Two weeks ago I put a tray of Apiguard in the hive. The tray was close to empty today, so I’m leaving it in for a couple more days. The usual Spring treatment is two trays for a maximum of 6 weeks (altogether). But I was late starting the treatment as my bees took a …
Category Archives: bees
Garbled
Amie and the comfrey Today Amie helped me harvest the comfrey and feverfew. She helped me string up those big, fat comfrey leaves. “It’s like stringing fish!” she said. I asked her where she got that idea? She couldn’t remember, but she was right. She loved the smell of the feverfew flowers – they look and …
Cheapo Mite Count
I didn’t see any mites during my last inspection, not even on the grubs that were accidentally exposed. Â Still, the Apiguard treatment will arrive in a few days and before I apply it I’d like to do a mite count. Mite counts with sticky boards are not easy to interpret. Thresholds vary according to the …
Bee Inspection
Karen, a friend I met through the Training for Transition, came for a visit and we talked homesteading, gardening and… bees. This was her first time at a hive opening. The bees are doing better, but their population growth is still not what I would expect. There were grubs in there, as you can see …
The Queen Lives!
I got an email Sunday morning from a fellow beekeeper, letting me know his colony swarmed and would I like the swarm? Unfortunately I read the email too late, and by the time I called him someone else was already collecting the swarm. Bummer! But wow, was there ever excitement! In any case, I called …
House of Death and BEEwareness
I hope I’m wrong. I don’t think I am, but one can always hope. Really. Yesterday I did a long hive inspection. It was warm and there was no wind, the bees were flying, and it was time to find out what’s happening inside. I did short inspections before, but this time I pulled out …
How are the Bees Doing?
Honestly, I have no idea. But I do have a bad feeling about it. Grasping the small window between the bees flying (i.e., warm enough) and the imminent rain, I opened the hive to check on them. It seemed to me that there are even less now than last time I looked. The bees were docile and …
Overwintered Bees
Incredibly, it almost hit 60 today. After lunch I went out to the hive – appropriately dressed, this time – to check the bees’ stored honey and the pollen patty and sugar fondant I put in last time. There was no wind and the sun appeared sporadically. I took 10 minutes – my feet were …
First Hive Opening and Feeding the Bees Sugar Fondant
I waited impatiently for that “warm” day when I can go out to the hive and do a quick inspection. 40-45 F is the minimum advised temperature at which you can open the cover, have a very quick look, deposit any food on top of the bars, and close it up. No more. In preparation …
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Hoop House Update, Bees, and Washing Indoor Plants
DH and I tried to save it, but the snow inside the “boat”/”float” is unapproachable. The bent pipes are still holding it up, about 1 foot off the ground, which is good on the one hand because the beds inside aren’t (totally) crushed, but which is also a problem because we can’t just jump in …
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