In a message dated 7/20/04 3:01:28 PM, [log in to unmask] writes:
<< I found that it had been given plastic
foundation which the bees appeared to dislike; that is, comb is
malformed, joined together, areas only partially drawn out, and in
order to really examine it, I will have to literally cut the comb out.
I know the overwintered queen has been superceded (how? I just happened
to see the old queen being thrown out of the front of the hive by
workers. I had never seen that before). I want to get rid of all 18 >>
Just another CLASSIC case where some beginner doesn't believe in becoming
EDUCATED about bee behavior, gets all 'screwed up' and then puts the blame on
PLASTIC foundation. The truth is that he used only 9 frames rather than 10
frames
PACKED VERY TIGHTLY TOGETHER to get the bees to draw the foundation into
DRAWN COMB.
And Gerald, you HAVE to know or realize that NO honey bees of any race, in any
continent, at any time of year will DRAW FOUNDATION INTO DRAWN COMB UNLESS
THERE IS A NECTAR FLOW IN PROGRESS! We beekeepers can FOOL the bees
sometimes by feeding them 1:1 sugar syrup (1 pound sugar dissolved in 1 pint of water)
as a substitute nectar, and they will draw foundation into drawn comb with
some reluctance, but surely not in September or October. You might try it now
depending on your location.
Regarding PLASTIC foundation: I wish it had been available 72 years ago when
I
started beekeeping in 1933. Twenty-five years ago, I switched all my 100+
colonies
over to Dadant's PLASTICELL, which involved 8000 frames, and have been totally
delighted ever since. Yes, bees might work pure beeswax foundation quicker
than
plastic, but beeswax foundation, wiring of frames, heat collapse, etc., is a
real
pain in the A__. Some people refer to DURAGILT as plastic. In my opinion
DURAGILT
should be BARRED from production - it is JUNK. If anything damages the wax
covering of the plastic sheet underneath the wax, there is no way known to
mankind
to get the bees to rebuild on that location. But with PLASTICELL, if the
bees make
too many drone cells, or fill too many cells with pollen, you just take your
hive tool
and scrape away the unwanted wax and pollen, give it back to the bees DURING A
NECTAR FLOW, and "voila" they restore it to a beautiful brood frame.
Ge rald, you must be new, STOP guessing, experimenting, and paying too
much attention to those "good old boys", spend $25 and buy a copy of the
THIRD EDITION
of the BEEKEEPERS HANDBOOK by Dr. Diana Sammataro, published in April 1998
and START LEARNING so you can become a successful beekeeper in a few short
years
without many costly mistakes.
I hope I have helped.
George Imirie, Ph.D.
CERTIFIED EAS MASTER BEEKEEPER
This is my 72nd continuous year of beekeeping near Washington, DC
Past President of Maryland State Beekeepers
Author of George's PINK PAGES on several WEB sites: www.mainebee.com or
www.beekeeper.org or www.beeequipment.com
Author of American Beekeeping Federation HOBBYIST TIPS
Founder, 1984, of Montgomery County Beekeepers, still President, 175 paid
members, and 12 Master Beekeepers
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