Logging with bees nearby

[tburch]

I had a cluster of 6 standing dead (1 year) post oaks to cut down over the weekend.  I started about 7:30am.  I dropped and topped 3 of the trees, and then noticed one of the remaining 3 standing trees had some loose bark and lots of bees swarming about and up and under the bark.  I could not tell if the tree had a hollow in it, but I don't think it does... just loose bark.

I decided I would stop working that cluster and move on to some other trees. 

What do you all do when you run into bees like this?   

[DDW_OR]

call someone to come and get the bees
https://houston.craigslist.org/search/bbb?sort=rel&query=bee%20swarm

or become a bee keeper.

saw this vid.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVcb35K1hr8

[OH logger]

I agree with havin someone use them we need all the bees we can. if no one is interested cut the tree early as its light in the morning and run like a scared little school girl (works like a charm for me) as soon as it hits the ground  and top it the next morning. the cooler weather the better for me

[motohed]

I know bee's stink but I would just fall the tree at dark and skid them out the next day , the bark and bee's will be gone by the end of the skid . It always worked for me . No implied warrenty !

[Greyhound]

Bees or wasps?

[mad murdock]

If wild honey bees, get a local beekeeper they will relocate them for you. Then drop them. If wasps or some such, wait till the cool of the morning and mow them down then be ready to spray the things till they quit moving.

[starmac]

Justloose bark and no hollows, does not sound like honey bees.

[tburch]

They are bees, not wasps. 

The landowner went over and inspected yesterday evening.  There are three trees, and the bees I saw were on the middle tree, hanging out near a scar and loose bark.  However, he looked closer and went on the opposite side of the trees, and saw that the left hand tree does have a hollow in it.

I'll find a bee guy to take with me over there to inspect. 

I contacted a bee suit manufacturer and asked them if they would recommend their suit for use while felling a tree, and they said it should work fine.  About $70 online. 

[Autocar]

Cutting it and running like H is alot more fun  :D

[starmac]

Getting it on the ground is the easy part.

[mesquite buckeye]

This close enough?



  

 

;D 8) 8) 8)

[tburch]

I bet that honey pot gave your blade lube a run for its money.

[treeslayer2003]

buckeye, what kinda wood is that?

[kensfarm]

That grain looks pretty cool.. pre-coated w/ beeswax is just a plus.

[motohed]

That is beautiful wood , what mantle pieces they would make . I think the bee's were carpenter bee's . Did anyone clarify for you ?

[kensfarm]

Only honey bees make cone like that..  maybe some honey in there.

[DDW_OR]

mesquite buckeye
that is honey bee comb

if you cut-n-run, make sure you do not run in a strait line. the bees will follow your sent trail

I think the decline in bee population is based on 3 things. Insecticide, Moving hives, and Over population in areas. bees have been recorded traveling up to 5 miles from the hive.

[tburch]

This afternoon, I went to collect 2 of the three post oaks from the cluster of 6 trees where the bees were swarming.  The landowner had his John Deere 4wd tractor with FEL and forks there to scoop the logs up and drop them in my trailer. 

I parked about 30 yards away, as the logs were in a ditch and the extra space would allow the tractor to level out coming out of the ditch prior to setting the logs into my trailer.

He picked up the first log, which was the 2nd of three I had felled, and right after he did, HUNDREDS of bees started swarming around the tractor.  Luckily, it was a cab tractor.  Even at about 30 yards away, the bees started flying around me.  I got into my truck to get away from them.

He motioned to me "what do you want me to do?".  I gave him a hand motion to drop the log and move on to the next one.   

Now that I know where the bees are, I can confidently take a bee keeper over there to harvest them.  I suspect the log will have to be cut in two for access, so I may only get an 8 footer, which is fine.

We moved on to two other logs, so I left with 3 logs, 19' to 24' long. Will get the rest after the bees are gone.

Me thinks that cab tractor paid for itself today.

[thecfarm]

Not bees but ground hornets one year. Had my 3 brothers cutting for firewood on this land. I bet we knew where there was 20 nests at one time. Worse part was we would have no idea,just limbing the tree and things got hot fast. We would pull the tree off the nest. No cab on the 1954 NAA Ford. My Father jumped off it once and had a few words about those hornets. We knew something was wrong when he started to drive fast. Than he jumped off and the tractor was still moving. He did shut it off first. Was funny because that was the first time he got stung by them. He kept telling us all they was trying to be friendly. Well,you all know what we told him.  :D

[starmac]

Honey bees do not usually bother me, but I was giving one of my operators a coffee break once and pushing some trees to the burn pile I noticed a lot of bees swarming around me. I didn't pay them any mind until they started stinging me, and more and more showing up. I threw it in reverse and left as fast as that 8K would run, it happens that bees can fly as fast as an aold 8 can move. I went as far as the fence(still getting stung) and threw it out of gear and stopped inches from the fence, so I could jump it off the track and keep going. When it was over with I went back to see what all the fuss was about, I had been pushing a bee tree, so I told Happy (my operator) to just hit for 10 or 15 feet at a time and get away from it, till he got it to the burn pile. He informed me, he was allergic to them, and if I wanted that tree or any of the others close to it at the burn pile, I was on my own. lol
That was a 28 mile hiline clearing job, the last day Happy and a swamper was cleaning up a few trees on the last piece of the job. I drove up and he was finished, but had left one lone tree laying in a mild swampy area. He informed me that it was a bee tree and the swamper was laying in the shade just off the right of way, sick because he had been stung pretty bad.
I told him, no problem, I would take care of it, but was getting some honey out of this one before pushing it to the burn pile.  I got my saw and a clean 5 gallon bucket and walked out to the tree, when I got to it there were what seemed like hundreds of peod hornets, and I could see a smashed hornets nest that was probably 3 foot in diameter. I went back and ask if he didn't know the difference between a bee and a hornet, he replied that he knew they would sting you, and that was all he needed to know. lol

[tburch]

Good stories!

I called a bee keeper this morning to discuss collecting the hive.   To make a long conversation short, since the tree has been felled, drug, picked up with forks and rolled off the forks, the queen may have been killed and the honey combs may be mush.    He suggested I go over there at dark (pre dawn or post dusk) and staple some screen material over the hole.   He said as long as there's not another hole somewhere, I should be able to do anything to that log I want to do at that point. 

He also said, that if, in a couple months, if I had not screened the hole and the hive was still active, then a bee keeper would probably be interested. 

I think I'll just avoid it for now and get my other 4 logs.  Cautiously.   

[mesquite buckeye]

Sorry guys. Lost track of this thread. The wood with the honeycomb was a large desert ironwood, Olneya tesota.
There is a thread under the name big ironwood if you want to see more pictures. Downside of this wood is all the beautiful pinks, purples and yellows darken to dark brown with age. :(

Still a very cool tree. ;D 8) 8) 8)

[Chop Shop]

I brought home a load of WRC logs a few months ago.

One was 3' around and twelve feet long.  Its got hollow cedar rot all the way through.

It has a very BIG honey bee hive inside.  They come and go thru a hollow limb.


After logging, shoveling it, bucking it, loading it, etc.   It was still here.

I have a friend that knows bees and he said they would swarm and leave if the queen had not left already.  He said there had been to much outside activity and they would probably not tolerate it. He said it was most likely just left behind confused workers I was still seeing.

After sitting here on its side for a couple weeks, I stood it up like a stump and nailed some metal roofing over the top to keep rain out of the rotten center.

After standing it up, we didnt see any bees for three days.   Then about noon they were crazy swarming around the driveway and cedar log/stump.    I think I blocked their entry hole with debris when I stood it up.   They musta cleared it and been happy to get out again!

So its been a few months now and they are still here and very active.   A bee comes and one goes about 1 bee per 1-2 seconds. They come back COVERED in pollen.   Back legs covered in yellow and orange pollen as thick as their abdomen!

For ten years we have had a small apple tree.  Most fruit we ever got was three apples, but usually just one apple per year.   Its always a joke and the wife and I usually go down and eat it together!


The bee cedar is about 40 feet from the apple tree.  This year there is an average of 25-30 apples on over a dozen branches so far!!

They might be freeloaders that wont ever share honey, (unless I tear into that log poohbear style!) but they sure are working their buts off making food around here!!

I find myself sitting a couple feet from the log watching them for long times.

At night they block the entrance to keep most of the heat inside.   If you run your nose by the hollow limb it smells SO GOOD!!   You can feel the warm air coming out too.

They are very mellow and will let you get right up there and enjoy them.



This has been very rewarding and one of the best logs I have drug home yet.


Despite the fact that they are squatting in a pretty expensive chuck of lumber!!

[mesquite buckeye]

Bees are nice to have around. Out here they have been largely replaced by the Africanized strain, so it is a bit more exciting. ;D

[DDW_OR]

last year i started with one hive, then had 2 swarms move into empty hives, and last week the first hive swarmed and i caught it and I now have 4 hives.

just got 13 pints of honey out of 5 frames. last year i got 12 quarts.
It tastes much better than store bought. like store bought tomatoes compared to home grown.

Chop Shop, you will now see a big improvement in yield on all fruit and Vegetables