# Hi All...I'm New



## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

Hi,

I'm Sandy and am in Upstate NY. I just started keeping bees this spring and have one hive, but plan to add a second this coming spring. I've been having lots of fun so far, no stings yet and my main concern at the moment, is that my bees live through the harsh Upstate NY, winter. I look forward to learning lots from you all!!!!


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

Welcom Sandy, I'm south of Seneca Lake. We must be neighbors.


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## Sourwood (Mar 20, 2005)

Glad you found us! I think you will find this fun and educational. Good luck with your bees.


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

don't tell me another darn yankee... 

just kiddin' you know, some of my best friends and some of the blackest sheep of tecumseh family are yankees...

after all that tounge in cheek stuff just let me say... 
welcome aboard..


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

I dunno tec, with all that black sheep and Panther stuff; should I be afraid of you?

Welcome Sandy. Bet of luck with the hives. We'll help all we can.

Hawk


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

I dunno tec, with all that black sheep and Panther stuff; should I be afraid of you?

Welcome Sandy. Best of luck with the hives. We'll help all we can.

Hawk


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

the hawk sezs:
I dunno tec, with all that black sheep and Panther stuff; should I be afraid of you?

tecumseh replies:
black sheep like black dogs are the best to eat, don't you know hawk... although I would think that a hawk would eat neither..


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## BjornBee (Feb 7, 2003)

I was once going to Kingston Ontario for some fishing, and on the trip through New York, my buddies and me stopped in at a place in Binghamton(sp). After running two games of pool with a few locals, they asked where we were from. I mentioned Pennsylvania. The one "local" looked at the other as they were leaving the pool table and said "Dang southerners".

I guess it depends whether one is looking north or south as it related to who is a northern yank and who is a southern rebel.

Welcome aboard Sandy. Although I hope you fix that problem of not being stung yet.


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## MountainCamp (Apr 12, 2002)

Sandy, where about in Upstate do you keep bees?


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## Toni Bee (Jun 14, 2005)

Hey Sandy --

I'm about as new as you and glad to have more people around to ask our kind of questions (which I guess means confusion about most EVERYTHING sometimes)! 

Anyway, I used to be from up near Saratoga, NY. Now I live near Our Nation's Capital, which is enough to make me a Yankee, a Southerner, a Potential Fed, and low on just about everybody's list!  At least my bees seem to like me!

Are you wrapping your hives this year? I have been thinking about it. I bet it is a better idea up there than down here.


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## dickm (May 19, 2002)

Welcome Sandy,
As long as you feel free to ask any question. Nothing is silly and we all asked those same questions. Be careful though, all beekeeping is local. The guy from the south may have different answers that one whose hives go dormant all winter. You've probably heard that if you ask 5 beekeepers a question you'll get 8 answers.

Dickm


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

What a welcome!!!!

To answer questions, I'm near Carthage, NY, but grew up in MA and until last year, spent the last 6 years in Europe and 2 in Hawaii before that. Kingston, ON is great!!!! When I feel like border hopping, that is my town of choice. They have a great import foods shop that has all of the goodies that I miss from Europe there. I did wrap my hive. I stuck an old sleeping bag around it and then put cardboard on top of that. Then I wrapped it with a tarp and finally, I took plywood and made a little porch like thing that will keep the snow away from the entrance of the hive, with an area near the top, that hopefully the snow won't cover. It looks ridiculous!!!! Last week as I was driving back from Maine, we had some temps around here in the 60's with nasty winds and it blew my friend's hive over. When she found it, she had very uphappy bees. I checked my hive and it was intact and looking good!!!!!


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

SandyC . . .

Welcome!

>have one hive, but plan to add a second this coming spring . . .

Hope your planning to split your soon-to-bee two year-old-hive. Thats a good way to slow-down the mites


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

Well Dave, I'll admit that's why I am largely here. I am a TOTAL novice at this and just by what I have read here already, I was thinking that I should split my hive in the spring. Now I need to learn how to do it!!!!


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

My inexperience showing here...are the mites all over the US? Are there some areas that are worse than others? I


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

SandyC . . .

>plan to add a second . . .
Could mean "to buy a package", or nuc or whole hive. "Splitting" what you already have would be best to "slow-down the mites".

Varroa mites (V-mites), usually refered to as just "mites" (mites could mean V-mites or T-mites) ARE EVERYWHERE!

Ill bet your hive has them. Have you been monitoring?


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

Quote by Dave W:
"Ill bet your hive has them. Have you been monitoring? "

Sniff, sniff, noooooo. My friend who keeps bees told me to put this strip in the hive when I put the nuc in and that would take care of any trouble. I can't really do anything now, because it is too cold, my hive is wrapped and I'll need to wade through about 2 feet of snow...ok maybe only one ft. They looked healthy and happy all summer and fall. I guess this is something I need to do this coming spring?????


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>Sniff, sniff, noooooo. My friend who keeps bees told me to put this strip in the hive when I put the nuc in and that would take care of any trouble. 

It might. It might not. If you don't monitor you won't know if you need to and you won't know if it worked.

The mites are resistant to all of the strips in some places and some of the strips in most places.


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## Aspera (Aug 1, 2005)

I prefer to think of myself as a Mid Alantican. Neither the North nor the South seems to be in a rush to claim Jersy, so I geuss that there with us. Nice to meet you Sandy. Keep us updated on the wintering.


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## Barry Digman (May 21, 2003)

> My friend who keeps bees told me to put this strip in the hive when I put the nuc in and that would take care of any trouble.


When did you take the strip out?


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

I think that I left it in for about a month. 

I have been reading the topics about the nasty beasts and about treating with powdered sugar. I will check for them in the spring and proceed as needed. Hopefully, things will be ok until then. I've grown attached to the little critters...the bees that is!!!!


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## MountainCamp (Apr 12, 2002)

I have a camp over on Tupper Lake.
I do some work in Carthage at the Energy Center. I also work with Black River Energy @ FT Drum, and some of the mills.
Good Luck this winter.


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

>Sniff, sniff . . .

Thats a method I havent tried. I'm going to write this down so I dont forget . . . come spring!

>put this strip in the hive when I put the nuc in and that would take care of any trouble . . .

This may have "taken care of any trouble" for now. But, "trouble" hardly describes what is comming "come spring".


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## RAlex (Aug 18, 2001)

Hello Sandy...Welcome ! This is a Great place to learn and share learning experiences with like minded people. I have about 18 hives, and live just south of Cortland.This coming year plan to try my hand at top bar hives ...


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## RAlex (Aug 18, 2001)

lol....Rick


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## newbee 101 (May 26, 2004)

Thats some wrap you got there!
Let us know how the bees make out in the spring.
Welcome aboard !!


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## mwjohnson (Nov 19, 2004)

Welcome.
Do you realize that you got 25 responses for just saying "hello"?
This is a great site,and you can find out most stuff quick with a search.
But one thing I have noticed that Woman(or men with a woman's name) seem to get A lot more responses than usual.
Like when my wife goes to the lumber yard,those guy's practically RUN over to help.
Hmmm....Maybe I should rethink my loggin name...  
Welcome 
Mark


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## George Fergusson (May 19, 2005)

26 responses. Hello!


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

Ahhhh....what can I say????


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## new canada bee keeper (Nov 9, 2005)

hi is there any one from canada on hear


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## George Fergusson (May 19, 2005)

>hi is there any one from canada on hear

Most definitely! Welcome to the board









George-

[ December 10, 2005, 03:42 PM: Message edited by: George Fergusson ]


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## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

Hi NC and welcome to our group. I'm not from Canada but I've visited and have fantastic friends there. Y'all are great folk, eh?

If you'll update your profile to include where in Canada you're from we can answer questions with more specificity. Otherwise FB down in Georgia might tell you you can raise queens in December.










Hawk


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## Cyndi (Apr 26, 2005)

Hi Sandy,

I too am a new beekeeper with 1 hive. I plan on splitting my hive this spring and adding a couple of more packages or nucs. I treated my hive using the powdered sugar method as well - that was so much fun. One of the things I've learned most of all this year is how to relax where the bees are concerned. I had some challenging moments at first. This is a great forum to learn about beekeeping. I've learned more here than from all the books!! I hope you do too!


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## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

{just kiddin' you know, some of my best friends and some of the blackest sheep of tecumseh family are yankees...}

Ill respond with the same thing I say to my Cousin Judd from Grapevine;

Texas, where men are men and sheep are nervous!


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

Hi Cyndi!!! SO there ARE other women around here!!!!! I used to live in NC!!

I am very close to Canada, so I will always be interested in what those in southern Ontario are doing!!!!

By the way, my husband is related to the Shermans. It wasn't something he admitted to when we lived in the South!!!!


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## drobbins (Jun 1, 2005)

"my husband is related to the Shermans"

yea, might want to leave that part out  

welcome aboard

Dave


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## Cyndi (Apr 26, 2005)

Hi Sandy,

Yea, we girls mostly stay in lurking mode around here, this is definitely where the drones are hanging out   

Don't worry about the Sherman thing, I'm a native Atlantan....we have to let by gones be by gones as my Grandpa would say. They rebuilt the place and you should see it now. In fact, they can't stop rebuilding it,  

My sister used to live in the little town of Madison, Ga that was spared because Sherman was in love with a Georgia girl. How bout that for history 101!


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## SandyC (Dec 6, 2005)

How fun...I'm a history buff! I grew up near Concord, MA and have relatives buried in Gettysburg, National Cemetary. I'm glad that Sherman didn't manage to blow up the whole South as so much of it is so beautiful and I love old homes!!!!


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