Unit 8: Managing the Bees

Question 1

When are good times to inspect the bees?

Answer 1

On sunny days and during nectar flow

Question 2

What are the steps to open a hive for inspection?

Answer 2

1. Stand at the back of the hive (never in the bees way at the front of the entrance)
2. Puff smoke 2-3 time through the hive neturace and wait a few seconds
3. Then lift the lid and place it on the ground
4. Use the hive tool to remove the inner cover and continue with additional puffs of smoke
5. Start examining the lowest brod bow, using the hive too to free stuck frames. Remove a frame neat the outside
6. Leave 1 frame out of the hive to aid the inspection of the other frames. Pry and pull out each frame to inspect then put it back in the hive.

Question 3

What is a good way to tell if you need to use more smoke?

Answer 3

When you take off the inner cover and the bees start lining up at the top bars like they are looking at you.

Question 4

How to read a frame?

Answer 4

• Inspect it above the open hive ( this is incase the queen is on the frame and she falls off)
• You should observe sealed brood cells with no signs of disease, honey and pollen reserves, presence of queen cells (might indicate missing queen, swarming, or queen superdure)
• to make sure the colony is queen right, just check for eggs by angling the frame in the light so the it penetrates the bottom of the cell
• also check quality of frames and equipment
• Assess if the colony is fine, need to be fed or medicated, or requeened

Question 5

What are the right properties of smoke?

Answer 5

Dense
White
Cool

Question 6

What happens when you smoke bees

Answer 6

They engorge themselves with honey and can no longer bend their abdomen to sting you

Question 7

What are the three reactions to bee stings?

Answer 7

normal
allergic
toxic

Question 8

What is a normal sting reaction?

Answer 8

Causes pain, inflammation at the site, and itching. This may last for 2 or more days

Question 9

What is an allergic sting reaction?

Answer 9

General itching, hives across the body (especially face or neck. Also dizziness or difficulty breathing

Question 10

What are the 2 types of allergic sting reaction?

Answer 10

Large local reaction
Systemic reaction
Systemic reaction is more severe and happens within minutes

Question 11

What is a toxic sting reaction?

Answer 11

This happens when an individual has been stung hundreds of times in a short period and the individual receives more venom than their body can metabolize.

Question 12

On average how many stings are required to kill a human?

Answer 12

Around 800

Question 13

What is important to do in the early spring?

Answer 13

clean up and store equipment from colonies lost during the winter.

Question 14

Why is it important to determine the reasons for colony losses?

Answer 14

To make sure it is or is not American Foulbrood disease (AFD)

Question 15

What happens if a colony dies of American Foulbrood disease?

Answer 15

All of the equipment need to be destroyed because it is extremely contagious and difficult to control

Question 16

What can help increase brood rearing?

Answer 16

Sugar syrup or expanding the brood area

Question 17

How should first inspections seasonal occur?

Answer 17

It should be brief and when temperatures are above 15 degrees C

Question 18

When is a good time to check for signs of swarming?

Answer 18

Mid spring

Question 19

How do you prevent swarming?

Answer 19

Provide lots of drawn comb in the brood chamber for the queens to lay eggs and destroy queens cells if observed.
Adding supers to reduce congestion helps as well.

Question 20

What is the main goal of all spring management?

Answer 20

To reach nectar flow with the maximum population of bees to sathera good honey crop

Question 21

What is a good way to tell if another super is needed?

Answer 21

Observe if new white comb is on top of the bars of the upper super.