Archive Special: Working Bees in the Heat (288)

Episode 288 – Working Bees in the Heat (288)

Jim Tew

Hey listeners. Here's a segment we enjoyed doing. It's an archived segment that we thought you would like to hear again. It's the middle of the summer right now and it's hot out there. Kim, do you have any advice on how someone outraged should work bees when it's this hot? You know, I do.

Kim Flottum

Um I'm not gonna say I've made a study of it, but Ann Harmon and I long ago get kind of made a study of it and we came up with some good advice.

Jim Tew

Well I honestly didn't know that. I'm glad to hear it. I'm glad we can talk about it for a while. Hi, I'm Jim Tew. And I'm Kim Flottum. And we're coming to you from Honey Bee Obscura, where each Thursday we talk about different topics pertaining to something in beekeeping most of the time.

Introduction

Welcome to Honey Bee Obscura, brought to you by Growing Planet Media, the producers of the Beekeeping Today podcast. Join Jim2, your guide through the complexities, the beauty, the fun, and the challenges of managing honey bees. Jim hosts fun and interesting guests who take a deep dive into the intricate world of honey bees. Whether you're a seasoned beekeeper or just getting started, get ready for some plain talk that'll delve into all things honey bees.

Jim Tew

Kim, every year this happens. Every year. I start out in the spring of the year. It's you know, apple blossoms and bees are flying and it's beautiful weather and I just love it. And by the time By the time mid-July, early August gets here, the personality of the yards changed. My personality has changed. And I don't e I don't want to go out there. The stings hurt worse and the bees are feisty. How do you work bees in hot weather when you really need to open them up?

Kim Flottum

Well I just gotta add one more thing to what's going on out there right now. This time of year the boxes are heavier So you gotta add that in with with the bee stings and all of that. But I gotta tell you, there's working hard in hot weather Can be fatal. It can kill you if you're not paying attention. So the first thing to do is pay attention. And the easiest thing to do is to time the time of day you're going to be out there working.

Early morning. later afternoon, maybe even early evening. A and you know, you can also look at time of day where the shade is. If your bees are in full sun all day, every day, that's one thing. But if they're in full sun in the morning and shade in the afternoon, or vice versa, you can you can do your work and work in the shade.

Jim Tew

You know, I'm a firm believer in shade. I grew up starting my career in beekeeping in Alabama, North Florida And it was really hot. It was extraordinarily hot. And fire ants and all these other issues were a constant. So you you learned quickly to always have a gallon of water and Keep the bees in the shade where it just gets down to the low nineties in the shade.

Kim Flottum

I you know, I'll go a half a step farther with that gallon of water. is a good rule of thumb no matter what you're doing outside in the summer is hydrate yesterday. Drink lots and lots of water yesterday so that you've got plenty stored today. Keep drinking it today. But If you know you're gonna be out in the sun working hard tomorrow, start drinking water today.

Jim Tew

Well I would agree with that. You know when you say that, I've I'm not I'm not selling veils I have like you, I have multiple models of veils, but increasingly in the last few years, veils are available that unzip. The front of the veil opens up. And that's really handy in hot climates when you can just pop that zipper up about three inches, stick a straw through that opening. And d drink water instead of having to unzip the whole veil, take the whole thing off to get to it.

Kim Flottum

Well, a couple of things with veils I've found out. You know, a lot of those fails that you just mentioned, you can open up from the front. They have a a closed cloth hood in the back and a screen in the front. So soak that cloth that closed cloth part in water before you put it on. It'll it'll run down your neck. It'll keep you a lot cooler than you'd believe. And then you and and then like you said, it's easy to get a drink

Jim Tew

You know, how can we put a positive spin on this, Kim? I'm thinking while you're talking, this is really sounding like Oh yeah, this is just barrels of fun. Let's go out and work bees in f in full suits, you know, on the heat of the day. But it is it is fun. You know, you you're only you're only doing this for a short time. If you're like you and me and we're just, you know, I guess I guess we're hobby beekeepers now.

Kim Flottum

No guess about it

Jim Tew

Yeah, I can don't guess about it. But if you're working, if you you know, if you're keeping a lot of bees, it's just work, make no mistake about it.

Kim Flottum

It is, and and uh no matter where you are this time of year the boxes get heavier. Uh so you what you did back in May and June is gonna be well, one would hope twice as much work now. It's July late July in the middle of the in the middle of the heat. You know something else? There's there's a thing out there called a neck fan and it goes around your neck and it's got two little you know, go it's got two l it hangs down below your chin and it's got two little fans on each side And if you put that on, just right, it'll blow cool air into your bee soup all afternoon.

Jim Tew

I have no idea what you're talking about. Is this is this a general device? On the web or is this something in a bee catalog?

Kim Flottum

Uh this well I found it on the web. Somebody told me about that that's what they were using. I went and looked and it's You know, it's like a it's it's no weight essentially and it blows cool air down your neck, down the front of your shirt all afternoon. So that's one thing. Now, the last time I used this, I was outside, I was drinking water, I spilled a whole bunch through that straw thing that I was trying to drink down the front of my suit.

That neck fan. evaporated that water and evaporative cooling I was almost cold.

Jim Tew

Well Kim, you sound like a salesperson because I mean I'd use it in the bee yard, but also I overheat just running a weed trimmer Locking down weeds in the ditch. So I have no idea what this device is. And I will honestly check it out when you and I finish this discussion.

Kim Flottum

You mentioned you mentioned uh keeping a a a gallon of water. Every time you you can take a break, a quick break and take a sip of that water, do it. Just because when you're sweating that's water that's coming out of your body that isn't being replaced.

Jim Tew

Yeah. This is solid information. Is is this information you got from your Editor days at bee Culture?

Kim Flottum

Well, like I said, I worked Ann Harmon and I when she was around did some work on this for uh for articles for a couple su couple three summers and we investigated it. Because at the time, um, I didn't know much about, are you ready for this? Heat cramps, heat stroke, and heat exhaustion. And that last one will kill you If you're not if you're not taking care of it.

Jim Tew

No. Well, maybe you should tell me if I have. I don't think I have and I've been in some hot climates, but

Kim Flottum

Well, people who aren't used to working in hot climates. You know, that's a lot of beekeepers 'cause 'cause we're outside a lot, but we're not Right.

Jim Tew

Right. I'm not really re prepared to work anymore.

Kim Flottum

Heat cramps, you're gonna get some spasms um in your legs and your arms, maybe your abdomen, and and it's when you've been doing hard work and suddenly you get cramps in your I've had 'em one time in my biceps in my arms I've known people who've gotten them in their in their abdomen too. Cramps up and you you gotta sit down. But that's your body telling you you're working too hard, your body temperature's too hot, slow down, hydrate, cool off.

Jim Tew

I guess this is it's pertinent for any age at some level, right? You're not just talking about people mine your age in our seventies. Eve even even younger, healthier people can overdo it. Is that what you're saying?

Kim Flottum

Exactly right. Exactly right. And and w my USDA days when we were out working there were people the summer help and and they had big guys, you know, hired because they hired muscle. And these guys would come in, yeah, I can lift two of those. And and they'd d suddenly they're cramping up If if y they don't know or if the people that are with them don't know, they're gonna what what what they did, what a couple of guys did was ignore it. They just said, I'm tougher than this, I can I can do this.

And they ignored it. And then you're looking at heat exhaustion coming in. And heat exhaustion I don't think it'll kill you, but boy, I tell you, if you ever see somebody with he exhaustion sweating, it's four times what what you and I would sweat normally on a hot day. It's just pouring out of them

Jim Tew

Kim, uh you've you've kind of worn me out here, Kim. Let's take a short break. Let our sponsor talk to us while I rest up, get a drink of water, I'll be right back

Kim Flottum

Good idea.

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Kim Flottum

Well, heat exhaustion is bad enough, and you can recover from that by yourself. sitting in the shade, you know, pouring water on your head. But if you're stubborn or not very bright, if you're stubborn, heat strokes next step, and that's the one that will kill you. When you get to that point, your body can no longer control your temperature. You quit sweating, believe it or not, and your body temperature continues to go up. And it continues, it can go up to a hundred and six, maybe a little bit more.

Your your temperature goes up uh this is like five minutes you go from hot to s dizzy, swooning, tipping over, all sorts of things. All sorts of symptoms that tell you that this ain't not good and I gotta do something right now. And and what you need is if you're working alone, you could be in trouble. If if suddenly you get so dizzy you can't walk, you tip over, you might not be able to get up. It's that it's that debilitating. So a couple of things to do with that.

One is don't go alone. Or have somebody watching you from the house. You know, have Your spouse or one of your kids just look out the window every once in a while. He's not standing up anymore, Mom. Maybe we should do something.

Jim Tew

How long should he be laying down before we go out there?

Kim Flottum

And you know that brings up another point. Does your spouse know where every one of your bee yards are? Could she direct a a police or an emergency vehicle to every one of your beeards?

Jim Tew

I'm going to get in trouble here, right? Because no She couldn't. My wife is just glad to see me leave most of the time to go to a bee yard. No, I'm bee I guess I better be serious here. I d I doubt that my wife could send them to a bee yard. You know I've always depended on my phone Somebody tracking my phone or me calling 911 or something, but what you know I'd what if I don't have reception or what if I collapse before I can activate the phone.

Kim Flottum

Exactly. So draw a map, make a map, do something, so that when you don't come home for supper, they know where to send the ambulance.

Jim Tew

I'm kind of overwhelmed here, Kim. This has started off hot and heavy, if you'll pardon the pun. But it you know it it is. When you put on that full suit, if you're going to really be working bees, you're taking off honey or and you're really smoking the bees because it's that season of the year and the flow is over, it does get hot And and you know people listening right now think, well, God jeez OP it I would have enough sense to quit. Let me tell you what it's like.

You've you've driven forty miles to get wherever you're going, or twenty miles, or whatever. You got the smokers fired off. You've maybe you've got a friend with you or not. And you're working and you're getting this stuff done, and you just don't want to stop because you want to finish this thing. Before the smoker goes out, before the friend burns up, before it's time to go home, and you'll keep pushing. I know you think you'd have enough sense to quit. But it's a tiresome job in some cases, and you want to get it over with, and you keep going until, I'm afraid, sometimes people our age and maybe younger can reach these these plateaus you've talked about

Kim Flottum

You know, not millions of people die a heat stroke every year, but people die a heat stroke every summer. And and I'd I just assume it wouldn't be you or me or anyone listening to this. So if you know the science going in for heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat stroke, you know what to do yesterday and you know what to do before you go out there. Uh staying cool can be pretty easy, but if you get Get you know, you're dedicated and you got a time constraint, it might get ahead of you.

So just keep it in the back of your mind.

Jim Tew

Well, I'm not sure what I'll do differently, but I like having these justifications. For why I should just stay in the house where it's air conditioned and s cool and cool and not go out and do all this bee work Actually that's that's I'm being sarcastically funny because I do have varroa issues I need to deal with and some tests I promised to run. So I will be out there. I'll do the Alabama thing I used to do and I'll do it as early as I can in the morning.

But if you don't you know if you don't pick out the right morning, you can still have high humidity. You can still lather up Even on a coolish morning if it thunderstormed the night before.

Kim Flottum

Like I said, knowing what what could happen going in and what you can do to prevent it is, you know gets you 99% of the way there without any trouble. So, you know, start yesterday, start hydrating, bring cool stuff with you. No one to need to s Slow down and and uh you'll be okay.

Jim Tew

Well if I'm your audience of one right now, this is what I'm taking away from this. Number one, let my wife know where I am. Or someone know where I am. Probably my wife. Number two, have water with you. Number three, take the phone with you. And number four, in no particular order. Realize if you're pushing, if you're really hot, if you're really labored for breath, that even though it may be inconvenient, you may have to come back tomorrow. So know when to bend to back it down some based on the things you've told me.

Right or wrong. You get it right. Well, I hope we've cheered everyone up who listened to it. And given them innocent excuses why they should just wait till much later in the year to take honey off.

Kim Flottum

There you go.

Jim Tew

All right. That would work too. You can take honey off in November. It's a lot easier then. Jim, I always enjoy talking to you.

Kim Flottum

Everybody who listened, you know we always appreciate that too. Well, I'll talk to you next time, Jim. In the meantime, stay cool.

Jim Tew

I'll do the best. I can to stay cool in these hot summer months.