LLOYDSPEAR wrote:

>
>
>   However, the average colonies per
> yard astound me.  11 yards and 650 colonies works out to 59 colonies per
> yard.  Wow!  Myself and a couple of others went from 20 to 30 with the
> demise of varroa, and I have heard of 40-50 in the western part of the state
> (where sweet clover and goldenrod can each produce major crops).  Anyone
> else running over 40 colonies per yard?
>

 LLoyd, I wasn't clear on my post. I have 650 colonies in NY. I have them in 22
yards, with 11 yards left to strip the honey off. I used to keep 40 in a yard
when I pollinated Chazy Orchards. 40 colonies was a load (10 pallets) for the
trucks. When I gave up apple pollination three years ago, I reduced the size of
my yards to 30.  I work alone often, and yards of 30 are easier for me. Buster
Smith in Antwerp (Jefferson County) has always run  big yards. I've bought his
honey for almost 20 years, and he makes some wicked big crops. He has a yard on
the St. Lawrence with 60 colonies. Told me he took 300 supers from it this year.
In a good year like this, I don't think it matters how many colonies there are
in a yard. They all make honey.

                                        Mike