So we're at 5 1/2 weeks of the hive. I decided to add the 4th box because I have been reading that when they fill the second to the last box, they know they're running out of room and are already planning to swarm. Apparently, by the time the apiarist figures it out, it is too late, so I figured more room is better than crowded conditions. That being said, there also seem to be absolutely tons of bees in the hive. I cannot believe how many have hatched so the queen is doing a good job. And therefore, I'm worried that they will swarm because there are just too many bees for my hive!

There aren't a lot of dead bees on the bottom screen but apparently, they remove the dead ones.

I went out alone with my smoker and my new box - Mark had just put it together for me this week. He made measurements so he can build new ones, too. I think it would be fun to start a second hive since this hive is so prolific. I was SO warm in the bee suit and veil but I didn't want to get stung since I was going to take the hive apart. I figured it's nice and warm out so they wouldn't lose too much heat if I disassembled it to put the new box on the bottom of the hive.

I've gotten really good at getting the smoker to work - I put a crumpled piece of newspaper in the bottom and light it, then take wood bark and drop it in to fuel the fire. I puff the bellows to get the fire going nice and strong and then I add small sticks and bigger sticks - but only as big around as my thumb, roughly. Then I close the lid after about 10 minutes or so and it smokes nicely. You aren't supposed to use hot smoke so I add some leaves or green grass when I get down to the hive to "cool it down."

The bees were very active when I got there - it was just after 8pm and there were loads of them going in and out of the hive. I smoked it and then the hive really started buzzing inside. I took off the roof and set it aside then the quilt box (where the creepy carpenter ants hide out - but fortunately, there weren't so many this time - yay). The top box with its bars is covered by a piece of burlap which the bees have adhered down with propolis so I lifted the whole box and the second box together and set them aside. I tried to work quickly so they wouldn't lose heat out of that top box (which is full of comb and working bees - and presumably the queen).

The third box had probably one hundred or so bees in it so I smoked them a little and then moved that box to the side as well. I then put the new box on the bottom (which is attached to the stand), positioned the top bars 1 cm apart (the "bee space") and set the third box on top of the new one. The bees landed on me but were never aggressive; however, there seemed like a lot of them around my head buzzing, and I started wondering if they had gotten under my veil somehow. Then I puffed a little more smoke in the 3rd box and brushed the bees off the top of it since I had to lift the 2 heavy boxes and put them on top of the 3rd box without crushing bees. Apparently, if you kill a bee, the smell emitted gets them riled up and defensive. I think I felt a couple of crunches (presumably crushed bees) but I tried really hard not to kill any. It's tough though because they crawl all over the place and just when you brush a bunch away some others decide to crawl up in your way.

Anyway, I then tried to slide the top two boxes back in place, gently pushing the bees (who kept walking on the top of the box that I was trying to stack these on to) to the side until they moved out of the way. I think it went ok but then there were all these bees who had left the hive. Now I know I'm supposed to be able to tell what the queen looks like but honestly, I'm so intent on minimizing the disruption that I don't sit there and study all the bees. I figure she's in that top box and not dumb enough to come down to the bottom and get crushed (famous last words). I put the quilt box back on (after having to brush about 3 dozen bees off the top of the fabric which is on top of the first/top box - they did NOT like that) then the roof. Then I looked in all the windows to see the combs again.

My books tell me to inspect the comb for brood, mites, etc, but I figure it's best to leave them alone, so I do not tip up the boxes to look at the combs close up - not sure I could see that much anyway, I think they're talking about removing frames and inspecting them (Langstroth hives - NOT mine!).

So here's the video after I was done adding the fourth box - I'll keep you posted on how fast they fill the second and third boxes with comb!