>We may  think about giving the bees a vacation once and while to  recover

Solving the reason why commercial migratory beekeepers pushed the bees as hard before the neonics without problems and now can't seems logical.

I have shared many of my sayings on BEE-L.

here is one of the best:
"A hive of bees without a honey flow is like a duck out of water"( in archives)

Even minor flows help bee fed costs. Far better than pollen sub and syrup. Cheaper to. not wanting to give away all secrets but when a commercial beekeeper learns the minor flows he knows places he can sit hives so they *maintain* strength and continue brood rearing without needing honey supers.

real beekeeping and not simply dumping package bees and pumping syrup!

Sorry Smoot! Nothing personal.

 Only attempting to enlighten a few experts on BEE-L.
(chuckle)

I have had a CDL and drove semi's since I was old enough to get a CDL.
The joy you see when nets are pulled and the bees get the scent of fresh nectar and pollen when placed on orange, almonds, apples etc. is hard to describe.

Feedlot beekeeping originated in California and trying keep healthy bees on only pollen patties and syrup is part of the problem. Supplemental feeding along with minor flows (Texas) produces far better bees. (personal experience)

Sick bees are sick bees if sitting in a field or being unloaded in another state.  
 
First let me say before I now comment I am *not* making a personal attack on Smoot Honey (only commenting on their style of box moving) 

. Bill can do another *rant* if he wants. (chuckle) 
 
Jerry said:
 > Smoot Honey in MT goes to the extreme here; sell off shakes in  fall, go 
through winter without any bees, re-stock in the spring, and produce  the 
healthiest and best producing colonies I've seen in years.

Shake bees (if you can find a buyer) are cheap and usually full of varroa as not treated in fall. What you have left is a couple boxes ( or one) of brood comb worth say 40-50 bucks. Kind of like taking a good running car and parting out at junk prices? 

The above is what we call box movers! So easy a cave man can do it. let me explain.
In my opinion not real beekeeping. Shake package bees in a box and feed till honey flow. remove honey from those which are still alive. Even queenless hives produce honey. Sell the bees to desperate beekeepers to supply bees into almond.
Hell you do not need to worry about mites etc.
has been done for decades.

Your package supplier has the problems. 

I am not saying not a smart way to keep bees only in my opinion a manual labor going through the motions simple style of beekeeping.  Successful as long as you can get package bees.

Does work as long as hives are dying and researchers can not figure out why. Here commercial beekeepers is a list (costing millions) of around 20 possible things causing problems. Opps 21 now with co!

I love BEE-L!

If not for almonds little demand in my circles for shake bees and in the past the bees were simply shook out to die or gassed.

Once the brood has emerged you can't even tell if the swarm is queenright or if queenright is the queen is decent in shake bees. You Canada beekeepers know what I am saying. 

The solution to the 50% bee dieoff is to solve the problem not give the bees a vacation ( payrolls need met).

bob



 

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