Beautiful! I used to dislike bees because I didn't understand them. It took one yellow jacket sting to show me who the real nuisance was. Immediately after that I started watching bees and realized they did not care I was there, they just want to do their work. Now I'm happy when I see them out foraging and I watch where I step so I don't crush them or get in their way
Hi Gary, that's a common method (candy up) but I've honestly never had the problem of a queen becoming trapped by dead attendants. On the third day after placing the queen cage, you should be opening the hive and checking in on her and if she hasn't made her exit yet, you can just remove the cork from the opposite end and set her free at that time. The hive workers will continue to feed the Queen through the screen even if her exit is blocked. Again, I've never had a queen blocked in her cage by dead attendants, I just habitually do candy-down because the opening is then pointed down into the brood area which generally causes the outside workers to chew through the candy plug faster. I've never killed a queen :)
At 09:40 I'd like you to notice how large the cells are, the workers made an entire "Drone Frame", I felt it was important to show you what that looks like. If you have a normal brood frame in storage, it's a pretty good idea to just swap out the drone frame for the normal brood cell sized drawn comb. I did go into all of the boxes and just wanted to share what I thougth would be helpful to viewers. Thank you for viewing, I hope it was helpful.
Frederick Dunn I noticed u didn't find the queen in the ones u put a new queen in? Or did I miss something? If there is a queen still in that colony (unproductive) what would happen if you place the new queen in the hive as well?
If there is a low productive or nonproductive queen present, you will see the workers reject the new queen rather than attempt to feed her through the screen. You really do need to locate any existing queens and remove them if they are present.
Ok here's my situation lol. Ima new beekeeper and my uncle gave me a hive to learn from. They are VERY strong in numbers. And mean as hell! On April 24th I got a new queen in the mail. I've looked 3 times for the old queen with no luck. So I smoked the hive really good and put the queen excluder on top of the bottom brood chamber to make it easier. The weather and work hasn't allowed me to get back in there yet to locate her. But here's the thing, my top brood chamber is all honey. No brood. The bottom brood chamber is very light and I don't recall seeing any brood or eggs. What would u recommend I do at this point??? Thank u so much for ur time! Mike Webster
You're going to get back in there and see if there is new brood. Don't worry about the old queen. If the new queen is out of her cage and laying you'll know it right away. You don't even need to locate her, just look for evidence of egg laying and brood capping. You're back in business if she is laying. Your "hot bees" will go away as she replaces them all within the next several weeks. You'll notice the stock gradually changing over to whatever the queen stock is.
I have NOT yet installed the new queen. My plan was to open the bottom chamber where I placed the queen excluder and see if any new brood or eggs could have recently been laid by the old queen. If I do not find any I'm going to assume that the hive is queen less and then install the new queen. If I do find that the old queen is still in there and laying im going to have to search really hard for her and kill her I reckon. Or could I place the new queen in there caged and see how they respond? Their response should tell me if the old one is still in there or not? Thank u for ur time!!
I've always wanted a bee farm. something about bees relax me. I just want to know as much as I can before starting one so I feel more confident. Videos like this are a joy and pleasure to me for this reason.
I remember when I was 13 or 14 years old I found an exhausted bee on my porch. apparently it's give was too far away from our honey suckle flowers that it craved. and because of that the trip tuckered it out and it was unable to fly. I took it in and gave it some sugar water and in minutes it was ready to fly again. I swear that bee used to come visit me some mornings. I think that is what kindled my passion for bees. It inspired me to learn more about them and I was amazed at how huge if an impact they have on nature and even the food we eat.
That's a very interesting early inspiration story :) It is likely that the same worker did come back several times in search of that sugar fix you initially provided. I have put sugar water in a large test tube, collected bees from a hive landing board, taken them to the test tube a little over a hundred yards away and allowed them to drink the sugar water. They then depart and within five minutes are back with more workers. Their ability to relocate resources is keen.
Yeah I figured that was the case myself they are incredibly perceptive little guys. I still enjoyed it's company and watching it clumsily collect from our honey suckle. when our peach trees would bloom you could see a few of them buzzing around them. It is almost therapeutic in my opinion seeing such a beautiful tree and hearing the buzz of the little wood bees. I have never been stung before except by a yellow jacket. I despise yellow jackets and can't really see how people could mistake the two. I mean come on one is an adorable clumsy little fur nugget and the other is clearly Satan's little helper with wings and infinite ammo. But I digress. I look forward to someday owning even at least 1 decent bee box. I even have a friend interested in bee farming. I don't care for the money aspect but being a pretty good cook I would love to experiment with the different textures and flavors of honey you get through the seasons.
I'm a beekeeper in my first year along with my dad,we have 3 hives and this video was a great reference video to go back to in doubt. Thank you Fred I hope this inspires people to take up beekeeping what ever part of the world you come from,it's not just a hobby but a way of helping our little furry friends the best we can. Thank you and take care Shaun in the uk
i love how you present your hives and a calm and quiet way and write what we are seeing. This is such a peaceful and helpful way to do it. Congratulations on your successful swarm hives and showing the requeening process. I have just done that with my hive....I lost my original queen (I am a Nubee) From the way to showed how you place your new caged queen is confirming that I did it correctly except I put her further down in to the frame. I will check on her tomorrow and hope she is already in the hive. You have a consistent viewer here. thank you!!
Hello Mr. Dunn, apart from loving honey and being irrationally afraid of them, I have no business with bees. Yet I love your videos. You could read for audible books for toddlers, you have a very soothing and relaxing effect on me. Children must absolutely adore you. Thank you.
That is funny... I do connect with children easily but never considered voice quality.Thank you for that comment, I wish I could get some voice over work! :)
Thank you for the video. I learned a lot of practical things. Some probably are very simple but important --- like the correct position of the queen cage (keeping the screen free so the workers can feed the bees inside). Also it was very clear how to identify brood vs. capped honey and any drone cells. Being very new I was pleased to find myself able to identify the queen before you pointed them out. Thank you kindly again!
The aged blue and green paint of this old hive are somehow warm and appealing. I can't explain why. Fun video. The close up of the queen in the cage was neat.
At 03:40 the Queen is Clearly Seen Center Screen. She has a black bald thorax and is longer than the workers. Her wings are not clipped and she is unmarked.
I so enjoy your videos. I don't have bees myself but they are such interesting little creatures to me. In the last hive where you placed a new queen on the top left there was also a bee sticking her butt int he air and fanning like "gals, we have ourselves a new queen".
Also idk why but the way you've phrased, 'they need a new queen!' In the video is really cute and makes it seem like you're really excited to help them.
Probably been mentioned, but at least to me the queen appears around 2:50 in the upper left corner. At least that's what it looked like, Queens tend to be a bit longer than the rest correct?
Very informative video. I am starting 2 new hives in the Spring of 2017. Assembling the hives and frames. Interesting part was knowing to check for queens and growth. Brood also as an indicator of no queen. Thanks for sharing!
I was curious about bees and honey production and went looking on UA-cam for info. I really enjoy your channel not just for the information but the way you provide it. Thank you for your videos and good luck/congrats with your apiaries
Thank you for the wonderful videos Frederick. I am an aspiring beekeeper and I will be starting my own hives next Spring. Your videos are helping me learn so much!
Thank you Darren! I'm happy to know that my videos are benefitting people like you. UA-cam is such a wonderful resource with so many bee keepers sharing their tips and observations. I wish you well with your honey bees in the spring. You may want to get your honey bee orders in waaaay in advance with the bee line of your choice. They often sell out before the year begins.
swfcindy I work with survivor line, varroa resistent, hygienic honey bees. They are often not as productive as Buckfast and other cultured lines of honey bees, but they don't require the treatments others do. The Queens in this video are from the Weaver Family down in Texas, they have been selectively breeding survivor honey bees and I think they are very VERY good.
I read some place that the queen cage should be placed with the candy side up so that if a nurse inside dies should won’t fall in front of the candy side opening and block the colony nurses from letting the Queen out .
That is a concern that many have, but I've never witnessed that problem and if you are following up on your queen cage within 48 hours, you can manually release the queen if you find that she is trapped. They still feed her through the screen, so unless the beekeeper is forgetful, she'll still be fine.
Thanks for the reply - I have recently introduced my first caged queens and still trying to confirm that I did it right and how many days to wait before I check that they have been released. You suggested check on her in 48 hours ?
Hi There, My husband and I have just watch your video and we have learnt a few points for our own hives that we never knew about. We never knew about the drones building a larger cell nor that the queen bee has a huge cell like the one you have shown. We have a few issues to iron out with our boxes. Great show. Thanks!
Wonderful video.... and I spotted the queen. My month old new hive has swarmed so I need to be able to work out what's going on and make sure everything is OK. This video has made all the book-learning real... especially what a laying-worker hive would look like. I also have several children to introduce to my girls when I inspect and I shall walk them through this video before we put bee-suits on so that they will get so much more from the live experience. Thank you again for taking the time to make such professional videos and for sharing your expertise and knowledge.
Hi Noel, thank you so much for this comment and I'm so happy to be a part of your learning process, I hope your children find loads of inspiration in the complexities of the bee hive and its occupants :)
Thank you very much, so glad you enjoyed it... I wasn't going to make this video, but decided that I may as well just get down what I'm doing and why.. :)
Hi Taz, deflating, or concave brood caps are not necessarily a bad indication, however, if they also become dark and oily, you need to check in on them asap. Give them 11 days to see if the hatch happens, if not, investigate and be aware of foul brood conditions. As for the rock, it's just a shim I use to increase top ventilation :)
Yes, assuming you don't have laying workers that would challenge her. If the hive is queen-less for less than 3 weeks, your chances are very good introducing a laying queen.
Such a beautiful hobby or a job , either way a wish I had a place and someone to teach me. Even tho I am a little scared of bees I guess takes time , patience, dedication and love. Very therapeutic in some way! Thanks for sharing. 😊
HI Ursula, thank you for commenting. You would not be the first person to discover that honey bee keeping or observation is a wonderful sanctuary from the hustle of daily life. My job is image making, so I have a very diverse routine, but, honey bee videos and photography are definitely among my most enjoyable activities. it's a joy to have them.
Hi Brian, that's an interesting observation, but that's actually a drone hatching out. Look at the conspicuously large eyes. You have a good eye! Drones can't lay eggs, but he certainly could be the product of a worker laying.
In the playlist, I hope there would be "split or how to avoid the swarm" as a name of playlist. Since it is very important. Would you create this subject playlist for us? Thanks in advance ~ Also, I cannot find the stream that you showed the some kind of oil so that bees got confused and accept the queen or something??? which one was it? I would like to buy that liquid substance for split. I got encouraged by that stream. I will split !
Thanks Phillip... I'm glad to have helped add to your bee knowledge.. yes, when a Queen is laying drones, they are packed brood, just like worker brood. Laying workers are "generally" very sporadic and unorganized in their laying.
Vonn Meneses Those are good questions. Sometimes the workers will simply turn on a queen and force her out, often for lack of productivity or some other oddity in her performance. This can also just be old age and a lack of egg laying. To preserve the colony, the workers extend a normal brood cell many times until it somewhat represents a planter's peanut shell, they overfeed the developing larvae with royal jelly and produce a replacement queen. It's common to see them producing several queen cells at a time. As long as there are eggs and developing larvae present when the old queen departs, dies or is killed, they can produce another queen. I hope that answers your question?
Hi Stephen, the inner cover closes up the space a little so the bees don't draw out comb and yet have space to move freely over the top bars of the frames. The cover adds insulation and protection from the elements, giving the option to vent the hive without getting locked-down with bee's wax and propolis, normally not tight fitting around the sides, but tight enough to keep bees from freely departing the hive through the cover. You "can" simply have a single cover without the venting aspect, but it will have to be flush on at least one side with no overlap so you can get your hive tool under it to lift it off. Having an inner and outter cover aids venting and hive access.
Great video! Quick question: what if you have a replacement queen but all the colonies you thought were in trouble are doing fine? What do you do with a spare queen?
I always order two queens at a time, just in case one dies out in transit. BUT, if I end up with no colonies "needing" a new queen, then I just to go my strongest colony and remove some drawn comb, covered brood frame or two and create a new colony with them. Capped brood will hatch out quickly and attend the new queen as well as beginning housekeeping duties. Another less popular option is to find a low performing queen and replace her.
Hi, I have a bit of a silly question here. At 14:39 on the video you mention the bees have started to build a Queen cell. I can see it, but I'm afraid I don't understand what this means. Thank you!
HI Cristina, that's not a silly question at all. When the workers are without a queen, and if there is open brood/larvae, they can construct a larger cell of wax and produce a replacement queen. This is done by the workers heaping large amounts of royal jelly on that developing larva which will produce the queen from an otherwise ordinary worker larva. It's truly amazing because the only difference is the diet they are fed. If I place a fertile queen in the queenless colony, they will destroy the queen cells they have constructed as they would no longer be needed.
Thank you so much for your answer! I'm currently residing in New Mexico and I've been told it's a good place for bee keeping. I'm just so very curious about bees, I would like to start a small hive and if it works out I plan to move into bee research. I like your videos, and even though I don't have the proper background, they have been most enlightening. Bees are extremely amazing creatures. Thanks again for your help!
Always happy to share what I know and I hope you do get into bee research as we need all the help we can get. : ) I have a son in Albuquerque... nice area or honey bees!
This year I gathered swarms from neighboring towns (got calls within 48 hours of each other) and I also experimented with swarm lures and picked up two that way. I still have a couple of swarm boxes on standby but don't expect to add anymore this year.
I have no idea why you'd want to attract swarms - I have enough on my hands just managing my hive, which casts off a swarm each May which I then catch, nuc and send back to the beekeeper who gave me the hive to begin with 😁
Sugar syrup, maybe.. if they don't appear to have enough stored resources. Where I am, there is planty of pollen, so I don't think I'd spend the big bucks on pollen patties in August.
I just found your channel and this video. Very helpful! I have never had to requeen but will today. I have a new queen and just pinched my old queen (sad) this morning. I plan to install the new queen this afternoon. I just saw no brood, bees were calm and there were enough bees in the deep but I had to remove the upper deep because there just weren't enough bees and seemed like too much room at this time. What do you think?
Frederick Dunn i always do to great and amazing vids. The reason i came onto this was the "European Hornet ", live in Europe btw, and there flew 1 in the middle of the night here in my livingroom. Whooaaa big huge ... And due to my unkown knowledge and fear, after 2 days in my livingroom... put windows open, doors open but never took off, hided somewhere, and then on the 3rd night, i killed it. Then i took pictures of it . 3.4 centimeters, beautiful orange colors and i felt bad... more even so to learn from your vid they are night hunters and not aggressive if not near nest. So i looked it all up. Couldnt take the risk but also a bit sad for that was beautiful coloring & never saw 1 in my life. So thats how i ended on your video's. And i subbed.
I find it so amazing that an entire colony will just accept a new queen. It's an incredible social adaptation considering a lot of animals seek and destroy a leader of another group.
Hi Hubert, I'll give you a link to what I'm using now and will be demonstrating in upcoming videos. One of the Piergo Engineers has started a new company called Acorn and they are single, double, and triple dipping them in wax based on your personal preference. I received my first case and am very impressed. Here is the link www.acornbee.com/ I hope that helps and that they can ship to you. The double dipped frames are fantastic and the bees work them first.
I have 2 packages where the queens died in their cage.. l am picking up 2 new queens this week. I like your method for installing the cages in the brood nest. I had previously used queen cage holders, but they can be hard to get out and damage comb. I really enjoy your videos!
Hello Frederick. I'm seeing a handful of youtube videos on people re-queening their hives. Why would you re-queen a hive if the hive was doing well. Are there reasons for re-queening a hive in spring or in late June? Thank you
I see no reason to requeen a colony that is doing well. I've had some queens that performed very well right into the third year. I tend to do a split then and keep those genetics around as much as possible. Some keepers feel they need to requeen every year and I'm not of that thinking.
Where did u git the critter light from I was told that a laying worker hieve would not except a new queen did your hive receive her and did they do good thanks
@@FrederickDunn I have a huge problem with bears where I live and decided to install an electric fence. however if this really works it would be great to not have to install more electric fence when my present yard is to full.
Great question, I've never observed that "blockage" and since you're going to check in on the queen in a few days it really doesn't matter since you'll release her then anyway. BUT, if you can't check in on the queen and plan to leave the cage in place for an extended time, yes, you can leave the candy side up.
I re-queen a colony 6 days ago. Because of the weather I was unable to check on her for 6 days. When I did, I found her being attacked by the worker bees. I removed her from the colony. Can I reintroduce her to the same colony?
There may be a laying worker, or a queen you haven't found. If those two issues are not present, then you can try spraying the colony and queen cage with 1:1 sugar syrup and 3 tsp/quart of honey-b-healthy.
Is the reason you chose to introduce a new queen to the second hive that it wouldn't be able to make a new queen? Why not, if it has so many resources?
Hi! Thanks for the videos! Quick question, I am requeening an aggressive hive, can I kill the queen and put a new one in the same day or should I wait before putting in a new queen? Thanks!
Hi Elaine! It's generally better to go in, find the "Hot Queen" and remove her first. After a couple of days the remaining workers will fully realize that she is absent and will be more likely to accept the new Queen. If you do it all in one step, they may reject the new Queen, thinking that the other is still present.
Elaine West i did this with a poorly mated queen.. i removed her from the colony and allowed them to be queenless for 24 hours. they readily accepted their new queen and did well. wintering pracefully now :-)
I am a novice I have heard that it may not be good to place the queen cage down as if an attendant bee dies it could trap the queen in the cage. Your thoughts
Hello. Can you help me for my assignment please? I want to know when is the best time for you to replace a queen? Is it spring summer or autumn? I would be very grateful if you answer
Yes, the black is Piergo Foundation.. one of their engineers had now split off and started Acorn Frames, they are triple dipped in wax and much stronger. Thank you, I'm so glad you enjoyed this video :)
Studies have been done to show that the absolute minimum to start off is 500 bees. "Survival only", To thrive, 5,000 is the magic number for a good division of labor. 3,500 bees per pound on average, so less than two pounds of bees can really get things going.
Soooooo interesting! I love your closed caption just as much as your narration Mr Dunn! Question: Say a colony had a Queen but for whatever reason needed a new Queen what do you with the 'old' Queen.....just curious
If you have to physically remove a queen for some reason, you can put her in a small bottle of alcohol and crush her up, that liquid will make an excellent lure for swarms. OR, you can do a split, pull extra frames of brood and let her start her own new colony.
at 14:42 u say they are starting a queen cell. is it that big yellow dot/chambre above the word CELL?? and if so, why dont u let them hatch there own queen?
Yes Kristof, that's the Queen Cell. They would lose too much time waiting for that queen to develop and then "hopefully" mate and then after a successful mating, getting back to the hive fertile and safe to begin laying eggs. By providing a Queen that is ready to go, she begins laying immediately and I know her lineage. In roughly 21 days with the "installed" queen, I will have brood hatching at a rate of 1,700 to 2,000 per day and I know they are hygienic and varroa resistant. Allowing them to re-queen on their own is a gamble and delays the introduction of new workers.
ok thank you. i think this also awnsers another question i haid. if u haid to choose.... 2 smaller colony's or one big colony what would be the best? im gessing one big colony is better specialy to get tro winter?....
HI! GREAT Info - THANKS! as in 4:20 & others, loud Bee Buzz is like ones i get - they get in hair, pisses them and me off. Learning - don't walk away right off. _better hair tieback?_ lol 7:15 Gentle, Really? oh, "Generally" - That's w\ No Brood. hmm 'mine's' wild nest. Does tossing Comb pieces on ground draw Mites\ Moths? ~ But, You have Chickens! = ] Thanks again for Teaching! : D
It's cool how they don't even take notice of you even with you moving the frames around. Is that because of the light smoke or just how they behave? Great video as usual.
If you "oversmoke" the bees, they can get a little agitated... a little smoke goes a long way and does calm them nicely. It also helps to move slowly and deliberately without smashing any bees :)
haven't read all the comments , but are you aware you have the queen on the frame at 2:54 upper left quadrant ? unmarked queen facing up....
Ohhhh great catch! She's excellent and yes, that's one of the queen-rite colonies :)
You will see her again at 03:41 I've pinned your comment so others can see what you're talking about. Thank you again!
steve dubey Good eye, steve.
And a little earlier at 2:46, centre left, and again at 3:40, centre.
and at 2:19 coming in from top of the screen. :)
Beautiful!
I used to dislike bees because I didn't understand them. It took one yellow jacket sting to show me who the real nuisance was. Immediately after that I started watching bees and realized they did not care I was there, they just want to do their work. Now I'm happy when I see them out foraging and I watch where I step so I don't crush them or get in their way
I'm so glad you've had that learning experience :) Thank you for taking the time to comment.
Hi Gary, that's a common method (candy up) but I've honestly never had the problem of a queen becoming trapped by dead attendants. On the third day after placing the queen cage, you should be opening the hive and checking in on her and if she hasn't made her exit yet, you can just remove the cork from the opposite end and set her free at that time. The hive workers will continue to feed the Queen through the screen even if her exit is blocked. Again, I've never had a queen blocked in her cage by dead attendants, I just habitually do candy-down because the opening is then pointed down into the brood area which generally causes the outside workers to chew through the candy plug faster. I've never killed a queen :)
You're welcome
i love how you dont put music in your video its so calm
Thank you, depending on the subject of the video, I do add music scores. When it comes to some bee videos, I like to leave the native tracks in :)
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At 09:40 I'd like you to notice how large the cells are, the workers made an entire "Drone Frame", I felt it was important to show you what that looks like. If you have a normal brood frame in storage, it's a pretty good idea to just swap out the drone frame for the normal brood cell sized drawn comb. I did go into all of the boxes and just wanted to share what I thougth would be helpful to viewers. Thank you for viewing, I hope it was helpful.
Frederick Dunn I noticed u didn't find the queen in the ones u put a new queen in? Or did I miss something? If there is a queen still in that colony (unproductive) what would happen if you place the new queen in the hive as well?
If there is a low productive or nonproductive queen present, you will see the workers reject the new queen rather than attempt to feed her through the screen. You really do need to locate any existing queens and remove them if they are present.
Ok here's my situation lol. Ima new beekeeper and my uncle gave me a hive to learn from. They are VERY strong in numbers. And mean as hell! On April 24th I got a new queen in the mail. I've looked 3 times for the old queen with no luck. So I smoked the hive really good and put the queen excluder on top of the bottom brood chamber to make it easier. The weather and work hasn't allowed me to get back in there yet to locate her. But here's the thing, my top brood chamber is all honey. No brood. The bottom brood chamber is very light and I don't recall seeing any brood or eggs. What would u recommend I do at this point??? Thank u so much for ur time!
Mike Webster
You're going to get back in there and see if there is new brood. Don't worry about the old queen. If the new queen is out of her cage and laying you'll know it right away. You don't even need to locate her, just look for evidence of egg laying and brood capping. You're back in business if she is laying. Your "hot bees" will go away as she replaces them all within the next several weeks. You'll notice the stock gradually changing over to whatever the queen stock is.
I have NOT yet installed the new queen. My plan was to open the bottom chamber where I placed the queen excluder and see if any new brood or eggs could have recently been laid by the old queen. If I do not find any I'm going to assume that the hive is queen less and then install the new queen. If I do find that the old queen is still in there and laying im going to have to search really hard for her and kill her I reckon. Or could I place the new queen in there caged and see how they respond? Their response should tell me if the old one is still in there or not? Thank u for ur time!!
Love the excellent camera work and slow quiet pace so that one can see clearly what is happening on a frame. Thank you.
Thank you so much Irish Girl! I'm glad you enjoyed this and took the time to post a comment!
I've always wanted a bee farm. something about bees relax me. I just want to know as much as I can before starting one so I feel more confident. Videos like this are a joy and pleasure to me for this reason.
HI Richie, thank you so much for the compliment and I do hope you have your own bees to manage some day, we need more thoughtful keepers such as you.
I remember when I was 13 or 14 years old I found an exhausted bee on my porch. apparently it's give was too far away from our honey suckle flowers that it craved. and because of that the trip tuckered it out and it was unable to fly. I took it in and gave it some sugar water and in minutes it was ready to fly again. I swear that bee used to come visit me some mornings. I think that is what kindled my passion for bees. It inspired me to learn more about them and I was amazed at how huge if an impact they have on nature and even the food we eat.
That's a very interesting early inspiration story :) It is likely that the same worker did come back several times in search of that sugar fix you initially provided. I have put sugar water in a large test tube, collected bees from a hive landing board, taken them to the test tube a little over a hundred yards away and allowed them to drink the sugar water. They then depart and within five minutes are back with more workers. Their ability to relocate resources is keen.
Yeah I figured that was the case myself they are incredibly perceptive little guys. I still enjoyed it's company and watching it clumsily collect from our honey suckle. when our peach trees would bloom you could see a few of them buzzing around them. It is almost therapeutic in my opinion seeing such a beautiful tree and hearing the buzz of the little wood bees. I have never been stung before except by a yellow jacket. I despise yellow jackets and can't really see how people could mistake the two. I mean come on one is an adorable clumsy little fur nugget and the other is clearly Satan's little helper with wings and infinite ammo. But I digress. I look forward to someday owning even at least 1 decent bee box. I even have a friend interested in bee farming. I don't care for the money aspect but being a pretty good cook I would love to experiment with the different textures and flavors of honey you get through the seasons.
I would have never imagined how calming watching them can be. Really makes me want to start beekeeping some day
I'm a beekeeper in my first year along with my dad,we have 3 hives and this video was a great reference video to go back to in doubt.
Thank you Fred I hope this inspires people to take up beekeeping what ever part of the world you come from,it's not just a hobby but a way of helping our little furry friends the best we can.
Thank you and take care Shaun in the uk
Thank you Shaun, so glad you appreciated this video. I agree that I hope others may be inspired to provide for honey bees wherever they may live.
i love how you present your hives and a calm and quiet way and write what we are seeing. This is such a peaceful and helpful way to do it. Congratulations on your successful swarm hives and showing the requeening process. I have just done that with my hive....I lost my original queen (I am a Nubee) From the way to showed how you place your new caged queen is confirming that I did it correctly except I put her further down in to the frame. I will check on her tomorrow and hope she is already in the hive. You have a consistent viewer here. thank you!!
Hello Mr. Dunn, apart from loving honey and being irrationally afraid of them, I have no business with bees. Yet I love your videos. You could read for audible books for toddlers, you have a very soothing and relaxing effect on me. Children must absolutely adore you. Thank you.
That is funny... I do connect with children easily but never considered voice quality.Thank you for that comment, I wish I could get some voice over work! :)
I am a newbie. I have to replace a queen on one hive.
I typed in for help. Chose your video. Glad I did. Great demonstration. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful! I'm glad your search brought you here :)
Thank you for the video. I learned a lot of practical things. Some probably are very simple but important --- like the correct position of the queen cage (keeping the screen free so the workers can feed the bees inside). Also it was very clear how to identify brood vs. capped honey and any drone cells. Being very new I was pleased to find myself able to identify the queen before you pointed them out. Thank you kindly again!
Hi Mark! I am so glad that you found the video to be helpful and that you took the time out of your day to post a comment. Very much appreciated!
Hi Mark! I am so glad that you found the video to be helpful and that you took the time out of your day to post a comment. Very much appreciated!
The aged blue and green paint of this old hive are somehow warm and appealing. I can't explain why.
Fun video.
The close up of the queen in the cage was neat.
So calm, relaxed and informative. I like the text being put in the correct place of the screen shot. Well done.
Mr Dunn, I absolutely LOVE this video, but I am so happy when you narrate as I get so much more from your narrated vids. Awesome as always!!!!!
Thank you Macro, I do try to narrate all of my current videos. Thank you as always for your valuable observations and feedback!
Enjoyed your informative well produced presentation. Captions are great for an ancient amateur from down under
My husband and I really love watching your videos. They are very interesting and informative... thank you for posting them. xx
Thank you so much Jay, that makes my day :)
At 03:40 the Queen is Clearly Seen Center Screen. She has a black bald thorax and is longer than the workers. Her wings are not clipped and she is unmarked.
I saw her top center @ 2:57 too, i can never spot mine tho lol
Also visible at 2:09 - 2:12 center of frame, 2:48 as well.
I know it's an old video, but I was so excited that I recognized the queen before you mentioned it. I feel like I'm finally catching on.
Nice, good to see you back Clint!
I so enjoy your videos. I don't have bees myself but they are such interesting little creatures to me. In the last hive where you placed a new queen on the top left there was also a bee sticking her butt int he air and fanning like "gals, we have ourselves a new queen".
Also idk why but the way you've phrased, 'they need a new queen!' In the video is really cute and makes it seem like you're really excited to help them.
I'm learning a great deal about beekeeping watching your videos. Keep up the great work.
Thank you Dave, I'm so glad you like them and thanks for taking time to post!
Probably been mentioned, but at least to me the queen appears around 2:50 in the upper left corner. At least that's what it looked like, Queens tend to be a bit longer than the rest correct?
Yes, that's the queen, you can see her by the bald thorax. Thank you for commenting, I think viewers will enjoy seeing her :)
Very informative video. I am starting 2 new hives in the Spring of 2017. Assembling the hives and frames. Interesting part was knowing to check for queens and growth. Brood also as an indicator of no queen. Thanks for sharing!
You're very welcome, glad this helped.
This is the absolute BEST beekeeping video I've seen! Thank you! I learned so much!
Loving your channel. Thank you. I'm a newbie. Had a colony for 3 weeks. Learning a lot on here.
I was curious about bees and honey production and went looking on UA-cam for info. I really enjoy your channel not just for the information but the way you provide it. Thank you for your videos and good luck/congrats with your apiaries
Thank you Heather, such a nice comment to receive.
You have came a long way Fred! ❤
Thank you for the wonderful videos Frederick. I am an aspiring beekeeper and I will be starting my own hives next Spring. Your videos are helping me learn so much!
Thank you Darren! I'm happy to know that my videos are benefitting people like you. UA-cam is such a wonderful resource with so many bee keepers sharing their tips and observations. I wish you well with your honey bees in the spring. You may want to get your honey bee orders in waaaay in advance with the bee line of your choice. They often sell out before the year begins.
Great. I will do that. Thanks so much for the advice.
What "bee lines" do you recommend and why? (Disease resistant, temperament & high productivity any factors?)
swfcindy I work with survivor line, varroa resistent, hygienic honey bees. They are often not as productive as Buckfast and other cultured lines of honey bees, but they don't require the treatments others do. The Queens in this video are from the Weaver Family down in Texas, they have been selectively breeding survivor honey bees and I think they are very VERY good.
I read some place that the queen cage should be placed with the candy side up so that if a nurse inside dies should won’t fall in front of the candy side opening and block the colony nurses from letting the Queen out .
That is a concern that many have, but I've never witnessed that problem and if you are following up on your queen cage within 48 hours, you can manually release the queen if you find that she is trapped. They still feed her through the screen, so unless the beekeeper is forgetful, she'll still be fine.
Thanks for the reply - I have recently introduced my first caged queens and still trying to confirm that I did it right and how many days to wait before I check that they have been released. You suggested check on her in 48 hours ?
Wow, bees are really incredible. It's really inspiring how hard they work.
You are absolutely right! They continue to amaze, no matter how long you've observed them.
Hey, a new bee keeper and non english here. This was very instructive, thanks you !
Hi Veronik, thank you so much for commenting and I'm happy you enjoyed this!
It was very useful. Thank you! I appreciated the closeups, and the multiple hive examples. Not to mention the "not rushed" camera work.
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and appreciation John! Much appreciated...
just curious if your bees use the plant in the back ground at 6:10 in the video
Not the plant immediately adjacent to the hives, but they to head out to the meadows in that direction. Hundreds of acres of wildflowers to the west.
Hi There, My husband and I have just watch your video and we have learnt a few points for our own hives that we never knew about. We never knew about the drones building a larger cell nor that the queen bee has a huge cell like the one you have shown. We have a few issues to iron out with our boxes. Great show. Thanks!
Thank you Evelyn, I'm so glad it was helpful for you. I wish you well with your hives/bees :)
Incredible camera work as always. Thanks so much, best videos on UA-cam!
Wow, thank you... what a great compliment :) I really do appreciate that.
This was a wonderful visual. I really learned a lot in this short clip! thanks so much
Hi Stephanie, thank you so much!
Wonderful video.... and I spotted the queen. My month old new hive has swarmed so I need to be able to work out what's going on and make sure everything is OK. This video has made all the book-learning real... especially what a laying-worker hive would look like. I also have several children to introduce to my girls when I inspect and I shall walk them through this video before we put bee-suits on so that they will get so much more from the live experience. Thank you again for taking the time to make such professional videos and for sharing your expertise and knowledge.
Hi Noel, thank you so much for this comment and I'm so happy to be a part of your learning process, I hope your children find loads of inspiration in the complexities of the bee hive and its occupants :)
Again, thank you immensely for your bee keeping series here. Learning SO MUCH!!!
Thank you for viewing and commenting! I'm so glad you've found my videos interesting and helpful, looking forward to spring! :)
Lost my first queen. Ordered a new one. Thanks for the detailed, expert advice.
You're welcome :)
Nicely presented and very entertaining to be at your side while you work.
Thank you very much, so glad you enjoyed it... I wasn't going to make this video, but decided that I may as well just get down what I'm doing and why.. :)
what does it mean when the caps on the brood are "deflating" sinking in? also what is the rock you put on the lid at 5:28?
Hi Taz, deflating, or concave brood caps are not necessarily a bad indication, however, if they also become dark and oily, you need to check in on them asap. Give them 11 days to see if the hatch happens, if not, investigate and be aware of foul brood conditions. As for the rock, it's just a shim I use to increase top ventilation :)
Can you add a laying queen directly to a queen less hive?
Yes, assuming you don't have laying workers that would challenge her. If the hive is queen-less for less than 3 weeks, your chances are very good introducing a laying queen.
Excellent thank you new to beekeeping waiting on my first bees Regards Des.
Hi Des, I hope everything goes perfectly when you receive your bees :)
@Frederick Dunn the buzzing of the bees is quite relaxing
Such a beautiful hobby or a job , either way a wish I had a place and someone to teach me. Even tho I am a little scared of bees I guess takes time , patience, dedication and love. Very therapeutic in some way! Thanks for sharing. 😊
HI Ursula, thank you for commenting. You would not be the first person to discover that honey bee keeping or observation is a wonderful sanctuary from the hustle of daily life. My job is image making, so I have a very diverse routine, but, honey bee videos and photography are definitely among my most enjoyable activities. it's a joy to have them.
Frederick Dunn _ Well, your are lucky! Thanks for the reply and God bless! I subscribed! 😊
Ursula Martins I am indeed :) thank you
Great high definition video, I'm starting beekeeping this Spring 2017 and have seen hundreds of bee videos but find yours to be the best. Well done.
Hi Stephen, thank you so much for that wonderful compliment! I hope you have great success with your honey bee venture.
At 9:35 You can see a laying worker on the right side of the frame. Notice it's head sticking out of the cell
Hi Brian, that's an interesting observation, but that's actually a drone hatching out. Look at the conspicuously large eyes. You have a good eye! Drones can't lay eggs, but he certainly could be the product of a worker laying.
In the playlist, I hope there would be "split or how to avoid the swarm" as a name of playlist. Since it is very important. Would you create this subject playlist for us? Thanks in advance ~ Also, I cannot find the stream that you showed the some kind of oil so that bees got confused and accept the queen or something??? which one was it? I would like to buy that liquid substance for split. I got encouraged by that stream. I will split !
10:40 what material is the light frame made out of?
Piergo food grade plastic
Nice video. Well explained and reinforced. Rey useful to me. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
very cool i learned something about the scattered drone cells, did not know that is a good way to see you lost your queen or have a laying worker.
Thanks Phillip... I'm glad to have helped add to your bee knowledge.. yes, when a Queen is laying drones, they are packed brood, just like worker brood. Laying workers are "generally" very sporadic and unorganized in their laying.
This was so relaxing and informative to watch
1:00 Don't swarms come with their own queens? Or did the queen die after laying all that brood?
The queen was good, did not requeen that hive
Frederick Dunn bruh can i ask why do some hives lose their queens? did it fly away or fid it died? and how did you know theyre building queen cells?
Vonn Meneses Those are good questions. Sometimes the workers will simply turn on a queen and force her out, often for lack of productivity or some other oddity in her performance. This can also just be old age and a lack of egg laying. To preserve the colony, the workers extend a normal brood cell many times until it somewhat represents a planter's peanut shell, they overfeed the developing larvae with royal jelly and produce a replacement queen. It's common to see them producing several queen cells at a time. As long as there are eggs and developing larvae present when the old queen departs, dies or is killed, they can produce another queen. I hope that answers your question?
Frederick Dunn Ah now it makes more sense.
What is the inner cover for since there is a lid
Hi Stephen, the inner cover closes up the space a little so the bees don't draw out comb and yet have space to move freely over the top bars of the frames. The cover adds insulation and protection from the elements, giving the option to vent the hive without getting locked-down with bee's wax and propolis, normally not tight fitting around the sides, but tight enough to keep bees from freely departing the hive through the cover. You "can" simply have a single cover without the venting aspect, but it will have to be flush on at least one side with no overlap so you can get your hive tool under it to lift it off. Having an inner and outter cover aids venting and hive access.
Great video! Quick question: what if you have a replacement queen but all the colonies you thought were in trouble are doing fine? What do you do with a spare queen?
I always order two queens at a time, just in case one dies out in transit. BUT, if I end up with no colonies "needing" a new queen, then I just to go my strongest colony and remove some drawn comb, covered brood frame or two and create a new colony with them. Capped brood will hatch out quickly and attend the new queen as well as beginning housekeeping duties. Another less popular option is to find a low performing queen and replace her.
Why did these colonies need new queens? This is very interesting and cool to watch.
They failed to replace their queen after swarming.
@@FrederickDunn Oh okay! Thank you!
Hi, I have a bit of a silly question here. At 14:39 on the video you mention the bees have started to build a Queen cell. I can see it, but I'm afraid I don't understand what this means. Thank you!
HI Cristina, that's not a silly question at all. When the workers are without a queen, and if there is open brood/larvae, they can construct a larger cell of wax and produce a replacement queen. This is done by the workers heaping large amounts of royal jelly on that developing larva which will produce the queen from an otherwise ordinary worker larva. It's truly amazing because the only difference is the diet they are fed. If I place a fertile queen in the queenless colony, they will destroy the queen cells they have constructed as they would no longer be needed.
Thank you so much for your answer! I'm currently residing in New Mexico and I've been told it's a good place for bee keeping. I'm just so very curious about bees, I would like to start a small hive and if it works out I plan to move into bee research. I like your videos, and even though I don't have the proper background, they have been most enlightening. Bees are extremely amazing creatures. Thanks again for your help!
Always happy to share what I know and I hope you do get into bee research as we need all the help we can get. : ) I have a son in Albuquerque... nice area or honey bees!
I know nothing about bees but this was an amazing and interesting video. thank you for sharing.
You are very welcome and thank you for taking the time to comment!
Great video Fred. No nonsense and straight to the point. Nice hives btw. How did you land so many swarms so close together ?
This year I gathered swarms from neighboring towns (got calls within 48 hours of each other) and I also experimented with swarm lures and picked up two that way. I still have a couple of swarm boxes on standby but don't expect to add anymore this year.
What lures did you try? Don't answer if that is going to be another video. I can wait.
Smokeydabee Charles Coleman Swarm Commander.... and... Honey Bee Swarm Lure Nasanov Pheromone.. the Nasanov Pheromone worked best for me.
I have no idea why you'd want to attract swarms - I have enough on my hands just managing my hive, which casts off a swarm each May which I then catch, nuc and send back to the beekeeper who gave me the hive to begin with 😁
Thank you so much for posting these videos - I'm learning tons!
Thank you so much Sheryl, I hope you'll subscribe and let the learning continue :)
Hello Fred, If you re-queened in August, would you feed with sugar water and a pollen patty?
Sugar syrup, maybe.. if they don't appear to have enough stored resources. Where I am, there is planty of pollen, so I don't think I'd spend the big bucks on pollen patties in August.
I just found your channel and this video. Very helpful! I have never had to requeen but will today. I have a new queen and just pinched my old queen (sad) this morning. I plan to install the new queen this afternoon. I just saw no brood, bees were calm and there were enough bees in the deep but I had to remove the upper deep because there just weren't enough bees and seemed like too much room at this time. What do you think?
Sounds like you did just the right thing.
Another exceptionally helpful video, thank you very much for posting.
You are so welcome Squirrels!
What a beautiful explained video. Useful and learned alot. Love it.
Thank you, I'm so glad! I appreciate that you took the time to comment.
Frederick Dunn i always do to great and amazing vids. The reason i came onto this was the "European Hornet ", live in Europe btw, and there flew 1 in the middle of the night here in my livingroom. Whooaaa big huge ... And due to my unkown knowledge and fear, after 2 days in my livingroom... put windows open, doors open but never took off, hided somewhere, and then on the 3rd night, i killed it. Then i took pictures of it . 3.4 centimeters, beautiful orange colors and i felt bad... more even so to learn from your vid they are night hunters and not aggressive if not near nest. So i looked it all up. Couldnt take the risk but also a bit sad for that was beautiful coloring & never saw 1 in my life. So thats how i ended on your video's. And i subbed.
Thank you for such a beautiful & insightful video.
You are very welcome and thank you for watching and commenting!
What is that alarm or "secure" box on the upper left (facing) of the hive?
Never mind, I just needed to watch the rest of the video :)
ua-cam.com/video/8JiKdi0NF_8/v-deo.html
I find it so amazing that an entire colony will just accept a new queen. It's an incredible social adaptation considering a lot of animals seek and destroy a leader of another group.
Smartest insects known... :)
Hi. Cant find the Piergo frames anywhere (at least when googling in the UK...) - any chance you could link?
Hi Hubert, I'll give you a link to what I'm using now and will be demonstrating in upcoming videos. One of the Piergo Engineers has started a new company called Acorn and they are single, double, and triple dipping them in wax based on your personal preference. I received my first case and am very impressed. Here is the link www.acornbee.com/ I hope that helps and that they can ship to you. The double dipped frames are fantastic and the bees work them first.
thanks for helping these guys along
You're very welcome :)
I have 2 packages where the queens died in their cage.. l am picking up 2 new queens this week.
I like your method for installing the cages in the brood nest. I had previously used queen cage holders, but they can be hard to get out and damage comb. I really enjoy your videos!
Thank you, for taking the time to post the wonderful videos.
You're very welcome and thank you for viewing them! :)
I learn so much from this video alone, thank you :)
You're very welcome
Another great informative video! Thanks for sharing and will be watching for more tmrw after wok!!
Thanks again and again Theresa :)
What is the name of flower at this end?
Looks like common milkweed to me. Good for bees and monarchs.
@@kellyboland9349 I found the name of flower in the other youtube stream by Fred. Anyway, thanks ~ ^_^
@@kellyboland9349 So nice of you, though ~ ^_^ But I
found the name of flower in another Fred's youtube stream
Queen sightings at center of frame 2:08 2:48
Excellent, thanks for all the help, the education is very helpful
Thank you Mandy, I appreciate your comment!
Hello Frederick. I'm seeing a handful of youtube videos on people re-queening their hives. Why would you re-queen a hive if the hive was doing well. Are there reasons for re-queening a hive in spring or in late June? Thank you
I see no reason to requeen a colony that is doing well. I've had some queens that performed very well right into the third year. I tend to do a split then and keep those genetics around as much as possible. Some keepers feel they need to requeen every year and I'm not of that thinking.
Great, helpful subtitling! Thank you.
You are welcome!
Where did u git the critter light from I was told that a laying worker hieve would not except a new queen did your hive receive her and did they do good thanks
Are you asking about the predator guard flashing light? I bought them on Amazon :)
@@FrederickDunn I have a huge problem with bears where I live and decided to install an electric fence. however if this really works it would be great to not have to install more electric fence when my present yard is to full.
Would it be better to face the candy side up in case of dead escorts blocking the exit?
Great question, I've never observed that "blockage" and since you're going to check in on the queen in a few days it really doesn't matter since you'll release her then anyway. BUT, if you can't check in on the queen and plan to leave the cage in place for an extended time, yes, you can leave the candy side up.
Which month would be the best time for new queen to be introduced in a year time frame?
Around here, that would be May or early June.
I re-queen a colony 6 days ago. Because of the weather I was unable to check on her for 6 days. When I did, I found her being attacked by the worker bees. I removed her from the colony. Can I reintroduce her to the same colony?
There may be a laying worker, or a queen you haven't found. If those two issues are not present, then you can try spraying the colony and queen cage with 1:1 sugar syrup and 3 tsp/quart of honey-b-healthy.
Nice bluebird song at the end.
Is the reason you chose to introduce a new queen to the second hive that it wouldn't be able to make a new queen? Why not, if it has so many resources?
In order to control the genetics of the colony
Well done. Great close ups. Great captions.
Thank you, I appreciate that!
Love seeing a queen being accepted.
Hi! Thanks for the videos! Quick question, I am requeening an aggressive hive, can I kill the queen and put a new one in the same day or should I wait before putting in a new queen? Thanks!
Hi Elaine! It's generally better to go in, find the "Hot Queen" and remove her first. After a couple of days the remaining workers will fully realize that she is absent and will be more likely to accept the new Queen. If you do it all in one step, they may reject the new Queen, thinking that the other is still present.
Elaine West i did this with a poorly mated queen.. i removed her from the colony and allowed them to be queenless for 24 hours. they readily accepted their new queen and did well. wintering pracefully now :-)
I am a novice I have heard that it may not be good to place the queen cage down as if an attendant bee dies it could trap the queen in the cage. Your thoughts
the candy plug end should be level or slightly tipped up just in case any of the attendant bees are killed through the screen.
Fred how do find queens here in australia ? Cheers
You have to find a beekeeper who will rear them for you, or other honeybee breeder.
Very informative, great video & peaceful to watch and learn..
Hello. Can you help me for my assignment please? I want to know when is the best time for you to replace a queen? Is it spring summer or autumn? I would be very grateful if you answer
spring
Thank you sir!
yes very informative. ,helpful and interestingly ,but what was that black ?just black foundation ?
Yes, the black is Piergo Foundation.. one of their engineers had now split off and started Acorn Frames, they are triple dipped in wax and much stronger. Thank you, I'm so glad you enjoyed this video :)
How many worker bee are needed to be in the hive, to add a replacement Queen?
Studies have been done to show that the absolute minimum to start off is 500 bees. "Survival only", To thrive, 5,000 is the magic number for a good division of labor. 3,500 bees per pound on average, so less than two pounds of bees can really get things going.
Soooooo interesting! I love your closed caption just as much as your narration Mr Dunn!
Question: Say a colony had a Queen but for whatever reason needed a new Queen what do you with the 'old' Queen.....just curious
If you have to physically remove a queen for some reason, you can put her in a small bottle of alcohol and crush her up, that liquid will make an excellent lure for swarms. OR, you can do a split, pull extra frames of brood and let her start her own new colony.
@@FrederickDunn thanks cause I was wondering if there was an alternative to killing her 🙁
Excellent close-up photography - do you use a macro lens on your camera?
I so sometimes, but not for this video :) Thank you!
at 14:42 u say they are starting a queen cell. is it that big yellow dot/chambre above the word CELL?? and if so, why dont u let them hatch there own queen?
Yes Kristof, that's the Queen Cell. They would lose too much time waiting for that queen to develop and then "hopefully" mate and then after a successful mating, getting back to the hive fertile and safe to begin laying eggs. By providing a Queen that is ready to go, she begins laying immediately and I know her lineage. In roughly 21 days with the "installed" queen, I will have brood hatching at a rate of 1,700 to 2,000 per day and I know they are hygienic and varroa resistant. Allowing them to re-queen on their own is a gamble and delays the introduction of new workers.
ok thank you. i think this also awnsers another question i haid. if u haid to choose.... 2 smaller colony's or one big colony what would be the best? im gessing one big colony is better specialy to get tro winter?....
kristof privat Yes, one larger colony with combined resources would be better, particularly when facing winter weather.
Hi Frederic. I wonder if the Queen got accepted in the hive that has a laying workers?
She was accepted and they are coming through winter in great shape :)
Frederick Dunn thx for an answer and good luck.
HI! GREAT Info - THANKS! as in 4:20 & others, loud Bee Buzz is like ones i get - they get in hair, pisses them and me off.
Learning - don't walk away right off. _better hair tieback?_ lol
7:15 Gentle, Really? oh, "Generally" - That's w\ No Brood. hmm 'mine's' wild nest.
Does tossing Comb pieces on ground draw Mites\ Moths? ~ But, You have Chickens! = ] Thanks again for Teaching! : D
The tossed comb draws in raccoons, possoms and skunks.
It's cool how they don't even take notice of you even with you moving the frames around. Is that because of the light smoke or just how they behave?
Great video as usual.
If you "oversmoke" the bees, they can get a little agitated... a little smoke goes a long way and does calm them nicely. It also helps to move slowly and deliberately without smashing any bees :)
Nice, I didn't know that. Thanks.
turgsh01 you're welcome
Nah, he gives them a puff from the magic dragon.