# First Package.... Input greatly appreciated



## jadell (Jun 19, 2011)

Sounds good to me. What part of the forest are you?


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>I cut the frames down to 1" wide so that I could fit 9 frames in an 8 frame box.

They should be 1 1/4". You may need to space them a little apart or add a thumb tack or something to gain some width.

> I also use a screened bottom board and a plywood cover. On Monday the temp was 52 with wind gusts of about 25mph, but I installed in the late afternoon anyway. Worked out well because the bee's were very lethargic.

Put them in the living room until they warm up.

> The temp was supposed to drop to 30 Monday night so during installation I placed a piece of cardboard over the screen in the bottom, and also cut a piece of cardboard to serve as a temporary follower board to keep the bees in a 5 frame section of the hive. I hung the queen cage because I wanted her and the cluster to be high in the box in case it got rather chilly. I used an 8 frame queen excluder as an includer so the bees would not abscond, and finally I used a standard entrance reducer set to the smallest entrance possible. I built a no drown top hive feeder using a plan from dixie bee supply, and I used 1:1 sugar syrup with lemon juice mixed in to keep the ph down.

They aren't going anywhere in the cold...

>Should I have done anything different? Do you have any recommendations for me? 

Sounds like you did fine.


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## julysun (Apr 25, 2012)

I have screened bottom boards on the Texas gulf coast near Houston. Read recently that one should keep the mite counting board oiled and installed at all times. Will keep thh brood nest warmer thus helping fight mites. Do you all keep your mite boards in place below the screen?


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## mrqb (Jul 17, 2011)

julysun said:


> I have screened bottom boards on the Texas gulf coast near Houston. Read recently that one should keep the mite counting board oiled and installed at all times. Will keep thh brood nest warmer thus helping fight mites. Do you all keep your mite boards in place below the screen?


Yes and I dont use veg.oil i use vaseline,veg oil can draw racoons and racoons can devastate a beehive. Ranger you did a diservice to your bees when u cut top bar down to 1 "


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## julysun (Apr 25, 2012)

Thanks, will do with Vaseline!


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