Supplementing My Bees | I Disagree With Myself

[@tonyandric4380]

Mike, put 2 pieces of peppermint candy in the corners on top of the frames in that colony with all the SHB's. It really works well to drive the beetles away. Try it, you'll be surprised.

[@MikeBarryBees]

I’ve tried it, but they seem to eat it so fast, I have to go back in a few days and do it again. Hope all is well Tony!! Enjoyed the visit at the Expo.

[@CastleHives]

It's always fun reversing boxes. Mine always get fired up doing that.

[@MikeBarryBees]

I’m beginning to think differently on doing it anytime after third week of January down here in this region. But yes, they tend to get ‘sporty’ for sure Brian!

[@ThatBeeMan]

Be anxious for nothing. Amen!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Yes Brad, I have to remind myself of the Word daily. I try to get ahead of it now and again😬😬

[@redfish440]

Thanks Mike, great video, guardian was super nice to my wife and I at the expo, we ended up buying her a full suit and I got a jacket, I’m hoping the weather will cooperate so I can check mine tomorrow, but I don’t know, anyway see ya on the next one God bless!

[@Flcracker0419]

Great to hear, in need of a new suit myself…

[@alhambraorchardapiary4882]

I second that Terry and crew do a great job.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Terry and his crew are great!! We’re blowing up good down here now. Have to get busy!!

[@mikesbeesllc3352]

Looking good Mike.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks Mike. Hadn’t forgotten about you my friend. Just hadn’t had an opportunity to fit the products in with the time of year. Hope to at least give a preview for when it does come time.

[@mikesbeesllc3352]

@@MikeBarryBees Not a problem Brother. It's a real busy time for you right now. We are a month behind you. I use our products on swarms after I box them and before they cap any cells. That's almost 2 months from now.

[@tarheelbeekeeper3971]

Mike, Terry’s a good guy I enjoy my Guardian Jacket and they’re always easy to work with. We will always be guessing what our colonies need because it’s forever changing. Always enjoy your videos. May you be blessed in all you do

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks so much Randy for the blessing!! Yea, we’re always having to rethink each season to be sure we’re at least running alongside the bees…

[@brucesbees]

Guardian is great. Great customer service. Thanks Terry and all the folks at Guardian Bee Apparel!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Terry and his crew are great for sure. I know you’ve been with them a long time now.

[@nancynolton6079]

Your girls are not happy with you! LOL God Bless!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Definitely not!! Thanks Nancy!

[@StanGore-mk8ow]

great weather!!!!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Getting even better Stan!!

[@mountainchild97]

Supplementing my bees: where the hive meets the head-scratcher! It's like I'm in a debate with myself over what's best for my buzzing buddies

[@MikeBarryBees]

And for me it seems that same thought just never stops 😂😂

[@brucesbees]

Great stuff Mike. Exciting times! What is it with the beetles this year?!!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Just posted not sure Bruce. The drought in the summer stunted them it seemed like, so I’m sure surprised at how they’ve bounce back.

[@brettellis1837]

Look forward to next video cheers mate.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks Brett!! Glad to see your comment pop up!

[@jedsackett5255]

I've got drone brood in Northeast Ms too.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Mine are now growing fast. A cool couple evenings today and we’re back in spring weather.

[@jerrydegroot1573]

we were blessed with 2 inches of snow overnight, so tired of winter

[@MikeBarryBees]

Well, I guess I’d get tired of winter too if we had one Gerrie. We stay warm more than cold, but we do have nice temps it’s getting busy down here!

[@claybunner1059]

I agree with the big guys not caring anymore which has aloud these new guys that listen to their customers and do their best to give you the most bang for your buck! Can’t wait to see what you think on reversing boxes. I didn’t last year did a few this year and also took the bottom box away completely on some that have shrank in numbers. Thanks for another how you do video.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Yea Clay, they acted like they were the only show in town. They will keep on going and I am sure there will still be items I need to get form them, but not if I don't have to. They're trying to get better, but they waited for it to all go downhill before they turned around. I like the smaller companies.

[@branmcg9844]

You do you and I'll do me, So God Bless.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Yes, that’s about right. I just do what I do. Thanks for watching!!

[@gallowaylights]

00:11:07 like a Taylored suit... wow, perfect fit! 😊

[@MikeBarryBees]

I like quality…no doubt.

[@woodlandharvesthoneycompanyllc]

Thanks for the video. You are previewing what I have to look forward to. We had snow yesterday and 9° F last night so I won't be where you are for a while. Probably about a month but at least I watch your videos.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Glad us southern beekeepers can give you guys some bee content in preparation for your season Thanks for watching!!

[@russellkoopman3004]

Nice to see your bees on the up turn. Have you thought or heard of the beatle blaster by The Bug Farmer? I think it could be a handy tool for you. I'm sure glad I don't have them nasty bugs. Lots of promise for you having a better year than last year. Are you running more or less hives than last year?

[@BucksBeesS.C.]

I made one from small car vac. And a baby nose snot sucker taped on. Works great. He has a. VIdeo on how to make one

[@MikeBarryBees]

Well Russell, right now less because of the dwindle. I went into winter with 37 or so and have about 34 now. My deadouts were in September and I lost 6 or 7. I had over 40 out of the harvest. I will build back to that I would imagine and I like to keep 35 to 45 at any given time. At the peak before I move an NUCs, I'll have about 50, maybe more. I need to build me a little vacuum. There was a guy years ago that built one similar to the BF, but I just never followed up on it. I just learn to deal with the pests I suppose.

[@rudolphdavis2387]

Hey Mike great video just let you know I revised my hives the first of February I'm in the panhandle of Florida and use Queen extrusion I make sure the Queen in bottom box I run single deep with super hope it better year.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Good deal Rudolph! Hope you guys have a great spring and a great season!!

[@a3skywarrior929]

Below freezing up here...several weeks yet. Suppose to get a quick warm spell next week sometime to help them out

[@MikeBarryBees]

I think we're out of the woods for the most part. I'm sure we'll see a light freeze or a frost still, but nothing really wintery.

[@briancraig6468]

Glad to see everything moving forward for you!!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks Brian, me too!

[@edwardclark5211]

Dream Big brother 🙏

[@MikeBarryBees]

👍🏼👍🏼🙏

[@lambbrookfarm4528]

Awesome Mike! I can't remember the weather on the 4th, but today was snow showers and wind, 30 degrees, brrrr.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Long winters compared to long summers. Just not sure. Finding that middle ground is the key😁😁

[@lambbrookfarm4528]

@@MikeBarryBees well, sugar run is on, 5 days and nights in the next week above freezing, that should melt the snow. In 2 weeks the pollen could start, that will be a good time

[@russellaymond312]

Tthank you Mike for another great video

[@MikeBarryBees]

You’re welcome and thanks for the support!!

[@melvinyoder1954]

Thank mike great video once again. I wanna get a guardian jacket this season

[@MikeBarryBees]

You’ll like it Melvin. Worth it for sure.

[@markarnold8911]

Hey Mike, I’m glad to see those guys working on that veil. I had to stop using that veil because the bees were stinging me in the back of the head when the screen touched me.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Yea Mark, the old model had me a bit peeved at first. Hot to where I could get it adjusted ok, but shouldn’t have been that way. The new veil is night and day different

[@SmokyMountainLashBees]

Oh wow I’d liked to try that veil!

[@MikeBarryBees]

I do think your hair being up helps you with your current veil. It keeps it off your neck, but for sure this version is great.

[@fabianweber619]

I like Mike! He does bees!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks!!

[@johnhorne8998]

Mike, One thing I do with my round veil is I wear a base ball cap backwards then put on the veil. The brim of the base ball cap pointing backwards keeps the back of the veil off my neck. Maybe this will help someone else.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks for posting John. I agree, hope this might give someone a good tip in a remedy on the older veils or on different company models. I have to where a cap with my HillCo yellow veil for it to fit right.

[@eddiemarek6306]

Glad to hear Guardian was willing to improve their design. I bought a Humblebee vented suit with a round veil and had the same issue with a narrow veil, emailed them and they were not helpful. It's a shame because I like the suit. Love your videos, keep up the great work!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Glad you enjoy the videos and thanks for the support!! Hate to hear about your situation with the company you got the suit form. Guardian is top notch and they do well by their customers for sure.

[@tommychew6544]

Thanks for the video and your admitting that everything isn't set in stone. I chose a different hive model, so I always have to have a mental calculator to area and hive design in the mix of things in my mind. I feel like my thought pattern is strong for the reason I chose it but, I like to keep up on what other people are doing in case I ever get asked about such things later on. I feel lucky that I wasn't able to pull the trigger like I wanted in the mid 90's with bees. If I had spent the money, I would have stuck with that and moved forward, only makes sense. Watching you work bees is what I cherish the most, most sidestep that part of it. Thanks for the video!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Well Tommy, I’ve learned to never set it in stone with beekeeping, regardless of what folks say. Somethings we can count on, but most are dependent on so many other things. It’s a day by day, week by week deal.

[@wpankey57]

Mike, thanks for sharing.

[@MikeBarryBees]

My pleasure!! And thanks for watching!!

[@ThatBeeMan]

For a nice veil, Mike, you should try a Mann Lake Clear View veil. I love mine!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks for the suggestion Brad, but I gotta say, I’m a pretty solid fan of Guardian and really the opposite for Mann lake. I need to call Terry and see if he is doing any looks at a clear veil.

[@ThatBeeMan]

@@MikeBarryBeesUnderstood. Just sharing my experience. I paid $100 for that veil and for me it was worth it.

[@springcitybeefarm5971]

You would like the oz armour round veil jacket , I’d like to see you try one in comparison. I’m gonna tell you imo best bee suit , jacket I’ve ever used .

[@MikeBarryBees]

I’m sure it’s nice. Really seeing a lot of good jackets coming out these days. We’re getting good choices compared to years ago when we had only a couple of good ones.

[@AnArkansasTrapper]

Good video. I need to find the time to get into mine and do some of the same.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Time? What’s that?

[@jimmysneighborhoodbees]

It's getting close to time when we can really get into our hives up here. Thanks for the video.

[@MikeBarryBees]

You bet Jimmy, thanks for the support as always. Hope you see great hives when you get into them!!

[@honeyandthecoop803]

Great Video Mr. Mike, very informative!

[@MikeBarryBees]

Thanks and Glad you liked it!

[@nancylawson8673]

"I'm Mike...and this is NOT how I do it" haha

[@MikeBarryBees]

Yea, I got done with that hive and thought, “That sure didn’t go well”.😂😂

[@brettellis1837]

You do swarm trap this year. Check out kingdom bees with bait you will see the paint scrape come out top vid mate.

[@MikeBarryBees]

I might do a couple. I’ll have to go check it out. Thanks.

[@phillipduncan2497]

Any chance the new veil would fit on a ProVent jacket?

[@MikeBarryBees]

I couldn’t tell you Phil. Haven’t seen the zipper setup, but I would say most likely no. Guardian does have a unique zipper setup.

[@phillipduncan2497]

@@MikeBarryBees Thought that might be the case. Thanks.

[@jpthedelawarebeeman6239]

Whats buzzing " The Famous Mike Barry " we had snow up this way this morning so Lucky you.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Hopefully by now y’all are thawing out some.

[@pattibuckman2473]

What is DFM? And what does it do?

[@MikeBarryBees]

Pro DFM is a probiotic for the bees. Best place to really get the information for it is on their webpage at Strong Microbials. Promotes strong gut health in the bees and a more robust colony.

[@HaleHives]

Looking great, Mike! You're a bit more soggy than me, but have more drone brood. How's that Super DFM working for you?

[@MikeBarryBees]

Yea, it was wet for sure. Y’all usually see swarm calls a couple weeks before us too. I really have no measurable results yet on the DFM, but I think the time to see anything is really in the summer and maybe early in the spring when the flows are slow or gone.

[@jaywrittenour5770]

I hope 2024 will be better then last year

[@MikeBarryBees]

Me too. All we can do is take it day by day. Thanks for watching!!

[@DonaldFarmHoney]

It s Feb. 19th today and we had a light freeze in Northwest Florida. Do you thing reversing the boxes would hurt anything with some cold weather still possible?

[@MikeBarryBees]

I don’t think so. You guys will only stay cold for a few hours and clustered only until it’s out of the 50’s, so they’ll move around in the warmth of the day and get to move around to the stores. It’s when they can’t move much fractions of inches during long term deep freezes that can get bees in trouble. I’ve reversed in January regularly. I am starting to think later reversals though might be unnecessary. Won’t hurt anything, but not sure it promotes anything either and could just be mis-using our time. Again, I do t think it hurts a thing for the bees though. Just spitballing here and hope to elaborate in another video. On another note, I ended up towing my rv trailer out near you but I didn’t have any contact info to see if you were available for a quick stop for a video shot. I went thru Munson and Jay and Atmore….

[@DonaldFarmHoney]

@@MikeBarryBees WOW I would have loved that. I know the Mrs.'s would have too. I'll shoot you my contact info thru messenger. You were probably less than 7 miles from me.

[@makingdreambees2209]

When did you do this video

[@MikeBarryBees]

February 4th

[@reneallen6405]

Whats DFM?

[@MikeBarryBees]

It’s a probiotic for the bees. Made by Strong Microbials. Check them out online. Good info there.

[@PennsylvaniaBeekeeper]

Mike, what do you like about Super DFM?

[@MikeBarryBees]

That it’s a probiotic. I listened to the researcher who started the Strong Microbials company a few years back at a convention in Louisiana and her research was convincing. Keeping good gut health is so important for the bees like with us and that will help fend off any bacterial infections and eliminate unnecessary death or use of antibiotics. There is a lot to read about it, but a more vibrant and healthy bee is the result. Check out their page at Strong Microbials. Better to read it there than take my word for it.

[@PennsylvaniaBeekeeper]

@@MikeBarryBees I've been considering putting it to use on my own colonies. I've heard a few beekeepers mention that it might help fight chronic bee paralysis, but I've not seen any data to support that. Thanks ---Darren

[@raydeese8859]

Why not put peppermint candy on the hives

[@MikeBarryBees]

Well Ray, I have to be honest on this one as I get asked about the candies pretty regularly . I’m not a believer in them as I did try them two seasons ago. I have not seen that it does any good for the length of time it stays there before the bees eat it or haul it out. It’s really not even practical to go in every week and put in 8 candies, 4 for each box, in 40 hives. Unwrapping them each, placing them, etc. They get sticky in the heat and become a nightmare when handling them. The trade off didn’t show positive results that I could tell from one hive to the next that had beetles. I try stuff as I hear about it, but in the end, the best deterrent has still been what Dr. Jamie Ellis has said all along, which is strong hives. My opinion of course, but I have tried them.