Hello Marc & All,

With commercial beeks with hives on pallets holding yards are an important
part. One holding yard in the Miami area rents for around  $2,000. a year.
Worth every dollar!

Holding yards in California are not cheap.

They need to be assessable in all
kinds of weather. I have several in my area but the most I pay is a couple
gallons of honey. The 35 acre rock quarry is for winter and was shown in my
American Bee Journal article *Loading bees in a Missouri Snowstorm* ( April
2004 Vol. 144 No.4 Pg. 277)

An interesting read but not as difficult as moving bees through a Kansas
blizzard to load on a semi for California which I did not do an article on.

Holding yards are important for many reason a few of which you touched on
Marc.

1. Having access to the hives in all kinds of weather is important.

2. The hives when in one place are easier to work and eliminates the cost of
paying help to sleep in the bee truck between yards.

out yards or locations:
 We keep a minimum of 24 hives in a out yard because I have found it is not
cost effective to visit and unload the truck , feed if needed , treat or
medicate a yard of less than 24.

I have to always be looking at the bottom line as the path to success in my
area is lined with bankrupt bee operations which did not keep an eye on
costs.

3. FUEL is a big cost these days   My big truck gets 7-9 PMG. I NEVER waste 
trips to the bees nor
drive a truck bigger than needed.

4. In spring all work is completed in the holding yard and then the hives 
moved
to locations or pollination.


Most commercial beeks with hives not on pallets spend *in my opinion* quite
a bit of wasted time on the road they could be working bees. at times not 
having the equipment they need with the truck.

5. In wet weather out yards are a nightmare in my area. I have buried many a
four wheel drive and in places only a big farm tractor will go. Glenn blew
an engine trying to get out a few years back.

6 . in the holding yard we are able to get the hives out in all types of
weather. You order a semi for a certain day weeks in advance and these guys
show up ( as in my article) even in a blizzard and expect to be loaded.
Semis can move easily in and out of the quarry.

7. Moving hives keeps pallets in good shape in the north. I make most my
pallets and if left to sit they sink in the mud (or freeze down) and when 
you
pick up bottom boards pull off. Not so with the rock quarry or at least not 
as big a problem.

8.In a holding yard we have always the boxes ,
pallets or lids needed to get the outfit in top shape.

9. in holding yards bees & brood are always available and combination or
depopulation plus grading is easier.

The draw back is fresh pollen which is why we leave on summer locations as
long as we can. Once in the holding yard we provide what  the bees need with
pollen sub and feed as needed.

In spring we try to move on to locations after working & apples to keep from
having to provide the feed.

Feed costs today are expensive. I feed as needed but feed carefully.
A holding yard might not be the best place for "treatment free" but works 
for those treating as needed.

Allen Dicks website is in my opinion the best source of information about 
the day to day operation of a commercial beekeeping operation. His operation 
was quite different in many ways than the U.S. operations I have been 
involved with but still the best way to understand the day to day operation 
and risks. I thought about doing a similar website but I really did not have 
the time. Quite an effort on his part and a must read for all beekeepers 
interested in commercial beekeeping!

  My holding yard quarry is on the highest hill ( some might call a small
mountain) in the county and the bees have to fly a long ways to find farmers
fields(row crops has caused problems for my hives.) I blew my big truck 
engine when an oil line blew climbing the grade.

You can see 20-30 miles from the top!

I am in the process of selling off my operation due to health reason but but
you spend 8 hours working bees on a hot day in a holding yard and even
strong young men start dropping boxes.

I never go into the bee yards without my best helper. He is 6 foot 4 and 280
pounds of muscle in his twenties. He does an hour and a half nightly of
aerobics to stay in shape. Even though he is autistic he drives a truck and
knows what to do if I have health issues.

My family agreed to let me keep on
keeping bees as long as he goes with me. he has helped me with the bees for
years and even speaks up if I try to take a short cut with the hives because
not the way he was taught ( by me) . He reads comic books and is looking
forward to the new Conan the Barbarian movie.

At times he gets on my nerves but I understand his handicap and have been
around him since he was a few years old. He had a job pushing carts at
Wal-Mart but was fired. He had a job washing dishes but was fired . We are 
an
odd pair but I would be lost without him today and he works bees exactly as
I tell him to do.

 His family says he really has came out of his shell since I have been 
working with him.

To Randy:
When I first saw California beekeeping I thought I had went back in time a
few  decades. I worked bees in Florida with those Payne & Kelley hive
loaders  over forty years ago. I spent my time with those and from 
experience
I can say pallets and holding yards is far easier.

There are pros and cons to holding yards Marc but a very important part of
successful commercial beekeeping today.

Commercial beeks have broad shoulders and many say the honey we produce is
inferior and we are the source of all today's beekeeping problems which is 
BS
but  Ok with us!

We do the nations pollination and get little thanks!

best of luck with your bees Marc!

bob

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