tailieunhanh - Bees And Honey - Part 6

Handling the bees Before opening a colony for examination, collect together all the things you are likely to need for the manipulation, such as hive tool, queen excluders, supers, etc. Light the smoker. The fuel used may be any solid material that lights easily and burns | Handling the bees Before opening a colony for examination collect together all the things you are likely to need for the manipulation such as hive tool queen excluders supers etc. Light the smoker. The fuel used may be any solid material that lights easily and burns or rather smoulders producing plenty of cool smoke for a reasonably long time so that refuelling is not a constant need. The usual fuels are corrugated paper sacking dried grass and rotten wood. Quite a lot of corrugated paper appears to be fireproof these days but if it will smoulder easily it should be rolled into a cylinder to fit the firebox of the smoker. Sacking lasts longer but care should be taken that it has not been used to contain anything poisonous to the bee such as dressed grain. I prefer grass which has been cut with a rotary grass cutter and left to dry. This can be picked up and stored in a sack and two of these will last me a season. It has the advantage that it burns nicely and with little residue in the smoker and if the smoke does blow back into your face when lighting it is not as vicious as sacking or paper smoke. I usually start the smoker by setting light to a small ball of newspaper. Ensure the smoker is going well put on your veil and gloves. Make your way to the colony quietly. Do not cause disturbance by stomping around the hives nor drop your extra equipment on to the ground put it down quietly as bees readily detect vibration. Gently smoke the entrance of the hive. Do not puff smoke in until the bees come out crying let the smoke drift in. The smell of smoke causes the bees to fill themselves up with honey from the honey store and this renders them much more amenable to handling. A full bee like a well-fed human is much less likely to want to start a fight. It takes about two minutes for the bees to fill up and for the full effect of the smoking to be obtained. Beginners are therefore advised to take things steadily and to wait this amount of time giving the bees a .