By supper time there is less bearding but lots and lots of foraging activity! I hope the “bee highway” of them coming and going can bee seen.
Bearding on a Hot Summer’s Day
We we’re sent a picture this morning from our host Jesse of Lemoine Point Farm, that it looked like one of our hives might be ready to swarm! Unfortunately neither Gord nor I were available to come see. So after my regular work popped over to see what’s up. The videos speak for themselves.
Beekeepers & Arthritis
If you ever do any research into apitherapy, you’ll eventually run across the claim that beekeepers don’t get arthritis and that it’s due to being stung all the time. First, let me disabuse you of this myth: it just ain’t so! I’ve been keeping bees since 2008 and have been stung more times than I care to count, including my …
Checking in on the Russians
They’ve been in their new homes at Lemoine Point Farm for exactly a week, and boy have they ever moved in! In case you’re not aware, a nucleus hive (or nuc) is the preferred method for selling colonies in Ontario. It’s a box with four, normally deep, frames: 2 or three frames of brood and a frame of nectar or honey. …
The Russians are here!
We visited the bustling metropolis of Moose Creek, ON, this morning to pick up 6 nucs of Russian bees this morning. We’ve heard good things about them and Jurg Zurcher was able to confirm most of them and discounted and important one: yes, they build up quickly; they can be swarmy, but make sure they have space to build and …
“It is said that smoke calms honeybees”
We don’t use smoke when we tend our hives. We never have and I don’t see any reason to start now. It disrupts the hive and can mask all kinds of odours that a beekeeper can use to figure out what’s happening in a hive. It appears that part of our justification for being smoke-free is also inacurrate: “The perception …
What a fun day
I spent this morning talking bees with three Kindergarten classes at St Joseph Catholic School in Belleville. Both of my kids are teenagers and I had completely forgotten how much energy these tiny people have! 😉
So much pollen!
I’m not sure what it is, but the foragers are bringing in tonnes of butter yellow pollen today!