Life goes on - Winter 2017

Mr. Wayne They must have been on sale— two for the price of one. TomC

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GIVE THAT MAN SOME LEMONS!!! I didn’t think he had enough flare to start it and drive away on woodgas. I would like to find one of those with a decent body. Gasifie it and use for short runs to town.
You remember when Oldsmobile had the big “98” then the had the smaller “88”? During gas shortage they were to come out with a very small “URN-8”. Just something to piss around in. That is what I need.TomC

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Wayne, nice twins you got there! Wish them well.

A friend of myne once had triplets. At 2 days old, their momma dyed from calcium deficiancy. He had to sell them all, haveing just one cow.

Anyone had liveborn horse twins? They say its inpossible for both to survive…

Charolais seem to frequently have twins, not sure how many pairs my parents have had over the last 30 plus years, but quite a few, with only a herd of about 20 breeding cows.

Here is one to warm Keith and Billy.

These fellas are the real pros!

I know, I know, spent some data on this video but the devil made me do it!

Stolen from the Forestry Form.

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My father in law was a dairy farmer and he always told me that if a cow had twins with a bull and a heifers calf that it was a good chance the heifer would be sterile. Is that true?

Yup we had the same issue here didn’t even bother raising twins. The other issue with them is that twins are hard on the holstines and it runs in the genes like in people it tends to be in the female side and tends go skip a genoration. After a while it got so we seldom got twins.
Wayne glad you didn’t have any trouble. My grandfather always said 10 F or colder to bring the calves in the house till they got warmed up and stable. We had a heating light in the pen as well.
Twin bulls make great oxen if you know anyone who wants to raise a pair. They are the best match you can get.
I hope the mother cow accepts both calves I was always told cleaning the calf is part of how mom bonds with the calf.

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We have big problems with cow fertility lately. We had to sell allmost half of young cows and heifers becouse they dont catch for more thain a year. Nothing helps, eaven tryed hormone injections.
The only thing that has changed is mandatory vaccination. After it started, the cows started to stay empty.
Artificial insemenation culd be a cause too, as its uneconomical for a small 10 head farm like us to have its own bull. But it worked for 20 years with no problems.
Why cant we just let nature do its job?

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Hello Don

That is true .

Hello Dan .

These calves got to ride in the cab of a wood burner that has a good heater .

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I live 2 miles south of Quebec on the extreme NE NY border about 15 miles (as the crow flies) from Lake Champlain. I wrap 1" foam around my hive except for the entrance. I have lost only 1 hive in 10 years.
I take that back, last year my bees took off with another swarm of bees. First time I’ve seen a swarm. They hung out in a round clump in a tree in my yard overnight and “dede maued” the next day. Never seen so many bees in the air. Listen to those bees, glad they’re not ticked off at me!

bee swarm 1 @32 sec

a ball of bees in my tree, no it’s not a hive!

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Kristijan,
I have done some bee-keeping and live in an area with lots of honey bees. I found a place on my property that was sheltered from the wind and got decent sun exposure from the south and east. (East Sunlight wakes up the bees and tells them to get to work!). Unfortunately, that place was too close to the house, and I had one hive of mean bees that became a problem. The meaner bees can be more productive, but that was part of why they had to go. so: 1) not too close to the house. 2) shelter from the wind 3) sunshine. Bees in hollow trees have the thickness of the trunk for insulation. A wooden bee hive is almost as good, you can wrap it in tar paper for winter and leave a small entrance opening. In your climate, a wrap should work great. If you want the natural comb and make the hives yourself, investigate Kenyan Top Bar Hives, or other top-bar hives. This is what I will try next, I still have my bee veil and smoker. Once a bee-keeper, always a bee keeper! :honeybee::smiley::honeybee:

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Thank you Mike!

A nother one. How do you keep the parasites under control?

I read usualy oxalic acid is used.

Edit yes the top bar hive is exactly what l was looking for! Thank you

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Oh boy, now you are getting to the Achilles Heel problems of modern bee-keeping. Here are some things I know are good: Whatever hive you use, it should have a (1/8") mesh screened bottom board so that when the bees groom and remove surface parasites like Varroa mites, They fall to the ground or into a pan of veg. oil and can’t easily climb back onto a bee host. The tiny Tracheal mites require a different approach. Some natural bee-keepers have used menthol fumes to help get rid of the mites. Some have used vaporized food-grade mineral oil. One researcher was using food grade mineral oil greased bits of cotton rope, putting a few pieces in the hive which the bees chewed up to remove. Small-Hive Beetles can be trapped in corrugated cardboard squares placed in the bottom of the hive. Ask your local bee-keepers what they do because these problems are regional. Some of the modern pesticides kill bees, and worst of all, they resemble pollen and the bees carry it back to the hive. Some of that stuff is banned now, but there is always something. Treat your bees well, and keep them healthy, select breed for survival ability. Don’t let these problems stop you, just bee aware of them!

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Mike l see you have lots of knowlidge!

Well let me first explain a problem l have here. Its of legal origin.
Basicly, becomeing a beekeeper in our butyfull country is not so simple.
First, you need to perform a education and become a member of the national beekeeping asociarion. Then, you need to register all your hives and familys. Buy from a official seller. You need a aproveal of local profesional beekeepers not to interfeer with their pasture??? Lots of veterinary inspectors visiting regulary and mandatory bee treatment with god knows what chemicals.

Nope, not to my taste. I rather have a hive or two in my peace of paradise, in secrecy.

That is why l can more or less only stick to writen literature on this, its not safe to knock on a local beekepers and say “hi, l plan to do ilegal beekeping, any tips?”

A nother question. As l understand, its possible to buy individual combs with some bees and the queen, to start the family. Now, thats ok for a clasical frame hive, but how does one start a family from a frame comb in a top bar hive?

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I believe a patch of mint near the hive helps with parasites. I don’t remember where I read that I think it was in one of the permiculture books I read a few years ago.

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Long story shortened:
Swarm Poem

Bees can’t read regulations, nor would they obey.
Build it (hive) and they will come…
Some Lemon Balm and Honey helps, I think.

http://www.horizontalhive.com/honeybee-swarm-trap/bait-hive-how-to-catch.shtml

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Sorry, l dont quite understand. What do you mean with “the bees will come”?

Dan, ha, lucky me then. I have a wild mint patch just about 20 m from where l plan toput the hive.

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Mike is saying if there is a nice empty home waiting some bees will just choose to move in because why not move into such a nice empty home…

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Check the internet for how to trap a swarm of bees. I just edited a link into my last post. That was the first good web page I found. Unless you find another stealth local bee-keeper friend you can get a small colony from, trapping a swarm may be your best bet.

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This winter I added wheels to my homemade compressor. Next a nice handle from an exercise bike (recycling).

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