing Sourwood I've become very familiar with what it should taste like in our area.
The plant you mentioned after sumac... is it Kudzu?
Yes, wonderful stuff if you're a goat. (they like to eat it)
I know u are busy but hope u see this I live in virginia, I did some splits with the double screen boards the queens did not make it back i cant buy queens right now to hot to mail them if i bought queens when would u do your last splits is september to late it is 100 degrees here, last year i got queens and they were over heated and they did not lay when i recieved them the other question the foundation for the honey do u wax them for the bees or does the bees use them like they are Thanks so much for your time your wisdom on bees just all u do it is great have a wonderful day God Bless You
Early Sept. is not to late as long as you have plenty of brood to work with. The later it is the more brood you need. We're usually done splitting by mid August. We don't add wax to foundation if we put it in fresh. We buy tit prewaxed. If it left over from last year we add wax again.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks for everything
Thank you for sharing Bob always good content.Question if you move the uncapped basswood and or clover honey above the escape when you pull it do you run it thru a honey dryer ? 🐝safe and keep your smoker lit!!!!
Konrad
Hi Konrad. We have a drying room that we move all extracting supers into before extracting. For more on this see our video "Removing Moisture in Honey Before Extracting". ua-cam.com/video/B2-w4P8BPsQ/v-deo.html
You are a good man. What kind of bees do you have? I was going to buy a couple of double screen boards they said u didn't ship.
Thanks, we have mostly Carniolan but we're beginning to integrate Caucasian. You can order a factory model double screen board from www.mannlakeltd.com/ item # ww-180
Once again a wonderful video thank you for the information. I always wondered how to tell what nectar sources are being forage on. I have a quick question what is your acceptable moisture content?
18% or less. What I really like to see is 17% or less but the only way we can get that here is with a drying room which we do have and use.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thank you for the response.
Do you send a sample to Texas A & M to get tested for purity or do you just go by experience. Have a friend who had some 92% pure sourwood from central NC last year.
We have a very particular wholesale customer that has our honey tested there each year. It was over 92% and 93% the last two years but I don't believe it will be quite that high this year. It still tastes good though.
Excellent video, two questions, First "how long can you leave a super full of honey sitting above a bee escape?" and two, "How do you store all those supers after the honey season is over?"
In our area we can leave supers for a week if need be. We rent cooler space at a local food bank. They don't charge us much and it keeps things completely pest free.
Need to make more videos.
Love your videos. I have tasted sourwood before and yes, its pretty good. Does your sourwood ever make it to Atlanta? Where might I get a 5 gallon bucket?
We don't have any Sourwood available at this time because we made none in 2021. Hopefully in 2022 we will have some available at our store in Lakemont. It blooms in July.
I'm just wondering how many times your hands get stung. Do you wear gloves ever? Thank you for the informative video.
Not very often. Mostly when I load trucks.
I get asked that one a lot and in general no. You get better at not getting stung. You also get where a sting is welcome. Can't say how many times I've been stung where I'm already hurting.
Elbow for example. It actually makes it feel better. I never thought I'd be preaching apitherapy but it actually does help but only temporary.
@@mikeries8549
Hey Mike, That was the main reason I started to keep bees, I wanted to get that sting therapy. Now, I do not push to get stung instead enjoy to honey my bees are making.
Besides, I really enjoy my bees.
I'm in Chatsworth GA can I come watch u n learn from the best n get my hands dirty I want to get started like u
Excellent video as usual! What kind of foundation are your running there? Do you add extra wax or will they draw it out like that as is? Thanks for sharing!
We use Rite Cell from Mann Lake and only add extra wax if it is not fresh. In other words, if we have foundation on and it doesn't get drawn out we add wax the next season because the bees probably stripped it off the year before.
Ill buy some of your shallows. Let me know when ya sell em.
For sale in three weeks. $17 to $20 depending on quantity. If your interested use the email on our "about" page. Thanks
@@bobbinnie9872 Are the frames included?
sent you email, thanks man. Planning to move to Asheville in a few years to expand the honey bee farm. gonna call it mile away honey. So the supers will go to a good place. Any other stuff you want to sell keep me in mind...i want to go big in Asheville.
so your not interested in a trade/ boxes for new multi platform website with free hosting on high performance server?
great video, I would like to see a video about Bear Fence for protecting the bees, I noticed you have some round rods and long insulators. I put up the tee post from T supply using the yellow plastic insulators, the insulators quickly become brittle and I have to replace them regularly. Also what size charger will keep bears out? thanks
Hi Monty. We have had many of our yellow insulators for almost twenty years without problems. The trouble may be with the brand. I recommend a charger rated for thirty miles or more. We do have a simple bear fence video, "How to protect bees from bears" ua-cam.com/video/k8-tmulErMAh/v-deo.htmlttps:
Thank you for your videos. How many hives do you run per bee yard?
The smallest is 24 and the largest is 64. The majority are 48.
How do you keep the honey separate if it's all coming in at the same time?
We can't if it all comes in together. That's why we hope the sourwood bloom doesn't overlap with other varieties.
Hi Bob … love your videos! Do you put empty supers on top of filled supers or between deeps and filled supers? I helped manage 4-6 hives for a few years with a friend with poor equipment and old comb - you can guess the outcome. My son (14) and I are going to start an apiary in our orchard next year. I have learned more art and nuance from you than what I get from books and most other online bee experts. I am more confident in pulling the trigger. Thank you!
Hi Eric. We usually top super so it's easy to check for space on the next trip. A study at UGA showed that honey production is the same wether top or bottom supering.
Bob an observation from the bee landing on one my hives, some of my bees seem to be loading pollen on their thorax instead of the back leg sacs . What is that about?
I'm not sure about loading pollen on the thorax. Sometimes a bee gets covered in pollen because their hair will hold on to pollen from the flower they forage on.
I saw a question below that i would like to hear an answer to. What a bout hive beetles? I'm in North Mississippi and hive beetles are terrible here. A bee escape seems like it would leave the honey open to the beetles. I would love to use them but am worried about being slimed out.
Thanks for the videos.
The thing with escape boards is you have to go harvest the very next day. SHB dont slime hives overnight unless they're in bad shape already.
Mike Ries,
I thought Bob said to figure one day per super. I have some hives with 4-5 supers. Always looking for “easier”.
Pollen and brood are the hive beetles favorite food. Without these two things present you should have a few days. Also consider that all the bees occupying several supers don't leave overnight. Perhaps don't go over one or two supers at a time.
Bob, thank you so much for all the videos!
Do I understand correctly that you like to see 10 frames of brood about one week before the flow, and you bring them up to that strength from the smaller colonies if needed?
In a single story deep brood chamber it would be best to stuff it up to ten frames of brood just as the flow is starting if possible. If I'm boosting colonies with bees and brood from other, possibly smaller colonies I like to do it just as the flow is starting if I can to lessen the chance of swarming. If you boost to soon it can cause robbing.
Bob, what're your thoughts on using queen excluders? Some commercial beekeepers use them, others say the investment isn't worth it for them.
I resisted because I was given a stack of plastic from a guy who said , "here...they tear up the bees wings and ...". Looked in his yard and the guy who said he quit using excluders had a wire wooden bound excluder on every single hive. People tend to fib a little.
We use them on singles but not on doubles. They do contribute to swarming under some circumstances and can inhibit honey production on some doubles. Some colonies seem to work as if they are not there and others seem to be held back. I prefer metal bound excluders but admit that the plastic ones seem to work OK.
Great videos, thank you! Quick question...when you add brood from weaker hives to strengthen for the flow, how many frames of brood does each deep have and how long before the flow are you adding it? Thanks again for your great videos.
In this video some of the single story colonies actually ended up with 10 frames of brood. Ideally we try to add brood 5 to 7 days before the flow starts. If done to soon singles with an excluder are more likely to swarm. Doubles without an excluder aren't so bad. We pack them too but usually not as much as the singles..
@@bobbinnie9872 how to control sworming in such hive with so much brood(in single deep brood box)?Thanks again
@@Nemanja_Ljeskovac Timing is important. If they peak before the honey flow they will probably swarm. We try to have much of the brood hatching as or after the flow begins.
Do you not like basswood. I have never tried it. Is it bad tasting
I do like Basswood although some people don't. It has a distinct and unusual taste that can surprise people. In our retail store where we may have 8 or 10 different flavors for customers to taste it usually ranks below the middle in sales.
Interesting idea, stacking them all on one hive. I agree, fighting is basically a non issue as long as that brood box is full of bees. Do you pick a smaller colony to provide a boost or similarly, a strong ?
Aren't Bob's videos great!? You and Bob and Joe May are some of my favorite teachers on UA-cam! Oh, and Devin Rawn, but I haven't seen anything from him in a long time. I hope you're having a great day up there!
Hi Ian. We actually do both but a surprising amount of bees seem to go back home so the affect isn't as dramatic as you might think. I have a question for you. Do you do anything in summer to keep the sucrose syrup in your tanks from fermenting? By the way, I thought the "Quality Feed" seminar was excellent. Thanks.
Well , good question. No I have not done anything before now. After Robs webinar, I’m thinking twice about being so casual with my sucrose syrup hold over. I quit using corn syrup completely because of the known hmf problems but hadn’t considered the same with sucrose.
My tanks are in open sunlight. I have covered the full tank with a reflective tarp. I also dumped a gallon of HBH onto the top layer which seems to have prevented that top layer mold layer .
I’ll also take Robs advice and cut this hold over syrup with new syrup 1:8
When putting super production, are the frames inside the base wax or stretched wax?
As warm as winter was this year the Tulip Poplars are about 2 weeks early. Do you think Sourwood will be early this year as well? When do you think it will start?
In our area the poplars don't seem to be early with some things actually running a little late. The warm spell we're having at the moment will probably move things back ahead though. I've learned to never try to predict theSourwood flow. Too much can happen with the weather between now and then.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thanks for the insight.
Hi Bob,great video👍.I am looking for a video about singles vs doubles.Can you make some video about this comparison.Thanks
Hi Nemanja. This is actually on my list of videos to make. I have plenty to say about it as I run and appreciate the good points of both. Hopefully this spring. Thanks.
Great video with lots of info. What solar charger do you use? Must be effective. Also, what gauge of wire? Thanks.
Thanks. We use a Parmak "Magnum 12" charger along with a 20 watt solar panel and battery regulator purchased from Amazon to charge a car battery . The fence wire is "Turbo Wire" purchased from JeffersVet Supply, www.jefferspet.com/. Also see our UA-cam video on bear fences. ua-cam.com/video/k8-tmulErMA/v-deo.html
How do you know which nectar bees are in when they are in several flows
Taste and color.
Do you think it's okay to remove the comb and foundation replace it with New foundation or do you think that the woodwork is contaminated to a large extent also
If we have a comb that's old enough to need replacing we assume the wood frame should be replaced too.
How much sourwood honey did you get this year? How many hives do you dedicate for sourwood harvesting?
We made 91 drums that we feel comfortable calling sourwood. Although we set up around 1200 up for sourwood many made other types of honey.
Newish beekeeper here - @ 10:30 you mention that you would have "all mediums"... do you mean that you would have all mediums - even for the brood box? Or just eliminate the shallows for supers and have all mediums for supers (still retaining deeps for the brood box)?
I like deeps for brood boxes and mediums for extracting supers. I was able to achieve that this year because someone bought all my shallows and I built more mediums.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thank You for the great videos and knowledge that you are passing on. I have been going from the start with Deeps for brood boxes, and mediums for supers. I got side tracked and did a few 8 frame hives.. but I think that in the future they might be useful for my small operation to go from a Nuc to the 8's to the 10's... As we get older - those deeps get Heavier... want to be able to do this until I am not able to. Love your videos on your build methods
Thank you for everything
is it worth the effort to try and propagate/plant the sourwood trees?
If it's not growing naturally in your area I would guess not, but it is just a guess.
How do those different honey variants differ in price? And do customers ask for specific variants?
Our local honeys all sell well and go for about 20-30% more than other varieties simply because they are local.
Great video. I guess that I will never taste Sourwood Honey; I am so far away from North Carolina and the stuff sold online could be inverted sugar instead.
I think the long spring and consequently sort summer has to do with the sun solar cycle, we are on the solar minimum cycle that may last until next year (2021).
The solar stuff is back on.
Flares already have been photographed this year. 2019 was dead. Weird.
We'll have sourwood on our web site in about three weeks if your interested. www.blueridgehoneycompany.com/
What the hell is that @10:05 in the yard behind him?
Freshly sheared Alpaca.
Do you have a problem with SHBs leaving those supers unguarded?
We can if they're there too long.
My hives here in Utah have brought something that tastes awful almost like a light gasoline fume taste. Anybody have any thoughts what that could be?
Don't know but perhaps it's purple nightshade honey.
I've seen bees work it.
The honey can't be good.
Make a cloth cover with elastic. trick works to keep robbers out and can get cheap cloth and easy to make
Old bath towels work
I’m reading that sourwood is elevation dependent.. what specifically temperature, or moisture?
The best elevation is between 1800 and 2300ft in our area although good crops can be had at other elevations. 85°f is a good temperature with at least some moisture in the soil.
@@bobbinnie9872 thank you for the reply is it just the temperature conditions at those elevations? I’m trying to plant some on my property in PA for my bees. The elevation by itself doesn’t make sense. It has to be temperature profiles or something moisture related. Thank you for your expertise.
@@tjjastrem127 I honestly don't know if they would grow in PA. They grow at over 3000 ft here and I have heard of some growing in Maryland. Good luck.
Do you package it as a blend ?
Or just call it honey 🍯?
If it's Sourwood we would label as "Sourwood Honey"
Im sorry Bob i meant the clover and sourwood blend .. or basswood and sourwood
We never get much more than canola in volume up here . Rarely clover and alfalfa or borage .
I would think clover would make a good blend it isnt very strong and overpowering .
Its interesting to see you get a crop off of trees 🌳
Bob, Im in Central NC are you near me? Im curious cause I am very interested in beekeeping..
Our shop and store are 30 miles south of Franklin, NC on Hwy 441. Probably a few hours drive.
Hi Bob, What color is your pure sourwood honey typically?
Different regions can have a different color. Even within our own area we can have different results. I believe it has a lot to do with the soil and it's different every year. It can range from a champagne color or a light tannish gold to even a slightly dirty dishwater look. Oddly enough the very light and clear colors are considered the most desirable but they don't always have the best character.
Great video 👍🍯🍯
Thanks.
Bob, will there be enough sourwood honey that you will sell it on your website? If so when?
At this point it seems so. It should be available in about three weeks.
Bob, thank you. I’ve never had any sourwood honey and want to try it so badly. I started beekeeping about 3 years ago as a hobby and just have to get my hands on some sourwood honey. Thanks so much for your videos I’m sure that you’ve forgot more about bees than I will ever know!
New to bees. Is basswood honey not as good or cheaper?
Sourwood honey is preferred over basswood by most and it does sell for more money but basswood does have a loyal following and is not bad honey. I enjoy it myself.
Bob, I'm sure that you have used blowers, to blow the bees out of your supers, can you tell me why you don't like them?
No second trip and no escape boards or fume boards to store, carry to the yard and put on and pull, clean and store at the end of the season.
I use fume boards and a bee blower to get the stubborn ones.
I end up blowing a handful of bees. They're not eggs.
We actually carry a blower with us most of the time to clear out the persistent bees hanging on if need be, or blow out duds if we need too. We like escapes because there's much less mess. The bees clean up all the broken burr comb before they exit. There's also much less robbing if done properly. This may not be a problem in smaller yards but in larger yards they can really get stirred up with the smell of fresh honey in the air with a blower. When we used to work out of town a lot we would usually use fume boards or blowers. I've actually used them a lot.
@@bobbinnie9872 I know that you are very busy and I thank you for your time and sharing
Why did you say you wish you only used mediums?
They're more efficient than shallows. Every time you handle a frame or a super you're handling 20% more honey.
@@bobbinnie9872 gotcha ya I thought you meant all mediums for brood aswell but your just talking honey supers?
Bob what kind of tops are you using, and do you keep them on year round?
We use flat lids made from HDO plywood and we do leave them on year round. HDO made with Douglas Fir is the best material for lids that I know of but it is hard to find in some areas.
@@bobbinnie9872 Thank you.
Okay I’m ready to try some of the best honey in the world !!!
Now I just hope your one of the people that likes it.
So far I've talked to close to 1000 beekeepers and every single one of them had bees the make "the best honey". My bees are substandard and make honey slightly less "best". Curtiss Orchard down the street has won three world contests in a row.
So it's not that bad...
Now lets talk about prices.
My competition charges 50-75% higher prices on the same product only its in a freak show circus setting. That orchard is a tourist trap. Want to see a picture of my grandson as the cowardly lion in wizard of oz? Go to Curtiss Orchard and you can do it too...
I wish I could give you acacia honey from Kenya. It’s a dark variety and absolutely heavenly.
So i notice there are no inner covers but the majority of videos i watch of smaller beekeepers almost always have one. Is there a time to use them or a time to go without them?
Most commercial beekeepers use migratory covers which don't require inner covers. They're good for stacking on trucks and are more efficient. However, Telescoping tops with an inner cover protect the hive better and are more desirable for beekeepers with smaller numbers..
How can you tell the difference in taste of the honey?
Different nectar sources have a different chemistry. Once you've tasted them several you can recognize the difference.
What does basswood honey taste like.?
I never figured out how to describe the flavor of honey. I actually like basswood honey, but some people don't. It's unique and the flavor can sometimes surprise people. It's not the best seller in our store where customers can sample all of the varieties we offer but the people who do like think it's one of the best.
@@bobbinnie9872
Thank you very much for trying to answer that. I sure appreciate that.
Do you use only 8 frames in honey supers once they are drawn out with comb?
Yes, for two reasons. Each super holds more weight with less frames which improves efficiency and the combs are more apt to be completely uncapped when using our automated extracting equipment.
Grey iron bark is my preference
Interesting. I've heard of it but have not tried it.
If you follow NASA weather forecast this winter they were saying that the solar flares were going to be below normal… Meaning less radiation to keep earth warm.
Interesting, thank you.
Going into a grand solar minimum, this will be the new pattern for some years to come
Hi great work can i work with you
Hi can red fig river wood used for hive box
I couldn't say because I'm not familiar with that wood.