Home Sweet Home

A bazillion bees and their Queen were moved into their new home this weekend.  Their hive sits on the southwest corner of our property.  Literally below the hive, a spring trickles by.  The hive looks south to the neighbor's property complete with a pond and wet lands.  If I were a bee, I would want to live here. 

The package of bees opened fairly easily and I dumped the bees into their new home.  Turning over the bee package, I gave it a hard shake.  A mass buzz occurred as the cluster fell to the bottom of the hive.  None got too upset.  I listen closely to the bees.  They have a sound when they are chill and a sound when they are not chill.  Chill is good with bees!  The queen came packaged in her own little container.  I pried the cork out of her little screened box and shoved a mini marshmallow into the hole.  This would give time for everyone to get used to each other before the sugary cork got eaten and she walks out of her tiny home and into her new giant home of vertical hanging frames. 

These bees are golden.  Much lighter colored than the 2018 colony.  Their queen is an Italian queen whom I have named Fiona, in honor of Janet's grandmother.  I hear that Italian bees are very good foragers.  We will see!

As this is in such a remote spot, Mike helped me get an electrical fence up around the hive.  The mules graze on the other side.  I can imagine them leaning over the fence, smelling the sweet smell of honey, and tipping the whole thing over.  There are most likely, bears up the hill to the west.  A field of some sort of agricultural crop is above our land (we are waiting to see what this will be) and then the land turns to heavy forest.  Of course the curious and hungry skunk or raccoon should be shocked (!) to find the encircled hive.  I have seen the picture of hives torn up by bears.  It is a very sad picture indeed.

More bees this weekend.  This will come in the form of a nuc.  Essentially, a small box with frames, bees, and a queen.  You take the frames out of the nuc and put them in your hive and just like that, your bees are in their new home.  A nuc costs a bit more but the bees are way ahead of where a package of bees are when they arrive. 

Yesterday was lovely.  Temperatures got into the 70s.  Mike and I got a ton of work done; seeds planted in gardens, brush hauled off to burn pile, grass cut, screens put into windows, trailers returned, trailers picked up to be delivered.  Summer is here.  We are busier than bees!!  Have a great week!