Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
When everything's assembled, you're ready to puff the tiniest puff of smoke into
the front door. This will offset the guards at the front immediately, reducing any flying.
Then, step back and again look at the setting, making sure nothing's in the way and you
have everything you need. This delay of a minute or so lets that little bit of smoke waft
up into the lower box just a bit and contact the dance floor area, slowing that behavior
also.
Remove the cover as carefully and as quietly as you can, but keep it close. If you
have a telescoping cover, place it top-side down next to the colony on the hive stand,
about 6″ to 8″ (15.2 to 20.3 cm) from the colony, with the long side parallel to bottom
board. When you remove the inner cover, place it on the cover, turned 90 degrees. Place
any boxes you remove on the inner cover with the same orientation. This placement
keeps bees from leaving the box from the bottom, and a bit of smoke puffed over the
top will keep them inside. If there are boxes protecting your feeder, remove them and
the feeder, putting them out of the way. Puff a half puff or so of smoke into the center
hole before you remove it. Again, wait a moment or so before proceeding.
To begin examining a colony, remove the cover of the colony carefully.
