Les’s Bees 2025 Nuc News

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Hey all, just some information on the nucs, packages, and queens. I now know pickup day will be Saturday, April 26th. That’s a little later than I had hoped, but with this long winter, probably a good thing.  The nucs should be nice and fat by then. 

Pickup Hours: 9am – 4:30

Pickup will be at the Bartleson Farm, 981 E. Laurel Rd, about 6 miles North of Bellingham. 

It will be a fun, busy day and there’s only one driveway, so give the outbound vehicles right of way. 

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Nucs will come in a Pro Nuc as in the picture. You’ll get an unmarked, laying queen with 3+ frames of her brood and 2 with food, full of bees. 

I have a video on YouTube of how to install a nuc. There’s an extra step I use to increase the size of the brood chamber and increase your colony’s growth by 40%. The video is HERE.

Packages are 3 pounds of bees with a freshly laying, unmarked, caged queen, ready to go back to work once released. 

If you purchased individual queens, they will be marked and in a corked Mini California Cage. Don’t forget to ask me for the candy plugs if I don’t give them to you.

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EDUCATION

Three things are recommended to begin beekeeping – Take a class, join your local club, and get a mentor. If you don’t feel fully prepared to start your beekeeping, there’s a great class coming up. Master Beekeeper Dawn Beck is teaching a class through Mt Baker Beekeepers Association or Skagit Valley Beekeepers Association that includes Beginning and Apprentice level materials.

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WHEN YOU GET YOUR NUC

It’s your responsibility to check your nuc for quality. I want everyone to be completely satisfied with their purchase. As you install your nuc (and each check after), carefully examine the brood on each frame.

Here’s a picture of an exceptional frame. The brood is capped and needs no more food until hatching. 

And, here’s a poor brood pattern. If you see a frame with spotty brood something like this, I want to know immediately.

I want everyone to be happy with their purchase, but I can’t replace nucs a month after not hearing anything. Feel free to message me with ANY questions. Pictures are very helpful.

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If you use Facebook, be sure to join my group – Les’s Bees – Beekeeping in the Pacific Northwest

Les – 360-303-0396 

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 As BeeKEEPERS, it’s our job to help the bees do what they want to do (except swarm 🙂).

Nucs, and especially packages REQUIRE feeding to help them get started. The goal is to fill 2 boxes with healthy bees, hopefully in time to make a little honey. For spring feeding, use 1:1 (1 part white granulated sugar to 1 part hot water) syrup. I suggest an additional pollen patty at the minimum. 

QUALITY OF LIFE

My overriding emphasis is now the health of my bees. By focusing on bee health, all of my other goals should follow. I want my bees in prime condition. Not only should this help me with my goals, it should reduce the possibility of disease entering my apiaries. 

Several great products are now on the market to enhance the nutrition in the food we feed our bees or contribute directly to our bee’s health. Through my personal research, I’ve come up with the supplements I think are best for my bees (and what I’m offering in my store). 

A product we can feed in spring, or preferably, year-round is HiveAlive. It comes in liquid and fondant form. 

During late winter/early spring, the 2.2 pound fondant patties are a handy way to give your bees some added carbs and nutrition – just cut an access hole in the plastic covering and lay directly on the frames. The bees love it. But, I like using the liquid best. Two teaspoons in a gallon of syrup does it. The main ingredients of HiveAlive are Seaweed Extracts, Thyme, and a little Lemongrass Oil. But, the magic (science) is in the Seaweed. It naturally contains a number of antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties. Using the product has been proven to produce larger, stronger colonies, more honey, and reduced winter losses. 

Another supplement that I’m using is the SuperDFM from Strong Microbials. I’m trying out their new BeeBites, too.

These are mainly pre and probiotics, designed to improve gut health. I don’t know about you, but I take the human form of both daily. Scientists have found that our digestive system has its own nervous system and is directly connected to our central nervous system. They haven’t discovered everything about how the two interact, but they’re saying the Entric Nervous System (ENS) may be equally important as our Central Nervous System (CNS).

But, I suppose the short story is by providing my bees with everything they need for their machinery to perform at their highest levels, they’ll produce more and stronger bees and make more honey.

Lastly, I’m using Global Pollen Patties with Apis Biologix Rocket Fuel to kickstart their brood production. The Rocket Fuel is one of the latest developments in honey bee nutrition. They studied the Amino Acid profile of pollen and have created a product that when combined with the protein in the patties, converts all or most of the protein to the makeup of natural pollen. The bees love it and it fires up the queen and brood rearing in the hive.

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I’ll have all of these health products available at the farm for purchase.

Please bring cash or check as I won’t have time to do credit transactions!

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All of these products, along with a complete selection of beekeeping equipment, are also available now in the store. If you don’t see what you need on my website, shoot me a text at 360-303-0396. If I don’t have it, I’ll help you find it. And, I’m always available by text or phone for any beekeeping questions.

Check the website and store here.

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The new HiveIQ

I can’t send this out without a mention of these hives. I started with one test hive a couple years ago. I added a nuc to it in late spring, 2023. It grew to a full double deep by fall and successfully overwintered. In spring of ‘24, it provided the frames and bees for 2 nucs, which I added queens to and sold. Later in the fall, it was my top honey producer with 21 frames of honey.

At $279 without frames, the kits are expensive, but they can pay for themselves the first year.

I’ve got 10 in my yards now and building more. I can see these replacing our wooden hives completely. If you’re interested, come by and take a peek. 

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Thank you for trusting me to supply your bees!

Les’s Bees

2427 Vista Drive, Bellingham WA

98229

360-303-0396