Should this be my mascot?

Russian Brood Patterns

This is a picture i took last friday while inspecting my hives. By far the Russians had the best brood patterns. Although they are known for their wall to wall brood patterns unlike other races who will have the "typical" circular patterns...

Anyway, these Russians came from Charles Harper http://russianbreeder.com/ and have been doing great. I installed them in April and they have provided me with atleast 2 splits each this year if not 3 in some cases!!!!

I did find out that they MUST have open comb available or they will swarm... fortunantly i caught the queen...

A tribute to my late dog

Just was thinking about my animals and thought of my late dog who died from a coyote attack. She was a rescue beagle that i got about 2 years ago, i had her for about a year. She was a wonderful dog like most beagles and loved riding in the truck.

Since then i have gotten another beagle, this one a small blue tick beagle that is an awesome dog as well and really keeps the outside enjoyable.

Here is a tribute to my late Pearl...

Recent Pics of my yards

Here are two recent pics of my main yards. figured i would post something...

Winter Pattie Mix

As you may remember back in the winter of 2010/2011 i wrote about and used a marshmallow fondant pattie. These worked great and easy to make. but since i have now grown from 18 hives to 60 things take on different proportions and things done previously dont always make the most sense.

That said i have been researching different options like commerical fondant, marshammalow fondant, and others related to cost and ease of making.

One option is a recipe Kent Williams discussed at the State Meeting, i didnt have a pen and paper, so i found his email address and asked him to send the recipe that way.

I shouldnt share this with yall, since yall should be attending the state meetings... but since others see this in different states i will "let it pass" this time...LOL

Anyway, i am going to be doing the cost analysis of this soon, but feel if i have a way to mix it effectivly than this might be my ticket. I especially like the idea of it involving protien which is needed as the bees start raising brood in January...

You too should start making winter prep plans!

The forumula that "fits best for my needs" is based on 60 hives...

Here is he response email...

The formula that would fit your needs best is 1) 25# bag of sugar - granulated "table" sugar; 2 quarts syrup-mix (made by mixing 6 tablespoons of HBH with 2 quarts of 1-1 sugar syrup) ; 4 to 6 quarts mega-bee or similar protein source. Crushed/powdered pollen is best - if you are confident the source is free from disease and pesticide/fungicide residue. Start with 4 quarts of protein sub and continue adding additional sub until the consistency is similar to dough.
This formula figures (roughly) to 7 parts granulated sugar - 1 part syrup - 2 to 3 parts protein sub, if you want to mix it in smaller amounts.
If beetles are a problem in your area, and if they seem to be attracted to the patties, add 7 or 8 drops of wintergreen oil to each patty when they are placed on the hive. If you do this to one hive in your beeyard, you need to treat all the hives equally. If not treated equally the shb will just move from the treated to the untreated.

GREAT VIDEO ABOUT BEE DISEASE

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/science/july-dec11/bees_07-28.html