Bees for sale.... ?

[rjoki]

Anyone know of any package bees or nuc's for sale at this early date. ? I need to set three hives back up and have them in good shape by mid May, and I think I better not wait too much longer to get them going.

My three hives were doing fine in mid February before I had to leave them for 5 weeks. When I got home a couple of days ago, I discovered that all three of them were dead. The first one had honey, but all the bees were either dead in the bottom, or dead in place on the frames. The second hive had a huge amount of honey, and there wasn't a bee in sight - dead or alive. I'm going to inspect the last hive tomorrow to see what I discover.

I do need to find bees as soon as possible, as I've got hives with honey ready to go, and not a lot of time to get them in shape for spring as I'm leaving again in mid May.

Any ideas or leads to a source of bees.

Thanks

Robert

[motj3]

I don't know where you are but I saw a craigslist ad with Steve Coffman selling nucs. I think it said ready in April but am not certain.

If you reach out to your local club, there are often people who sell bees on the side.

[rjoki]

Thanks Motj - I'm in Portland, and craigslist is something that I hadn't thought about. Ruhl's said that their upcoming nuc order for May delivery is sold out and already has 20 people on a waiting list, so the timing won't work for me. Their package bees also aren't available till later in April, although no waiting list yet. Makes me think that there is a bee shortage or something. The guys on this board know just about everyone who has anything to do with bees in the NW, so that's why I started my questions here. Most of the Portlanders rely on Ruhl's, and I am a bit on the early side to try to find nuc's. Just hoping that one of the guys here feels generous...... lol

[JBJ]

We are taking a load of nucs up to Portland area in mid May. If you would like to get on the reservation list send an Email to [e-mail] and put 2014 nuc order in the subject line and include your contact info and quantity in the body.

[twcv]

You might check out Nectar Bee Supply down here in Corvallis. Their deliver date is April 5th. nectarbeesupply.wordpress.com/2013/12/27/time-to-order-bees/

[Lin K]

BEE BOXES-COMPLETE SETS-USED (SPRINGFIELD)
5 Deep Bee Boxes-3 w/frames, 2 w/o frames
3 Honey Supers-1 w/frame, 2 w/o frames
4 Bee Box Bottom Platforms
6 Bee Box Lids/Lids can be easily modified to be bottom platforms
All boxes & frames are wooden painted & in good shape
Total for all listed items $335.00/offer
541-513-4880
Rusty