# Sour Smell?



## Jayoung21 (Jun 22, 2010)

American foulbrood has a pretty distinct smell. Goldenrod blooms in the fall so thats not it. Not saying it couldn't be another plant but pretty sure not goldenrod. Do you have a bee club or maybe you can get in contact with the state inspector? 

This video may help

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnfLPfOeyeA


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## burns375 (Jul 15, 2013)

With newbies, as default I assume everything is okay and they are just paranoid. 

Its likely the smell of a working hive, curing nectar, etc.


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## Swampsquash (Oct 25, 2014)

I'm a newbie and I always got a weird smell at the beginning of beeking......I figured out it's just the smell of the hive. I was paranoid at first


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## philip.devos (Aug 10, 2013)

burns375 said:


> With newbies, as default I assume everything is okay and they are just paranoid.
> 
> Its likely the smell of a working hive, curing nectar, etc.


I agree with burns. Last year I noticed a smell which worried me. I poked a bunch of capped brood looking for the indicator of foul brood; didn't get any positives. In another week the smell went away.


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## fieldsofnaturalhoney (Feb 29, 2012)

Incoming nectar & bee bread both have distinct smells?


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## Scpossum (May 4, 2014)

Downwind from mine you can smell the curing nectar. It does smell pungent at first if you do not know what it is.


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## biggraham610 (Jun 26, 2013)

burns375 said:


> With newbies, as default I assume everything is okay and they are just paranoid.
> 
> Its likely the smell of a working hive, curing nectar, etc.


:thumbsup: x2 G


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## beepro (Dec 31, 2012)

The curing of honey has a sweet smell to it. The brooding of the larvae has a sweet sugary smell too.
Not sure about the pollen they're bringing in now. What is blooming in your area now?
Did you put in any patty? If they are not taking in the patty then probably it is rotting away with the sour/moldy
smell.


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## odfrank (May 13, 2002)

>American foulbrood has a pretty distinct smell.

14 days after installation of a package?


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## beepro (Dec 31, 2012)

Yes, that is why ollie don't like the package. He goes for the swarms instead, huh.
It was very stressful for the package. And that will cause the foul broods that is why
during the stressful Spring build up we often see this disease. Someone here claimed that
his bees got it only 7 days after he installed his package. Maybe that post is here somewhere.
Stress out bees is diseased bees!


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## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

If the package came from a hive that was being treated with antibiotics and outbreak could happen when the treatment was stopped. I can't see how the smell would be detected in 2 weeks on only four combs being drawn. I would think it is more likely the normal smell of a hive that is unknown to the OP. There is nectar and pollen coming in, plus the mixing to make bee bread, brood, propolise, wax drawing and moist wood from new hive equipment. AFB is the last thing I would expect at this time especially when the OP is doing inspections.


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## mathesonequip (Jul 9, 2012)

since you just started I doubt you could smell American foulbrood yet. AFB starts slow and takes awhile to get going, but it just keeps going and is real contagious and lethal. fortunately in most areas AFB is fairly rare now, be aware, but it is not a probability... varoa mites are in all hives now, they are not noticed until you are in real trouble. you cannot totally eliminate them but you can manage the situation. get used to regularly monitoring mites with one of the shake methods. see ny bee wellness or the Ontario bee association sites for more information. don't panic you will do fine. from time to time you will notice strange smells.


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## John Scifres (Mar 25, 2014)

I've grown to love that smell over the 3 years I have been doing this. I think you will too.


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## blamb61 (Apr 24, 2014)

One of my hives has a sour smell to it. It was a split that didnt work so I installed a queen. Before I installed the queen I checked all frames to see if I had raised a queen. There was no capped brood and I didn't see yong larva. It smelled funny then and still does. Can you have afb withoud any brood and cause a smell?


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## biggraham610 (Jun 26, 2013)

John Scifres said:


> I've grown to love that smell over the 3 years I have been doing this. I think you will too.


:thumbsup: G


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## Acebird (Mar 17, 2011)

blamb61 said:


> Can you have afb withoud any brood and cause a smell?


Well any animal can pass gas to cause a smell but it would have to be over a 1000 of them before you could smell it.


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## beepro (Dec 31, 2012)

Nope, as the brood died infected by the afb/efb they will decompose so you will definitely
smell the fishy smell or whatever is in there during that time. No brood = no infection because
this disease only attack the broods and not the alive bees.


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## Colobee (May 15, 2014)

The closest thing I can think of for healthy brood is the smell of bread rising - a "yeasty" kind of pleasant smell. It's been years since I smelled foulbrood - when first removing the outer cover there is a distinctively bad sour smell. Healthy brood cappings are an orangeish-light brown. Darkened brood cappings ( dark brown), some with holes, are the first AFB visual, along with a weakened hive from all the brood that isn't hatching. Wax/comb from an AFB hive retains the stench - burn it or bag it. The spores are said to remain viable for up to 40 years.

All that said - it's not very likely. Good luck!


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## Dave1958 (Mar 25, 2013)

There is smell in my hives that is all over me. I think it's propelis. I smell it on me and catch "whiffs" of it even after a shower. My wife doesnt smell it, I think it's kind of like animal smell. It's there for each animal when you work a farm. Horses smell different than cows, bees have their smell also


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