# Bee Yards



## Jesus_the_only_way

What's all that green stuff in your yard? We don't have any of that around here this year.
Tom


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## newbee 101

We had a decent year, rained when we needed it.
How about some beeyards???


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## Michael Bush

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesmisc.htm

Down about the middle of the page.


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## denny

Newbee,...very nice beeyard. They must be facing south..

Michael,......pretty good idea there,.... about leveling those medium boxes....


I better get my camera.........


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## newbee 101

Hey MB, 
The bricks are positioned differently. Do you do that to remind yourself of something?
What is your brick code? 
Denny, Yes, sorta, southeast


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## beenovice

My beeyard


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## Michael Bush

>The bricks are positioned differently. Do you do that to remind yourself of something?
What is your brick code? 

Flat and crossways is just normal. Crossways and on edge means it needs something done to it, usually to do with queen rearing. If I have a batch of queens going every other week then I alternate crossways or straight so I can tell which week. But these are just reminders so I can tell from a distance. I usually have either Hiveminders or Readydates on them with the details.

On diagonal means there's either a virgin or a queen cell and I need to check back to see if she starts to lay. Diagonal and on edge, of course, means there is a virgin or queen cell AND it needs something else done (like feeding or add a box or something). If there are alternating batches I use alternating angle directions for each week.

I'm using these a lot more now instead of the bricks:
http://www.bushfarms.com/images/Clip.jpg


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## dcross

My yard, please excuse the clutter Also, note the 12 frame supers! And clear signs of skunk damage(from earlier this year, skunks are now compost!)


http://s193.photobucket.com/albums/z179/dcross_53042/Skunks/


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## denny

David,....those are interesting 12 frame supers. Were those commercially made, or are they your own creation? Do you find them a worthwhile advantage over the 10 frame?


Here's a few shots of one of my yards.........

http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/foxlbe/Image10a.jpg









http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/foxlbe/Image03a.jpg


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## newbee 101

Awsome pics everyone! More, More, More........
Here is my 2nd beeyard of 4. This is a partnership deal, the same friend who got me started beekeeping. 
The little one is a split made from 2 frames of brood and a swarm cell.


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## WVbeekeeper

the five colonies to the right are the survivors from this spring's bear attack. the one to the left is from a cutout. second from left is a split from that cutout. all the single story colonies started out as 4 frame nucs in early june and are almost full. the ones on the i-beam have queens from the queen i got in the cut out. the three colonies in the back are from nucs as well and have queens i raised from my best producer.





i traded some honey, a case of quarts, to an ex beek i know for this equipment. hopefully if things go well, these will be full of bees next year after some repair and restoration.


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## dcross

denny said:


> David,....those are interesting 12 frame supers. Were those commercially made, or are they your own creation? Do you find them a worthwhile advantage over the 10 frame?


I happened on a shop full of old equipment a few years ago, rented a 26 ft. Uhaul, twisted a buddies arm and hauled all sorts of interesting stuff home

I believe they were promoted by Farrar at the University of WI years ago. But I have no bottom boards for them, so I'm just using them as supers for now. I figure it's about the same as a deep 10 framer. If I ever use the 12 frame deeps, I'm going to anchor them to a pallet so I don't get stupid and attempt lifting them.

Also got some 8 framers and basswood comb honey supers: http://s193.photobucket.com/albums/... super/?action=view&current=DavidGroup019.jpg


I was trying to give them away, but now I think I'll use them as candy boards for wintering. Or I can stack two of them and they're the same as a deep.


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## denny

Thanks for the info about the 12 frame boxes.




dcross said:


> If I ever use the 12 frame deeps, I'm going to anchor them to a pallet so I don't get stupid and attempt lifting them.


.............


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## suprstakr

My small yards


http://s197.photobucket.com/albums/aa274/suprstakr/


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## peggjam




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## suprstakr

Hey MB I see you only use 1 single deep ?


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## Hobie

I feel so small...! This was my entire beeyard this spring. Since this time, I have one more hive, a swarm that landed in the little oak tree in the photo.










Peggjam, what are those red plastic(?) circular things on the sides of those hives?


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## Jeffzhear

PEGGJAM, that looks like an electric fence in the bottom picture...holey schmoley, it looks like you have eight strands!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You must have some tough bears around or maybe I am missing something....

I have three or four strands usually about 10 inches apart.... Maybe I have been lucky so far...and should increase the number of strands...


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## BjornBee

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x236/BjornBee/Beepictures044.jpg

This was one of my mating yards this past year.


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## BjornBee

This is a yard that was just set up this past weekend. Its a preserved farm that has over 80 acres of unmowed field growth. Aster and goldenrod everywhere. Its about one mile from the yard in the first picture in the last post from me.

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x236/BjornBee/Beepictures045.jpg


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## newbee 101

Thats the biggest nuc yard I have ever seen. Very impressive!
Are you going to overwinter them like that, or do you wrap?
I like the 2 story nucs, mine came through the winter beautifully.


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## iddee

The perfect yard for overwintering. The nuc box is empty.









Everything else has been sold.


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## BjornBee

Newbee,
Thanks. I build my nucs all summer, even after the nuc business fades away. This allows me to have at least two boxes of drawn comb for each nuc (2 nucs after splitting) in the spring, I don't need to "rob" my production hives of comb, I utilize all my equipment without it sitting idle, and the best part is that all the nucs are filled with this past summers best queens. I also use these nucs as queen rearing nucs so I can raise and sell queens all year till the end of summer.

In the spring, I can evaluate the queens that make it, and can then select again from the survivors. To build up, make it through in a nuc, with no treatments, says alot about a queen.

Last year with the wacky winter, I lost a good bit, but the previous two winters I had great success.

I may lose a good number. But for every one of these summertime nucs that make it, its one more nuc I'll have next spring to replace a dead out production colony, or one more to sell in early April. And for me, unless I rip the guts out of my production hives come spring, its the only way to have early nucs to sell. I certainly can't raise queens at that time.

I do overwinter them this way. Sometimes as doubles, and sometimes as singles with a good bit of fondant on top.

The trick is to never stop producing nucs. As I sell a nuc (bottom five frames of a two box nuc), I move the drawn comb down with any brood and attached bees to the lower box. After they build up and a new queen is mated and verified, which is at least several weeks, while this is happening, a second box has been placed again. Many times by the time the nuc is ready with a verified queen, the second box is mostly drawn, and has the making of the next nuc. Its just a continual cycle. An empty nuc yard is such a waste of equipment, resources, and potential.

I'll see if I can get a picture of my home nuc yard. Its down from about 175 to the present number prepared for overwintering, which is about 115 nucs.


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## power napper

I do not notice any bear fence.


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## BjornBee

Bears....what are they?


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## denny

> Bears....what are they?


  

Peggjam and Bjorn,.........great nuc yards you've got there! You've certainly been very busy building good nuc boxes,.....and then some in putting them to use.

Bjorn,..... good detailed description of how you keep cycling the nucs as the season progresses. Helpful to hear the details spelled out like that....


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## BjornBee

Trying to post a picture instead of a link....










First time I figured out how to do that....


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## Troutsqueezer

BjornBee said:


> First time I figured out how to do that....


Funny how once you figure them out, most things become so simple to do.


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## BjornBee

Here's my main home nuc yard. Its intermingled with a bushes and a few trees so getting most of the nucs in the picture is out of the question.


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## jackalope

Here's a picture of my "yard", I call it "Bees in the mist"  

This is the result of starting with two nucs in June, one of which swarmed in August, which I caught, so now I have three hives.

BTW, why does everyone put bricks or rocks on their outer covers?!


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## BjornBee

You never heard of the "talking bricks"?

"release your mind.....release your mind....." As a side trivia question.......name that movie?

Brick laying flat in line with hive.....good hive.
Brick laying flat and pushed the front....nuc or hive ready for sale.
Brick laying flat but side ways....queenright but no eggs yet after requeening.
Brick laying on edge and side ways....queen cell/swarm cells/no queen emerged yet.
Brick laying on end....Queenless or dead hive.
Brick moved to the back of the hive...something need attention, feeding, bad frame replaced, etc.


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## Hobie

Gee, and I always thought the bricks were to hold the cover down in high winds. I have no bricks. Can't figure out how to keep 'em on (see my photo on pg 2).

Oh, and "Total Recall"...?


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## Michael Bush

>BTW, why does everyone put bricks or rocks on their outer covers?!

Wind.


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## BjornBee

Hobie, Correct...


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## Jesus_the_only_way

Here's the yard. 










And the topbar.










I have one more hive about 100 yards from the main yard for a total of seven.
Hopefully I can still say that come spring.

Tom


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## newbee 101

I hope the hive on the left, doesnt rob out the hive on the right. 
Great pictures......


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## Jesus_the_only_way

If it gets too heavy I'll move the blocks closer to the end.


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## Gregg

http://s221.photobucket.com/albums/dd147/pollinator3765/Bee Yards/


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## BjornBee

Michael Bush said:


> >BTW, why does everyone put bricks or rocks on their outer covers?!
> 
> Wind.



While I agree that a brick does help somewhat, I would also suggest that if your holding your tops on due to wind with just a brick, you run the risk of losing a top now and then anyways. For a windy location, and I had a few, a good wind will blow a brick off (top and all) with little problems. 

My wind protected sites need nothing on top of the hives. Nothing beats a properly located yard with wind protection as a required component. And if you do have a windy site, I would put on each hive a few bricks, a cinder block, or a big field rock.


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## Chef Isaac

Bjorn:

are you going to answer my pm???


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## BjornBee

What are you talking about Chef? I must of sent that reply a whole two days ago....okay maybe it was yesterday, my mind is foggy. Then again....maybe it was two minutes ago.....


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## Muddywaters

My "urban" bee yard.


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## newbee 101

I have heard about the wealthy bees, and their gated communities. 
Nice pics, thanks for posting. By the way, WELCOME to BEESOURCE!


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## suprstakr

BEE_UTHY_FULL now i have toget me a fence like that.


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## Rob

Nice pics Waters and welcome to Beesource.

I just hope you never fall backwards when you're working that hive, those railings could give you a nasty poke.


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## biglipzit

Nice setup you have there. Looks like a mann lake kit... Is it?


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## Aisha

*Balcony Beehive*

Love the pics. Here's another backyard urban beehive...on my upper deck.










The fake tree is for camouflage from neighbors. 

No, that's not a sail on the hive. 

It's a car's mylar sunshield facing south. It keeps the hive 5 degrees cooler in the Texas heat. I tested it. The rock on top is usually more steady.


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## Troutsqueezer

It looks kinda like the rock is also propping up the rear of the cover maybe giving you a gap there.


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## Muddywaters

Thanks for the welcomes. No, not a Mann Lake kit--traded around with a friend to put it together. The front fence piece lifts from the posts, so I don't have to worry about falling backwards! My neighbors have all been great about it, most garden and understand the benefits of having an active hive in the vicinity.


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## WVbeekeeper

*equalized honey stores*

i posted a reply to this thread on page two before moving the supers on top of the single deeps. my overwintered colonies made 9 supers of goldenrod, which i believe would not of happened if they didn't have supers of drawn comb put back onto them. each super has about 7 frames of capped honey each after some swapping around to equalize the stores. after inspecting each hive today, as i normally do around the first of october, i am quite confident each have has an exceptional chance to make it through the upcoming winter as they appear parasite and disease free. my plan is to make splits with the supers next april and to add deeps to the supers and single deeps. hopefully this will result in ten additional colonies. out of the six that are doubles, i believe i will be able to make at least 12 nucs from them if everything goes according to plan. i hope that since there is still a flow here, the doubles will start backfilling any empty cells.


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## Troutsqueezer

It's not big, but it sure is purty, to me.


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## Michael Palmer

Picture of my Davis Yard, in Beekmantown NY. I'm checking for weight and cluster size. First I weigh each hive, and then tip up the top boxes. The cluster sizes become apparent. This whole yard looked great.


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## berkshire bee

combinedpictures to one post up ahead


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## peggjam

"Peggjam, what are those red plastic(?) circular things on the sides of those hives?"

They are cicular disk entrances that you can get for nuc boxes.

You can buy them here:

http://www.betterbee.com/products.asp?dept=305


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## peggjam

Jeffzhear said:


> PEGGJAM, that looks like an electric fence in the bottom picture...holey schmoley, it looks like you have eight strands!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You must have some tough bears around or maybe I am missing something....
> 
> I have three or four strands usually about 10 inches apart.... Maybe I have been lucky so far...and should increase the number of strands...


Yes, there is eight strands, we grow big bears around here. Bob Duncan informed me that you should also have a hot wire at the very top of the post, because some "smart" bears will grab the post at the top and pull them down. I haven't done that yet.


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## berkshire bee

*humble beeyards*

Here are two of my humble beeyards


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## dug_6238




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## Durandal

My bee tard for 2008...

...you know, for when I actually have bees. 

If it stops raining, I'll get it finished (landscaping fabric and pea gravel with maybe a couple day lilies planted around it).


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## Dan Williamson

*Couple of my yards*


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## BjornBee

Dan, Winter come early huh?


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## Dan Williamson

BjornBee said:


> Dan, Winter come early huh?


That pic was taken a couple of years ago. As soon as I get an updated pic of that yard I'll post it. Got our first frost yesterday quite late in the season... but it wasn't quite as white as that pic!


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## Tomas

*Apiario en Honduras*

This is the apiary I have up in the mountains on a coffee farm here in Honduras. I’m only running top bar hives in this yard, between 45 and 50. The coffee plants are on the other side of the bare clearing. Just in front of the hives is a patch of woods. If you walk right inside the tree line the ground drops off sharply to a stream that’s about 40 feet below. There is one flat area inside the trees however, where we put about a dozen hives. 



















Here is the line of hives as seen from the coffee located up above the apiary. The big-leaved plants are bananas that they use as shade for the coffee until a more permanent shade tree gets big enough to do its job.










Finally, this is the other view I get from where I have the hives. The town where I live is down below in this valley, just out of sight below the ridge on the left 0f the picture. This one was taken during the dry season so everything looks a bit brown in the valley.


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## Michael Palmer

Tomas...do youknow my friend, Bill Mares? He has been working with Honduran beekeepers on a marketing program for their honey...grown near coffee, as you mention. Actually...he's in Honduras right now, for a couple weeks.


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## Ravenseye

*This spring*

Here are my two. More coming next year. The one on the left was a split that I made that day from the one on the right.


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## Tomas

*Bill Mares in Honduras*

Michael, 

I haven't heard about your friend Bill Mares or even about the marketing program in Honduras. It sounds interesting though. Look for the PM I just sent you.

Tom


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## allrawpaul




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## allrawpaul




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## dcross

Allrawpaul, I love the roof, but it just doesn't look right on the nucs


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## Michael Bush

Allrawpaul, they kind of look like the flying nun. I think they would fly well around here in those 60 mph gusts...


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## odfrank

ARP: 
Photobucket makes it easy for you to downsize your photos so that they still look fine on this message board but don't take so long to load. Under the Click to Add Title, click on edit, resize and choose web/ message board.


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## MadBowbee

*May beeyard along San Joaquin River, Fresno, CA*

Notice one of my friends helping with no veil and the other with.


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