One Twelveth of a Teaspoon

One hard working honey bee will collect and process 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime, contributing to the survival of the colony and the continuation of the gene pool.  New bees will chew out of their waxy room and carry on after her work ceases with her death, six maybe seven weeks later.

Last year, I harvested about 3/4 cup of honey from my first hive.  I wanted to be sure the colony had enough supplies to get them through the winter.  They survived while many other local hive owners opened their boxes this spring to see no living bees.  It was a long hard winter.  If a colony does not have enough stored, they starve. 

This year, the girls gave us six cups of honey.  Think of how many bees that takes to make six cups of honey.  A local bee keeper - one equipped with many hives and is afforded the luxury of more than ample funds - harvested 50 gallons of honey this year!  Wowzah!

I have learned much about bees this year.  One colony lost to disease.  The Freedom colony wraps up its second year.  Two colonies here in Hoback and I am not certain how to get them through winter - more learning.  They are amazing creatures.  As the aspens turn yellow and the mountains white, I hope my bees have a good winter supply in their boxes.