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SMALL CELL BEES 

4.9 THE NATURAL BEE

The honeybee cells prior to 1893 were about 4.9 mm. in diameter. After that year, the comb cells were artificially enlarged to 5.4 mm. and up. The thinking at that time was that bigger bees meant – more honey.  But, the natural cell size of 4.9 mm. bees have 22% more cells per frame.  Which shows that actually it’s more bees that make more honey.

We should look at the bees in the wild and try to mimic their natural habitat. There is air movement in the hollow trees at all times. The use of screen bottom boards will duplicate that air flow and a large number of mites and trash will fall out the bottom just like the hollow trees. With small cell bees you will virtually eliminate your Tracheal and Varroa mite problems. The trachea tube of the 4.9 bees are smaller and therefore prohibit the mites from entering into the trachea of the bees. This makes one less thing that you’ll have to treat.

Another example of this is with the Varroa mite.  The 4.9 bees have a shorter capping time of the cells by 12 hours and shorter post capping time by 12 hours. This interruption of the life cycle means less Varroa getting into the cells and reproducing in them. Therefore,  less Varroa mites will be reaching maturity. Also, the Varroa mites do not like to lay their eggs in the smaller 4.9 cells.  The bees will chew Varroa mites out of the cells on the down side of the honey flow. The chewing out will start slowly as the queen stops raising drones, and will pick up as the drones are expelled from the hive, then will taper off just prior to the brood nest cleaning time.  Varroa mites will multiply faster on regular 5.4 foundation and drone brood than on 4.9 foundation and worker brood.

Small cell bees, when used in conjunction with screen bottom boards along with powder sugar dusting in the fall, will give an effective chemical free control of Varroa.

Side Note:

1. It takes about 90 days to evaluate the performance of a queen.
2.  As we get older the bee hives become harder to lift. My mentor, John Seaborn (www.wolfcreekbees.com), now uses 8 frame medium boxes for brood and honey supers.  In doing so, you have one box size and one frame size.  We have found that this cuts cost and saves your back! 
3.  If you choose the 4.9 bees and have other hives of  5.4, separate the 5.4 yard from the 4.9 so as to eliminate drifting during the honey flow. This also keeps the 5.4 from bringing mites into the 4.9 hives, allowing you to evaluate the 4.9′s. 
4. The use of harsh chemicals has failed us. We need to change our approach as to what type of treatments we use on the bees. Natural treatments have proven to be safe and effective.

This recipe is our choice for making a good fondant candy for the bees. We have chosen not to use corn syrup because of GMO and all the hybridization that the corn goes through. High fructose corn syrup becomes toxic when heated creating a compound called hydroxymenthylfurfural which is not beneficial to bees. Cream of tartar is excluded because it is not beneficial to the bees health. Use pure cane sugar ONLY.

The following will make 1 cake the size of a dinner plate. To make more, simply double or triple the recipe.

• Mix the following:4 cups of sugar 1 cup water 1/2 tsp. white distilled vinegar 1/4 tsp. Real Salt (sea salt with 60 naturally ocurring trace minerals) per batch.
• Bring the above to a boil stirring constantly (to avoid candy being a extremely sticky transparent gel).
• Boil covered for 3 minutes without stirring.
• Boil until mixture reaches 234° F. on a candy thermometer (older type works best.) Do not go over this temperature (over heating will cause the mixture to caramelize, which is harmful to the bees).
• Remove from heat and allow to cool to 200° F. (you should start to see an increased thickness at this point)
• Whip with a whisk until whiteness occurs (if preferred in late winter or early spring 1/2 cup of Ultra Bee Pollen Substitute may be added while whipping).
• Lay waxed paper on top of a towel (avoid an over fluffy towel – fluff affects the cake’s thickness).
• Quickly pour fondant onto waxed paper.
• Allow to cool undisturbed.
• If making multiple cakes place waxed paper between each cake.
• Store cakes in a plastic bag in refrigerator or freezer.
• Remove from refrigerator or freezer and let reach room temperature before feeding.
• When feeding remove waxed paper and place fondant on top bars of frames directly over the brood cluster. (where the bees are clustered up so that they have access to it)Bon Aqua Springs Apiaries & Woodenware10832 New Cut Off Rd. Bon Aqua, TN 37025 Phone (931) 670-6862

                 Hours of Operation: 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. C.S.T.   

Brick Candy Recipe

Feeding should be done only when the bees are running short on stored honey.

Small Portions:

• 1 lb. cane sugar1/8 teaspoon Real Salt (sea salt with 60 naturally occurring minerals)1 1/2 oz. water1 drop of Lemon Grass Oil (oil must be pharmaceutical grade)
• Mix sugar with salt and set aside.
• In a Blender Mix water and Lemon Grass Oil on low for 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add water and oil mixture to sugar and salat mixing well.
• Press mixture evenly into a wax paper lined small cake pan.
• Cut into squares while still soft.
• Set aside and allow to harden.

(When feeding: Place candy right above the brood.)

Larger Batches:

• 5Lbs. cane sugar7 1/2 oz. water1/2 teaspoon Real Salt (sea salt with 60 naturally occurring minerals)5 drops Lemon Grass Oil (oil must be pharmaceutical grade)
• Mix sugar with salt and set aside.
• In a Blender Mix water and Lemon Greass Oil on low for 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add water and oil mixture to sugar and salt mixing well.
• Press mixture into a wax paper lined 13″ x 9″ x 1/2″ cookie sheet.
• Cut into squares while still soft.
• Set aside and allow to harden.

(When Feeding:  Place candy right above the brood. 

 VARROA MITES:

1. Put 5-8 drops of Thyme Oil in 16 ounces of mineral oil, shake it up and squirt it on a paper towel making a double SS. Then put it in the hive on top of the frames up till 3 weeks before the honey flow and anytime after the honey flow.
2. Mix 1 Tablespoon of garlic powder with 1 cup of water in a blender on low speed for 2-3 minutes. Add the cup of blended mixture to a gallon of sugar water, mix by shaking, and feed it to the bees in early spring up till 3 weeks before the honey flow. Can be used again in the fall after the honey flow.
3. Put 4 ounces of granulated sugar per deep hive box into a blender on low speed in order to make your own powdered sugar. The powdered sugar that you buy in the stores contains corn starch which the bees cannot digest. Place the 4 ounces of home made powdered sugar into a ziplock. Use one 4 oz. ziplock to a deep box and 3 ounces per medium box. The next time that you are in your bee yard, dump the sugar onto the top of the frames. Use a new paint brush ( must be a foam type ) to brush the powder off of the frames onto the bees early in the morning or late in the evening once every ten days for a total of four treatments starting in late August and continuing into September. It’s best to have screen bottom boards for this. If using a solid bottom board, place cardboard in the bottom before dusting and then afterward remove it.
4. Use 20-25 drops of Thyme oil in 16 ounces of mineral oil if you use a fogger for mite control. Walk by the landing board and put the fogger into each hive for 8 to 10 seconds and then move on to the next hive.
5. A very effective treatment for Varroa mites on artificially sized 5.4 bees and the natural 4.9 bees is the Wintergreen Oil Study found athttp://www.wvu.edu/~agexten/varroa/varroa2.htm MUST BE FOLLOWED EXACTLY!!

SMALL HIVE BEETLE:

1. Mix 10-12 drops of Eucalyptus Oil with 1 cup of Crisco shortening. Stir in ½ to ¾ cup of sugar and make into a small patty. Place patty on a piece of wax paper and place on top of the frames. ( use latex or rubber gloves anytime when working with Eucalyptus Oil.)
2. Dust Diatomaceous Earth on the ground around your hive instead of using Guard Star. Be sure and make an 8-10 foot radius around the hive, watering it into the ground or apply before a rain.
3. Use old cortex boards and Boric Acid for traps. Cut cortex into 3×4 inch rectangles. Hold 6 of the cortex boards lined up together and cover the open ends with Crisco. Turn over and spoon 1/8 to 1/4 inch of the Boric Acid into the other ends and seal with the Crisco shortening. Wipe traps clean before placing into hive secure it to the bottom board or frames with staples.
4. When using the West SHB traps, place 1/8 to 3/16 inches of hydrated lime into a clean, dry tray. Put the grill on top and place into the hive as if you had oil in it. This method is better than using vegetable oil since oil tends to run out or to settle in low spots leaving other spots dry. Lime has a higher kill ratio than oil.

NOSEMA: 

1. Mix 1/2 teaspoon of Tea Tree Oil with 1/2 cup of water. Put into a glass blender and blend on low speed for 4-5 minutes.
2. Put the mixture into a 1/2 gallon glass jar.
3. Mix another 1/2 teaspoon of Tea Tree Oil with 1/2 cup of water. Put into a glass blender and blend on low speed for 4-5 minutes once again.
4. Next put the mixture into the same jar fill with plain water and shake it up.
5.  After shaking up the mixture pour one cup of concentrate into one Gal. of sugar water and feed to bees. (Make Sure Sugar Water Is Made With Cane Sugar).

CHALKBROOD:

Same as above but use 2 teaspoons instead of 1 teaspoon of Tea Tree Oil.   (Make Sure To Blend Oil In 1/2 Teaspoon Increments Also)  

SPRING STIMULANT:

1 drop of Tea Tree Oil  4 drops of Lemon Grass Oil  1/4 cup water    

NOTE: Sugar water is a 1 to 1 ratio in the spring and 2 parts sugar to 1 part water in the fall. Mix all ingredients in a glass blender on low for 4-5 minutes and add this mixture to 1 gallon of sugar water (Made From Cane Sugar) and feed to the bees in the spring.

 WE SELL PHARMACEUTICAL GRADE OILS AND OTHER NATURAL COMPOUNDS 

Bon Aqua Springs Apiaries & Woodenware 10832 New Cut Off Rd.Bon Aqua, TN. 37025 931-670-6862   

NOTE: All oils must be pharmaceutical grade!! Essential Oils are for perfume purposes and not for healing. Diatomaceous earth must be of food grade. Caution must be used since it is an eye and lung irritant. Lime dust may also be an eye, skin and lung irritant. When using Wintergreen Oil avoid contact with skin and eyes. 

Caution pregnant woman and children should avoid the use of Wintergreen Oil  NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COLONIES WHEN USING OUR TREATMENTS SINCE WE HAVE NO CONTROL OVER  APPLICATION OF TREATMENTS.  

This recipe is our choice for making a good fondant candy for the bees. We have chosen not to use corn syrup because of GMO and all the hybridization that the corn goes through. High fructose corn syrup becomes toxic when heated creating a compound called hydroxymenthylfurfural which is not beneficial to bees. Cream of tartar is excluded because it is not beneficial to the bees health. Use pure cane sugar ONLY.The following will make 1 cake the size of a dinner plate. To make more, simply double or triple the recipe.

• Mix the following: 4 cups of sugar, 1 cup water, 1/2 tsp. white distilled vinegar and 1/4 tsp. Real Salt (sea salt with 60 naturally ocurring trace minerals) per batch.
• Bring the above to a boil stirring constantly (to avoid candy being a extremely sticky transparent gel).
• Boil covered for 3 minutes without stirring.
• Boil until mixture reaches 234° F. on a candy thermometer (older type works best.) Do not go over this temperature (over heating will cause the mixture to caramelize, which is harmful to the bees).
• Remove from heat and allow to cool to 200° F. (you should start to see an increased thickness at this point)
• Whip with a whisk until whiteness occurs (if preferred in late winter or early spring 1/2 cup of Ultra Bee Pollen Substitute may be added while whipping).
• Lay waxed paper on top of a towel (avoid an over fluffy towel – fluff affects the cake’s thickness).
• Quickly pour fondant onto waxed paper.
• Allow to cool undisturbed.
• If making multiple cakes place waxed paper between each cake.
• Store cakes in a plastic bag in refrigerator or freezer.
• Remove from refrigerator or freezer and let reach room temperature before feeding.
• When feeding remove waxed paper and place fondant on top bars of frames directly over the brood cluster. (where the bees are clustered up so that they have access to it)

 Feeding should be done only when the bees are running short on stored honey.

• Small Portions: 1 lb. cane sugar1/8 teaspoon Real Salt (sea salt with 60 naturally occurring minerals)1 1/2 oz. water1 drop of Lemon Grass Oil (oil must be pharmaceutical grade)
• Mix sugar with salt and set aside.
• In a Blender Mix water and Lemon Grass Oil on low for 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add water and oil mixture to sugar and salat mixing well.
• Press mixture evenly into a wax paper lined small cake pan.
• Cut into squares while still soft.
• Set aside and allow to harden.

        (When feeding: Place candy right above the brood.)

• Larger Batches: 5Lbs. cane sugar7 1/2 oz. water1/2 teaspoon Real Salt (sea salt with 60 naturally occurring minerals)5 drops Lemon Grass Oil (oil must be pharmaceutical grade)
• Mix sugar with salt and set aside.
• In a Blender Mix water and Lemon Greass Oil on low for 4 to 5 minutes.
• Add water and oil mixture to sugar and salt mixing well.
• Press mixture into a wax paper lined 13″ x 9″ x 1/2″ cookie sheet.
• Cut into squares while still soft.
• Set aside and allow to harden.

       (When Feeding:  Place candy right above the brood.)