Bee Amazzzing Hives

07/17/2024

RAW HONEY FOR SALE! The honey on the left is from the first flowers the bees were bringing nectar in from this spring and the honey on the right is from later spring wild flowers. So delicious! 🍯
Pictured is one of my girls pollinating and gathering nectar from my cucumber flowers in my garden.
I always enjoy just watching my amazzzing honey bees in action 🐝

07/12/2024

I have been working hard to put together a Beaver Valley Area Beekeepers summer Beek Bash 2024 picnic and really want this to bee a success for our club. This picnic is not just for Beekeepers and club members but is open to the public. If you want to learn more about our amazzzing honey bees and like to eat, come join us on Saturday August 3rd! We are going to have a great time and hope you can bee a part of this event. It's just about 1 mile from the Wexford exit of Rt 79.
Feel free to hit me up with any questions.

06/28/2024

The honey bees have been working hard this spring to give us some sweet delicious honey! 🍯 🐝 🐝 🍯
Just got done extracting the first honey of 2024. I now have it available for anyone wanting some. Just let me know. Thanks!

06/27/2024

BEEK BASH 2024

SATURDAY AUGUST 3rd 12 - 8pm

Altmyer Park
607 Wexford Bayne Rd.
Wexford,PA 15090

Beaver Valley Area Beekeepers Association is hosting a family-friendly summer picnic and wants to extend an invite for you to join us!!!

Our Special Guest Speaker, Frederick Dunn is a Master Beekeeper, Professional Photographer and YouTube content creator with over 141,000 subscribers. Among over things, Fred has a weekly YouTube Q&A and Podcast called "The Way To Bee" focusing on Backyard Beekeeping.

Fred's presentation at our picnic, titled "Honey Bees, A Closer Look" will start off our day, followed by a cookout, filled with great food, a Chinese auction, 50/50, camp fire, games and more!

Whether you are a Beekeeper, friend of our page or just want to learn more about our Amazzzing Honey Bees, come join in a day full of Food, Fun and Fellowship.

Let me know if you would like more details!!

Go to beavervalleybees.net Click "Upcoming Events" to register and get your tickets.

Individual & Family Tickets:
Adult .. $10
Youth ages 12-17 .. $7
Ages 11 & under .. FREE
Family Group Ticket .. $25

I sure hope to see you all there.

*Ask about our BEEK BASH "Limited Edition" TEE'S that I designed and Marcella and I are making for the picnic!

06/12/2024

"Honey" short for Honey Bee Cress, the newest member to the apiary! Welcome to the "Funny Farm", Honey

06/09/2024

Marcella and I went out to "Nature’s Image Farm" today and spent a little time in the "Learning Yard" then brought home Marcella's honey bee's to install in her new bee hive equipment. She is officially now a BEEKEEPER!
It was nice to finally meet Greg Burns, wife Susie and son, Jake. Also surprised to see Brian Kopar from Castle Hives walk in as well. Good time talk'in bee's !!! 🐝 🐝

06/07/2024

Today's post, brought to you by the Oops Paint colors, Orange and Purple!
Anytime I find a cool mis-tint color in the paint department, I grab it.
Saves a lot of money and adds some fun color to the Bee Yard.

06/07/2024

Soon to be "BEEKEEPER" 🐝 🐝 Marcella assembled the hive boxes, paint them and added artwork 🎨 to give her special touch.

Heading to Nature’s Image Farm for a day at "The Learning Yard" then picking up her first ever honey bees to start her new bee colony!

My hope is being able to work with Marcella and grow together in our love for nature and the outdoors ❤️

06/01/2024

It's been a challenge this spring keeping this hive from swarming by breaking down numerous queen cells but it seems to have paid off. Looks like I'm going to be able to pull some spring honey!

05/31/2024

Did someone say, BEEK BASH?

05/15/2024

I know its not exactly BEE stuff but had to share!
So our daughter Marcella, "the girl that loves meat", decided she doesn't want to see any animal killed for food and wants to be a vegetarian.
So to bee good parents and give her encouragement, we try to help out.
So today I bought not 3 but only 2 steaks, to make that journey easier.
Based on her ressponse, let's just say, she didn't find that helpful!
My response. You are #1 in our book too, honey bee!

05/15/2024

Wishing all mothers a "Happy Mothers Day"

Home Depot, Oops paint color of the day!
Painting some 5 frame nuc boxes I made and new boxes I purchased from Jonas Miller at Hillside Beekeeping Supply. Never enough equipment!

05/09/2024

Did not expect to see this swarm yesterday 50 ft from my hives. It was not in my plan to go from 3 colonies to 8 so far this year.

05/04/2024

Caught a couple swarms this week, then found and marked the queens.....one with a little extra paint...😆 shouldn't bee hard to find again!

04/28/2024

One of last years queens came through the winter very strong. Hive was so loaded with bees, I made a split before they had the chance to swarm.

04/19/2024

Coincidence? I don't think so.
I planted this Granny Smith apple tree 13 years ago. Have only had a couple blooms each year.
Started my colonies last spring and had more bloom and first two ever apples.
This year, more bees and look at the bloom!
Girls are working on pollinating it.
Nice to watch.
Hopefully some apples this fall.

04/17/2024

Sucking up the nectar from this azalea today!
A ton of activity on this bush.

04/15/2024

First real warm sunny day of spring and it must have been getting a little too warm inside the colonies. The bees were bearding outside to help cool down the hives.

04/10/2024

Never did I expect to see such a clear view of the solar eclipse. Was raining at 7am, overcast until 11, then the clouds cleared out for an amazzzzing display!

04/05/2024

SEE A HONEY BEE SWARM? DO YOU NEED A SWARM CATCHER?

WE HAVE MEMBERS THAT CAN HELP !!!

Go to: https://www.beavervalleybees.net/ and click on our "Swarm Rescue Listing" tab on our Home Page

Honey bee Swarms are most often observed during the spring months of April/May/June but can occur as late as September. Swarms are a honey bee colony’s way of reproducing. A large portion of the colony along with the queen will depart in search of a new home, leaving a portion of the colony in the original hive with a new queen.

The Swarm will often land in a temporary spot in order to scout out a permanent place to set up a new colony. The statistics for this swarm are not tremendously good since only about 17% of these swarms will survive unless a beekeeper intervenes. Assuming that the beekeeper can successfully capture the swarm, including the queen, the swarms chances of establishing a new colony increase exponentially.

​If you spot a swarm, our club has beekeepers in your area that they service. The beekeeper will be glad to have a new colony of bees and you can take pride in your efforts of helping these daring explorers find a new home.

​PLEASE NOTE – Honey Bees DO NOT live in the ground. If you have a nest in the ground it is not Honey Bees.

​Some beekeepers will collect swarms if the location and size of the swarm meets their needs. Persons requesting swarm removal should consider the beekeepers travel expenses and time involved in the collection.

03/10/2024

Cold and snowy on March 10th. Girls are staying inside warm and cozy and so are we!

03/07/2024

I have been trying to shed some pounds since July, so what do I do? Well of course I process some honey from the girls 🐝 🐝 and I make some maple syrup from our trees in the yard. 🍁 🍁 Nothing like testing my own will power!!!

03/01/2024

Time to ring that dinner bell. Ding, ding, ding...com'n get it girls! First dandelion I have seen.

02/25/2024

Girls are out and already finding some pollen. Not sure what source it's coming from but glad they are bringing it back. Under 40° today and flying. Did not expect to see that.

02/14/2024

The Beaver Valley Area Beekeepers Association was asked to put on a presentation about the importance of honey bees as pollinators at the Moon Township Parks and Recreation "Bee Mine" Tea Party. I volunteered to speak. Marcella passed out some 2oz honey bears from the honey we extracted this year, bee bracelets, and felt bees to all the kids attending. It was a great time and think everyone attending had fun and went home knowing more about the honey bee!
Special thanks to Marcella for making all the paper photo slides for the display table. They looked awesome. She rocks!

02/05/2024

Great day to start building some hive boxes and frames. Punxsutawney Phil says, two more weeks of winter, so the bees are ready to begin ramping up for spring. Already seeing maples buds ready to flower.

01/25/2024

I purchased my first 5 frame nuc of Honey Bees from Randy last spring and the queen was a egg laying machine! Randy answered any questions that came up throughout the summer. If you're needing bees, Red Diamond Honey Bees is a good choice.

From Randy: please contact his number listed below if interested…..

01/21/2024

Having fun making mugs so I made myself an exclusive one for the Western Pennsylvania Beekeeping Seminar. Hope to see everyone there!

01/20/2024

Our daughter Marcella got a heat press for making mugs and tumblers for Christmas. She wants to sell them to make some money but I have literally taken over ... lol
I have been playing around making some mugs. I designed a logo for Bee Amazzzing Hives, a fun design for Beaver Valley Area Beekeepers Association, the club where I am the VP, and the third design is from my picture of a little freezing fuzzy honey bee that was outside, not moving. Marcella saved her from the cold and took it back to the bee hive after she warmed it up in the house.

01/16/2024

Great workshop if your thinking about or starting into beekeeping. Very informative.

🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨 👀👀👀👀👀
Upcoming beginner workshop:
Deadline to register is coming fast.
Please click link to register…

https://www.beavervalleybees.net/events/2024-new-beekeeper-class-in-person