Get out your oxalic acid and lay in a supply of fondant
We’re finally actually in November. It’s been a warm fall without rain and the leaves have mostly turned, many fallen. But it’s dry, dry, dry. Be careful with your smokers out there.
Given the OTHER political event happening over the next few days we probably WON’T be having bee chat on Tuesday. There’s always a chance, but we expect to be distracted by returns and poll watching. So, concentrate on that. Bees will still be here on the fourth Tuesday. Please note that all of the images in this post are AI generated according to my specifications. No meaning other than my unusual sense of humor should be read into them.
We will have the November monthly meeting in person at St. James as well as online. The meeting features Austin Martin our once upon a time state inspector and future Phd. It should be a fun meeting. Yes we’ll bring some pizza.
On December 21 we will have our Winter Solstice Pot Luck! This is a long time Guild tradition and always lots of fun. Bring some bee bread or bee beer and visit with the other bee people. This year we would like everyone who sold honey with us to pick up their leftover stock. We will get fresh stock from you in the spring when we start to sell again.
The Winter Solstice Potluck will also be our business meeting for the year and we should have new officers for next year.
If you’re a member of the Chester County Beekeepers you can purchase 50 pound blocks of Fondant from them. You won’t see the fondant at that link unless you log in. If you are not a member you might want to consider joining. They’re a very nice group of experienced beekeepers, and this is an excellent price for fondant.
The oxalic acid is another story. That you’ll have to order from one of the many reputable suppliers in the region or online. It is important at this time to be ready to treat your bees with oxalic, dribble or vapor while they are broodless. Oxalic is very effective if there is no capped brood.
When will my bees be broodless you may ask? Well, I’ve seen weak colonies that are already broodless or nearly so. Stronger colonies will be getting that way soon. They shut down earlier than I usually expect and start rearing brood earlier too. It seems to not be the queen’s choice so much as the workers. At a certain point they don’t allow any more eggs to hatch. At least that’s what it looks like to me. We’ll see what they do this year.
At any rate, late November through December has always seemed like the right time to use Oxalic around here, and that’s my thinking this year too. I’m going to focus on using vapor this year since I don’t have to open the hives for that.