> >We used that effect deliberately when moving to pollination.  We picked up
> in  evening while we could still see well, and some of the returning
> foragers remained behind. We supered those hives up, and when we returned
> after pollination, they were usually full.
>

Ditto here--In fact we often take nucs in singles to place as catch hives in
yards that we load early in the day.

Bob said:
>We grade hives for almond pollination in fall. 1 , 2 or 3. Number 1's are
always ready in spring when properly prepared in fall. Some number 2's will
grade number one at shipping time. We like to ship only number 1's and maybe
some number 2's. Almost all number 3's can be combined to make a number 1.

I'm right here in Calif, and we have always done the same.  We combine no.
3's with no 2's, since we don't have much success with combined no 3's.  We
have always, even before varroa, combined our late summer operation down by
about a third--that is, take only about 2/3 of the colony numbers into
winter.

Randy Oliver

             ***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned 
LISTSERV(R) list management software.  For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html