Midwest Bees

09/24/2019

07/05/2019

We still have full hives for sale. It’s not to late.

06/15/2019

Girls are looking great. Still selling nucs, hives, and queens.

05/24/2019

05/24/2019

If u know of someone looking for a queen, I have 8 girls bread and ready for hives.
Carniolan/Italian $40 ea.
Columbus Kansas area.
Sorry not shipping at this time.

04/07/2019

Bees are looking good. Nice wing structure, no beetles, no mites, and no potty marks on the front of the hive. They are coming along nicely despite the odd seasonal weather this past winter.

01/03/2019

This winter has been exceptionally warm so the bees have been more active. That means more energy is being used, and more food consumed than in a typically cold winter. So candy boards are a good idea this year. If they run out of food they will starve to death. They are very simple to make and all over you tube. So is the answer to the question, “How much honey will my hive need to survive a winter in my area”
During the coldest periods they are likely to go into Torper. (Bee’s idea of hibernation to save energy). If I find a hive that appears to have died out, put food on IF there is no food stores left in the frames. Then leave them alone. Do not destroy the hive. You may hopefully find they haven’t died, and are just hibernating to save energy.

My recipe for candy boards
(Per hive)
10 lbs of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar (important for digestion)
1 teaspoon of honey Bee healthy
And just enough water to make it all stick together like play dough(fondant texture)
And a 1/4 pollen patty on top. Check periodically on warm days over 50 degrees F. You don’t want to cause chilled brood syndrome. So don’t go any farther than u have to. A queen can sometimes lay a small amount of brood over the winter months to keep the hive healthy.

10/26/2018

It’s already been a hard fall for the lady’s. Late summer found them with their stores dwindling. So feeding back honey to get them through the darth’s has been essential for their survival. Candy boards seem to be in order for this winter, and earlier than usual. Probably around late November early December.
Now is not the time for open liquid feed, so sugar balls made with honey, and not water, seem make a good alternative to them for open feeding. The cold is not an issue, however moisture in the hive is deadly.

06/30/2018

Beautiful morning. Replenished their water (ONLY water) and put out a bit of raw honey for a picnic treat. Easier for them to clean up the comb after I pull the honey. They love it, and nothing goes to waste. Then I collect the cleaned, left over wax and render it.