Thursday, March 16, 2017

How Soon To Make Spring Splits

We are David and Sheri Burns from Long Lane Honey Bee Farms and Honeybeesonline.com. Our 2017 classes are going well. I'll be teaching a class this Friday "Spring Management" and then on Saturday I'm teaching a Beginners Class at Heartland Community College in Bloomington, Illinois. Click here to join me in Bloomington this Saturday. I believe there are several spots still open.

Check out all of our classes for 2017 at:

COLD WEATHER!!It recently turned cold again in much of the US. We had temperatures down in the teens the last couple of nights. This is especially hard on bees that were flying on warmer days several weeks ago eating up all their winter food. Keep an eye on your hives, especially in March if you are in colder climates. Bees need fed during the months of March and April. 

Need Some Quick Help On Common Questions?:






ARE YOUR BEES OUT OF FOOD??
It is essential that we feed bees in the spring. Even if fruit trees are blooming why not give your hive an added boost. Our feeding board is perfect for fall and spring. Holes are lined with screen to make changing jars easy. Feeding your hive will speed up drawing comb out on new foundation. Remember, in most of the US March and April can be cold and rainy. Your new package or nuc needs fed! Order Your Feeding Board Now By Clicking Here.

HONEY BEE TRIVIA

Honey Bees Are Amazing
It's fun to know interesting facts about bees especially when you are speaking to a group of children about bees or anyone for that matter.

-It takes approximately 3,500 bees to weigh 1 pound.
-Honey bees that collect nectar from flowers are called foragers and visit 50-100
    flowers on one flight.
-A male drone bee has a grandfather but not a dad.
-The bees gather 10 pounds of nectar to make 1 pound of honey.
-A honey bees will only gather 1/12 of a teaspoon of honey in her life.
-A foraging honey bee can carry 80% of their weight in pollen or nectar.
-Honey bees make up 80% of all pollinators.
-Honey bees use several dances in the hive to communicate the location of nectar
    and water to other bees. One well known dance is called the waggle dance.
-Honey bee pollination has an agricultural value of 15 billion dollars a year in the
    US.


Hundreds Of Desperate Beekeepers Will Call Us Needing A Hive In April And May. Beat The Rush!
If you can, start with two hives. You can swap frames to balance your hives during the year. If a queen dies, just move a frame of eggs over from the other hive. Comes with or without bees. We are still selling kits with bees. Bees are for local pickup only. These kits with bees are only available until March 31st then we will be out of bees. ORDER NOW! Check out our Freedom Kit by clicking here. Or call today to ensure you beat the rush. 217-427-2678 Be sure to call us for better shipping prices for what you might find online.

Making Early Spring Splits
Click On Video Below
Watch my popular video answering common questions. Please subscribe to our beekeeping YouTube channel. At the bottom right of each video you can subscribe. We are at 9,000 subscribers with over 2.5 Million Views!!  But 10,000 subscribes will help us have resources to produce additional Youtube videos on beekeeping such as mobile live beekeeping videos. Help us with getting our next 1,000 subscribers. Thank you in advance!

Yikes! Your Bees Are Coming Soon. Are You Sure You Are Ready?
Knowing what to do and when is the tricky part of beekeeping. Let me be your mentor. I have a special mentorship program called BeeTeam6 where you can call, email or text me concerns or questions you are having about your bees. Plus you receive a weekly tip and a weekly instructional beekeeping video. Even if you are not keeping bees until spring, this is perfect to help you gain the education you need before your bees arrive. Get yourself prepared before your bees arrive.
 
FIND OUT MORE
IF YOUR HIVE SURVIVED THE WINTER THEY WILL SWARM. DO YOU HAVE A HIVE READY TO PUT THEM IN?

Every year beekeepers call us in desperation needing a hive to put a swarm in. If you do not have a hive ready, and you place the swarm in a makeshift box, they will likely leave for good. Have a hive ready. Swarming is going to happen. Be ready. Order an extra hive today. Planning to start keeping bees in the spring or maybe you'll need something to put that new swarm into in the Spring?Buy your hive now and you'll avoid the spring rush on hives.

Be sure not to get caught without needed supplies. Order things early and be ready!

David and Sheri Burns
Long Lane Honey Bee Farms
www.honeybeesonline.com
217-427-2678
Posted by David Burns at 11:26 AM

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

It Is Warm, But Is It Too Early To Add Honey Supers?

When To Add Your Supers

Is it too early to add honey supers? The recent early warm up has all of us confused and probably our bees. If it doesn't turn extremely cold again all will work out. Fingers are crossed.  So does this mean we should add our honey supers earlier?

Scenario One: It stays warm, we add supers and our colonies gather up the early spring harvest of nectar. Great!

Scenario Two: It doesn't stay warm, we add supers and the colony moves up into the empty supers for food and nothing is there. You might consider feeding them, but this means your sugar water will be added to your honey supers where you'd rather have real honey not sugar water. Not Great!

My rule of thumb is not to add supers until dandelions are blooming everywhere. You might see a limited number of early ones, but once my yard is full I add my supers to my overwintered colonies. If you need honey supers, click here.

AMISH BUILT HIVES
Many years ago when we first started beekeeping (24 years now) we called a beekeeping supply company and admitted on the phone that we didn't know what to buy.  The response we got was, well, less than stellar:  "when you figure it out, call us back".  We decided that our customers would never be left to "figure it out".   
 
After seeing what's out there on the market, most of our customers come to us looking for quality, well made American hives.

Our hive kits are assembled and painted.  Amish made right here in Illinois by master Amish craftsmen. These are NOT mass produced. We do not resell other companies' hives. These hives are always under the close scrutiny of David's Certified Master Beekeeper's picky demands. These workhorses will outlast your lifetime. Our boxes are rabbet joints to expose less wood to the elements, which eliminates cracks and buckles.  Our telescoping top covers are covered with painted aluminum --which will never rust like traditional tin covers. We didn't cut corners with our inner covers either, these will NOT fall apart on you after the first year as some others do. Boxes come complete with all the frames and foundations so you don't need to spend time trying to figure out which frames go with what foundations and what sizes you need. Our complete kits include a FREE entrance feeder! Allow 2 - 3 weeks delivery. Pick up is available, just call to avoid shipping charges.  Other places sell kits that lack all the boxes you will need. We are looking out for you. We appreciate your business.  


MAKE THE INVESTMENT AND TAKE A CLASS

Now that the beekeeping season is just about ready to start buzzing, beekeeping classes are in big demand. We've held two beginner classes the last two Saturdays at our training center and our Spring Management Class is this Saturday with two openings remaining. This class will address making spring splits, adding honey supers, cleaning up winter die-outs, reversing hive bodies for maximum brood production, spring feeding and more. If you are interested click here or call us. 217-427-2678. 

We have other dates and classes available. See a list of all of our classes here. Our training center is located in central Illinois between Champaign and Danville, Illinois, 5 miles south of I-74. Come see us!

Since My Bees Are Bringing In Pollen Do I Need To Feed?
It's good to see bees bringing in pollen from trees in late winter. But depending on where you live it may be short lived. Many trees such as maples and oaks will produce pollen in late winter only to be short lived when another blast of cold weather moves in. If you are in the south and there are many other sources of nectar and pollen then winter is almost over for you. But if you are in the north and there are no dandelions or other significant nectar sources you will likely need to feed your bees for the next few weeks and even longer if the weather turns cold.
We suggest removing the Winter-Bee-Kind and begin using our Burns Bees Feeding System. Take a look at our suggestion for feeding your bees in late winter and early spring by watching my video below:


A DAY IN THE APIARY WITH DAVID
One of our most popular classes is A Day In The Apiary With David. Come and spend a few hours in a hive with David, EAS Certified Master Beekeeper. You'll learn how to find the queen, how to mark your queen, how to evaluate brood and your queen's health. You'll also learn how to inspect a colony and how to identify pests and diseases. Learn how to know what's healthy and what's not. We have two dates available. Click on the dates below for more information. Isn't it time you step up and learn to really know your hive?
May 27th 8:30-11am

Will Adding A Honey Super Prevent Swarming?
No. Bees swarm when they are congested in their brood nest area and this is what triggers a swarm. DO NOT make the mistake of thinking a honey super will give them room not to swarm. I'm a Certified Master Beekeeper and I see beekeepers constantly making big mistakes that often cost them their hives. Knowing what to do and when is the tricky part of beekeeping. You need a beekeeping mentor. I want to help navigate you through the challenges of spring. I have a special mentorship program called BeeTeam6 where you can call, email or text me your concerns or questions about your bees. Plus you receive a weekly tip and a weekly instructional beekeeping video. 

IS IT BETTER TO START WITH 2 HIVES OR JUST 1 HIVE?

If your budget allows, it's always better to start with 2 hives. Here's why:
1) You can share resources between the two hives, such as eggs, honey etc.
2) If you lose one hive you are still a beekeeper.
3) You can potentially have twice the production of honey.

This year many customers have purchased our Freedom Kit because it comes with two hives and all the equipment. You can purchase any of our kits with or without packages of bees. We still have kits available with a package of bees and a mated queen until March 30th. Bees are for pickup only at our location. Check out all of our hive kits by clicking here.

Sincerely,

David and Sheri Burns
Long Lane Honey Bee Farms
( Located In Central Illinois 40 Miles East Of Champaign/Urbana)
Just tell your smart phone to "Take Me To Long Lane Honey Bee Farms"
217-427-2678
www.honeybeesonline.com
Posted by David Burns at 11:17 AM
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