# 1st year honey harvest total for the class of 2012 newbees. Results?



## djdup (Jul 5, 2012)

Congratulations on your harvest. I started with 2 Nucs in June and did a cut out in August. I did not not have any surplus honey to harvest this year due to starting out will all new equipment and new foundations and the bees needing to build up comb...I have learned a lot from them this year. I'm hoping to get a harvest next year...


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## Bwar77 (Jun 18, 2012)

this is my first year, bought 2 NUCS in July and accidently captured a swarm in July. The NUCS filled their upper deeps with honey, should be good for the winter. The swarm filled the upper deep and a super and started a second. So I got one super of surplus honey, filled in Septemeber from the Goldenrod field the hives were in. Sitting and watching the 3 hives since i got them, the swarm hive was amazing. Out earlier in the morning, much more bees, and out much later in the evening. I asked my mentor why the NUCS were so sluggish compared to the swarm hive, he said the swarm hive bees knew what they were doing, experianced, where the NUC bees were still learning. Made sense to me.


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## BeeTech (Mar 19, 2012)

That's a busy little swarm Bwar77. I started with a captured swarm in mid april and got one medium super of honey. About 30 pounds worth. Now to survive winter.


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## taydeko (Jan 3, 2012)

I started with two swarms in April and one in May. I also got a package in May. I did a cutout in late August. I did a split from one of the swarm hives in June that did OK until I moved them to a new hive, then they got robbed to death. I harvested about 50 pounds from the three swarms. There was a good spring flow here, but a dearth in the summer, which is why the split failed. The fall flow has been adequate. I have left most of the honey for the bees for overwintering. I have been feeding the cutout and hope they have enough stores for winter.

Ted


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## juzzerbee (Apr 17, 2012)

Cool! It is neat to hear what other people have done their first year. It's really cool to learn not only about bees in my area but also how things are done in differently in other states and countries!

Here is probably a question to laugh at me for, but I going to ask anyway. Those of you in year round warm climates, such as: California, Texas, Florida, etc., does your honey harvest season ever end. Does it slow down? Or does it just keep going all year? Here in Wisconsin, our season is done for Winter and it is time to seal the hives up until Spring. juzzerbee


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## cryptobrian (Jan 22, 2012)

Wow, that's a lot of honey! I have two hives, each produced about 30 pounds.


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## LeonardS (Mar 13, 2012)

I started with 2 hives and they both died. Bought 2 more packages and things went better. I split one hive, so was up to 3. I only planned to take one super of honey and when I went to retrieve it, 4 of the 10 frames had brood in the super, so I only extracted 6 frames. Out of the 6 frames, I extracted 12 lbs of honey. It has been a great experience and I hope to get to 10 hives next year.


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## BigGun (Oct 27, 2011)

50 lbs this year. Most came from a nuc and the rest from a hive I icked up last october.


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## cerezha (Oct 11, 2011)

juzzerbee said:


> Those of you in year round warm climates, such as: California, Texas, Florida, etc., does your honey harvest season ever end. Does it slow down? Or does it just keep going all year?...


 Juzzerbee
I just completed my first year of beekeeping in southern California, city environment. To my taste, we have no seasons, but true Californians insist that there are some seasons... I think, my bees do exactly the same as my roses - they bloom, than decided to rest a little bit - than bloom again. The cycle is 2-3 months. I think bees do the same - more active for while, than rest a little bit... than again... I collect honey every 1 or 2 months. Every time it is between 4 and 5 kilos of honey from one beehive. My another beehive did not produce any honey for me so far, but doing very well in all other ways, very active! Since something is blooming any time, it is difficult to figure out what kind of honey we have NOW? So far, I figured out eucalyptus in February and pepper-tree in August. I guess, ivy is on its way - very light honey. Good luck, everybody with wintering your bees! Sergey


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## Daniel Y (Sep 12, 2011)

I should have harvested 40 lbs or more but waited to long. Got distracted by making two 5 frame nucs and lost the honey to the bees. By the time I went to pull the super off the bees had moved it down into the hive and mixed it with sugar honey.


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## solstice (Oct 18, 2012)

I am under the impression that first year honey should be left for the bees to overwinter, no? I was given estimates of them needing up to 100lbs just to overwinter.


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## LeonardS (Mar 13, 2012)

I have 2 - 10 frame deep boxes and a medium on each hive. I am also putting candy boards on top of that. I don't think the 12 lbs. of honey that I took is going to matter with the feeding I did this fall. For a while they were storing 3 gallons per week.


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## doggonegardener (Dec 8, 2011)

No mentor here so no good estimates on how much they will need for our long, cold, windy winter. With that in mind I left them everything. We'll see if there's anything left to harvest in the spring. I wanted them to have the best chance they could. Single digits and 4-5 inches of new snow overnight. Brrrrrrrrrr.


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## AUXCOM (Sep 1, 2012)

I was lucky and picked up a donated hive (2 - 10 frame deeps) from 250 miles south of me. It was a little stressfull for them and I set the hive down a little off creating a small triangular opening in the back...lol
Just let them bee for a few weeks and then smoked them and too a look and adjusted the boxes to close up the rear entrance. There was comb drawn on only the middle 3 or 4 foundations (plastiform) on the top box...didn't look in the lower box.

So I have left them alone for a month and now going to do a proper inspection....will see.

Been feeding them H-B-H for the last month till they get acclimated.
the seem to have found their food sources and I see large groups of them heading off in different directions to Rain trees and fruit trees (Loquat and grapefruit) and the local goldenrod.

Bobby


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## Luterra (Sep 7, 2011)

#1: 4-frame nuc installed April 17. Filled upper deep and one super with honey. Harvested ~35 lbs of honey from super. Still had to feed to maintain winter stores during Aug-Oct. drought-dearth.
#2: 3 lb ackage installed May 6. Chimneyed up into super so harvested ~15 lbs, but fed probably 70 lbs of syrup after removing super to get sufficient stores in the brood chambers.
#3: 4-frame swarm caught May 9. Filled upper deep but no more. Aggressive temperament. Too many bees going into winter, had to feed to maintain stores.
#4: 2-frame swarm caught May 13. Succumbed to European Foulbrood.
#5: 4-frame nuc installed May 19. Filled upper deep but no more. Only hive that properly reduced population during the dearth to conserve stores. Still offered feed but may not have been essential.
#6: Tiny swarm (less than one frame) caught ~June 21. Filled one deep thanks to constant feeding during dearth. Looks good going into winter.

So...~50 lbs of honey harvested, ~200 lbs of sugar fed. Hoping those numbers are reversed next year.

Mark


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## rwilly (Apr 6, 2012)

I got 8 pints. So somehwere around 12 lbs.?
I have one hive started from a nuc.

I notice the honey is thicker but lighter in color than the clover honey we get from costco. It is not as strong tasting as clover honey either. I am calling it wildflower honey.

Here's to next year!


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## Travis (Mar 11, 2012)

We started with 8 swarms the end of March, of the 8 swarms 3 were very strong, 4 were ok, and 1 was very weak. All the hives started with 9 frames with foundation and 1 frame of pulled comb. Throughout the season we were able to get up to 10 hives but ended the season with 7 hives; all hives have a brood box plus a deep super to go into the winter. 

We were able to collect rent from the bees twice. The first was June 9th and collected 10.5 gallons. The second harvest was Sept. 15 and collected 13 gallons

So the total is 23.5 gallons which is roughly 250 to 260 pounds


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## VeesBees (Apr 4, 2012)

We started with 2 hives late last summer and harvested 13 gallons (~160 lbs) by mid July of this year. We added 4 more hives in late May and left the bees what they gathered for winter stores. Congrats on your honey harvest! :applause:


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## jwbee (Aug 8, 2012)

I bought two packages , set up two hives , one had chalkbrood in early spring/summer and were slow to expand , eventually got about 30 lbs from that hive.

The other hive was better and produced 130 lbs.

Both hives seemed to fill both bottom deeps with winter stores/brood OK.

Will see if they make it through winter , have been feeding 2:1 untill the cold weather , have grease patties and comb honey I have been putting on top bars in a small 2" feeder space I made , they are still taking it when days are warm.

Location is BC/Idaho border , southern BC.


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## beecrazy101 (Jul 6, 2010)

Started out with 2 nucs on April 20 this year. One week after split the two nucs and made a third. Let them go and split again around June into two more hives so got up to five. So far only took three quarts here and there to mostly feed back in my bee tea. Haven't fed but at-home 75 pounds of sugar all year. I now have three hives three deep full of honey, all deeps, another two deep and one with a brood box. I figure I have around 100 pounds I could take from each of the three and about 50 from the fourth but been reluctant to take it for what my plans are for next spring. I will probly take some because every once in a while I bring some comb to work and let people try it and everyone wants to buy comb honey. Will wait and see if I decide to take some or not.


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## mulesii (Jun 10, 2012)

Started one package of Italians on 31 March which gave me 12 pounds of honey. Started one nuc of Carniolans end of April which gave me no excess honey. I didn't expect any honey this year, so I was happy with the 12 pounds.


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## NewJoe (Jul 1, 2012)

I started with a nuc in mid June. Caught a swarm from that hive in mid- August.

I harvested about 12 lbs. Probably could have taken a few more pounds, but didn't want to take too much.


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

Got 4 frames worth, left the rest for the bees for Winter.


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## Michael B (Feb 6, 2010)

If you guys keep hive healthy and happy..............wait till next year.

I started out with 3 hives about 5 years ago and now I have over 30.

Havested 1500lbs of honey off of only 10 of those hives.


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## Sam Fugate (Jul 28, 2012)

30 pounds from one super in July, started with two hives, took honeyfrom only one super, left the rest for winter emergencies.


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## d-amick (Oct 27, 2012)

San Mateo, CA (Northern Calif. near San Francisco) Joined and bought a package from our Beekeepers Guild, installed it April 1st. Extracted 87 pounds mid-June. Urban wildflower honey. Extracted 78 pounds mid-August. Different flavor urban wildflower honey. Total 165 pounds from the one hive. Still left plenty of honey in brood boxes.

Does not get too cold here and not for too long, locally. We do have "seasons" here but not like most other states! We have different blooms and flows here as well, with times of short dearths, locally. Cailfornia is a big state and even in each county there are micro-climates were the blossoms and flows are different. Many parts of the state have mono-crop (ie, almonds) where there is almost nothing for the bees afterwards. Commercial and more experienced beekeepers can speak better on this.


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## Colleen O. (Jun 5, 2012)

1 drowned package early May didn't make it, the replacement package didn't build well but turned around after I re-queened late August. Nuc hive bought August 25th built a few new combs but still weak. I've fed around 38 lbs of sugar in bee tea, harvested 4 oz from the first package that died out when the queen didn't lay but fed it back in the bee tea.


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## psfred (Jul 16, 2011)

I lost my hive from last year, didn't feed it enough and it died from EFB. Got two swarms this year that have a deep full of bees and two mediums of honey (only four frames in the "small" hive in the top box). Had to feed the "small" hive, they sorta piddled along all summer until I put some vinegar in their syrup, after which they sucked down about 9 gallons in a couple weeks!

No surplus honey myself, but my brother's weak hive last year overwinterer in a single deep with a mostly empty deep of foundation on top. We got 50 lbs of honey off that hive. His strong hive died out in the spring, probably mites since there was a large amount of white crusty material in tiny spots in the comb. We'll split all the hives this spring that survive, hopefully we will get a decent honey crop next year. I would have taken some, but figured the bees needed it more than I did.

Peter


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## fishin coyote (Jul 9, 2012)

Started on April 2nd with 1 package and a starter kit. Harvested 32.5 lbs in August.
In mid Sept. the hive came under heavy attack from yellow jackets and another local hive. I reduced the opening to 3/4" and they seemed to be holding their own. 1st week of Oct. on a 70* day there was no activity, opened it up and they were gone. Absconed/killed off I'm not sure but I harvested the rest of the honey left from the robbing and got another 35lbs.
Although I suffered a set back in my endeavors I learned more than I ever hoped to and will start next season with a much better grasp of the entire process.
Mike


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## ralittlefield (Apr 25, 2011)

fishin coyote said:


> Although I suffered a set back in my endeavors I learned more than I ever hoped to and will start next season with a much better grasp of the entire process.
> Mike


You will also have some drawn comb for your start next year. That will be a big advantage. Good luck next year!


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## giroux68 (Mar 2, 2012)

One nuc I put into a 10 frame deep. And a package I put into a topbar. The topbar made 3 bars of comb and dies out. The langstroth did great. Got 30+ lbs. They has a full deep on top of the brood nest for winter. Very happy with year one!


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## Splatt (Jul 11, 2012)

I got nothing this year, but I didn't really expect anything, what with the lack of rain and the fact that I started early July. I've had to feed to get them ready for winter.


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## rhetoric (May 14, 2012)

I have 4 hives. Three new this year and one I've had for two summers. This year is the first I've taken honey (only off of the oldest hive) and I got about 3 gallons. So what's that... about 20lbs? Plenty for us, but I'm looking forward to having lots more next year.


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

Rhetoric,

A gallon is about 12lbs. Good job.


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## SueBeeTN (Mar 2, 2012)

I have one hive that I started with a nuc the end of April. The did really well at first and we were thinking of splitting the hive. But then came the long drought and high temperatures and my bees ate all their honey in the supers for all their babies so we did not get to split and I had to start feeding heavy to build for the winter. When we checked them two weeks ago they were doing well and had one super 80% full of capped honey from the nice goldenrod flow we had. Hopefully they will do well over the winter and I plan on getting another nuc in the spring. Love having the bees!!


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