REGARDING           RE>Amature needs help
 
Steve Phillipswrote:
"This is my second year keeping bees.  I have six hives of Buckfast bees.
Two days ago an acquaintance at work told me that her ex-husband
used to keep bees, and when they got divorced 5 years ago he left 4
hives on her uncle's farm.  She said her uncle was afraid of bees and no
one had touched the hives since the divorce.  She said that she thought
one hive was still alive, and I could have any or all of the
bees/equipment.
 
I live in eastern Kansas and we do have varroa.  To my surprise, when I
picked the stuff up one of the hives was still alive.  It was in two hive
bodies, with the entrance reduced to 1/2 inch.  The hive is very strong--
packed with bees and honey.  It's also about to swarm.  It has many
queen cells along the bottom bars.
 
What do I do?  My guess is that I need to split it somehow, but how?
 
Any suggestions would be appreciated."
 
In addition to the good advice you already received on this post, I think it
is significant that the colony survived in the midst of a varroa epidemic.
There may be some resistance to the mite in these bees, and you may have a
very valuable resource at hand.  Following is an announcement that appeared
in APIS recently, that may be of interest:
 
"The USDA-ARS Bee Breeding Genetics and Physiology Laboratory is looking for
honey bees
resistant to Varroa mites. Honey bees that have survived for more than a year
without being treated and/or those in abandoned hives are ideal candidates.
If you have knowledge of candidate queens, then do yourself and the industry
a favor by contacting the Lab, 1157 Ben Hur Rd., Baton Rouge, LA 70820-5502,
ph 504/767-9280, FAX 504/766-9212, email: [log in to unmask] "
 
Ted Fischer