Blog

As August turns into September, you want to keep an eye on your hives and make sure that varroa mites and small hive beetles don’t invade your hives. Stock up now on your favorite health products and beetle control items. Our Pigeon Mountain BrandTM items that help combat these hive intruders include Cool Weather Beetle and Mite Paste, Feeding Supplement with Essential Oils, Beetle Ciudads, Beetle Haciendas and Beetle Cabanas. Descriptions of all of these items can be found on our website.Other available products go on the hive, in the hive, or around the hive! Some require additives, like vegetable oil or water, while others are self-contained...

Your Queen bee has been laying more than 2,000 eggs a day this bee season. That’s more than one egg per minute, 24 hours a day, seven days a week! Now that summer is over, she is laying less than a few hundred a day. Because she is the Queen, she has nothing to do but lay eggs. No laundry, no housework, no dishes. Everything is done for her. She is groomed, fed, and protected. Now, it's quite possible that she’s bored!Chances are high you might find the Queen strolling about the hive. When it’s too late to lay lots...

It’s very important that your bees begin fall in good shape so that they can make it through the winter. While you know that you will have at least one more honey harvest, you want to make sure that the bees are making enough honey to get them through the winter. Keep an eye on them, and offer supplemental feeding if necessary. We keep our feeder buckets set up just to make sure the bees have as much food as they need.August is a month where beekeepers get a bit of a rest. The colony’s growth will begin to diminish...

Your bees have worked hard. They've gathered enough delicious honey not only for you to enjoy, but to get them through the winter. Then one day, you go check the hive, and it's been robbed! Stripped clean! Not a drop of honey can be found. Italian bees are more prone to rob their neighbors than other bees. Bees will not rob if nectar is readily available. Robbing usually occurs when nectar is no longer available. Strong colonies will attack weak colonies, or those that are poorly guarded. They won't touch the pollen, they are only there for the honey. Like...

The honey bees naturally work together to produce honey.  This teamwork often creates a festoon or a bridge made from bees within the open spaces in the hive.  Bees use their own bodies to create a living bridge for other bees to use to cross into a frame.  The six legs of the honey bee have pads and hooks so they can "hook" onto another bee's hooks.  They build their own scaffolding for a several reasons.  They use this festoon when swarmming and hang onto a tree limb or another object.  Bees also festoon to hang out of the hive...

We all like to save money, but when our bees swarm that is throwing money away.  Catching a swarm is saving the equivalent of a 3 lbs. box of bees.  You just have to have all your supplies ready to go.  You can purchase a swarm trap, purchase or build a nuc box; use pheromones/swarm lure or have some lemon grass oil to bait the hives.  By contacting your local fire department or agriculture agency to let them know that you are available to do swarm removals, you are also providing a valuable service and replenishing your apiary.  Also posting...

Well it is that time of year again...bee season is upon us! Here at the store we have all of the items you may need to start the season off right. We have everything from starting your hives to extracting your honey at the end of the season. Stop by our store or visit our website at www.pigeonmountaintrading.com to get the supplies you need. Here are our anticipated pickup/delivery dates for bees: March 24, April 21, April 27, May 12, and May 27. As you know, weather can change, so we will contact those of you who have placed orders and let you...

For some of you springtime has begun. Here in Northwest Georgia, it is just around the corner (we hope!). The maples are turning red and their blossoms are beginning to open. I’ve noticed my bees on a sunny day bringing in three different colors of pollen. I love to see this!! Here are a few reminders of what to do in spring. First of all, are your bees still alive? Place your ear against the side of the hive (stay away from the entrance with your face) and tap on the side, then listen for the buzz of the cluster....

After repeated use, old brood combs can become very dark—nearly black. The inside diameter of each cell also becomes smaller because the cocoons of each succeeding generation are glued to the cell walls. Even though the cells are polished by nurse bees before new eggs are laid, some of this cocoon material remains. Pesticides and disease organisms can reside in both the wax cells and the cocoon layers. The darker the cells get, the higher the probability of contamination. It is recommended that very dark combs be cut away and discarded. In the past beekeepers could keep combs in use...