Friday, August 29, 2014
Sedum photographs
My husband took some beautiful photos of my bees on the Sedum by our kitchen door. I sat on the stoop yesterday watching them for 1/2 hour or so. So busy, and so beautiful.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
stung (with update)
August 26:
What I was not expecting, after this long beautiful summer of beekeeping, was to get stung by a bee on the doorstep of my office. It's like summer kicking me in the ass on the way out.
My foot hurts. But there are some cool images of bee stings & anatomy on the web, so there's that.
August 28th (UPDATE):
The other day, when I was stung by a bee on the doorstep to my office? Well, during the course of that day the Sedum started to bloom by my kitchen door, and when I got home there was a little cloud of my own bees enjoying the nectar. I actually bumped into a few of them in midflight, while I tried to get into my house. But no one stung me. Because my bees are LOVELY.
Ken took some gorgeous photos of the bees and the Sedum yesterday. I'll make a separate post for those.
In the meantime, though, my foot has started to itch like crazy. I just found an excellent little article in Slate.com testing different bee-sting remedies. I may have to try something later today...
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/shopping/2003/09/sting_operation.html
What I was not expecting, after this long beautiful summer of beekeeping, was to get stung by a bee on the doorstep of my office. It's like summer kicking me in the ass on the way out.
My foot hurts. But there are some cool images of bee stings & anatomy on the web, so there's that.
August 28th (UPDATE):
The other day, when I was stung by a bee on the doorstep to my office? Well, during the course of that day the Sedum started to bloom by my kitchen door, and when I got home there was a little cloud of my own bees enjoying the nectar. I actually bumped into a few of them in midflight, while I tried to get into my house. But no one stung me. Because my bees are LOVELY.
Ken took some gorgeous photos of the bees and the Sedum yesterday. I'll make a separate post for those.
In the meantime, though, my foot has started to itch like crazy. I just found an excellent little article in Slate.com testing different bee-sting remedies. I may have to try something later today...
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/shopping/2003/09/sting_operation.html
Sunday, August 24, 2014
National Honey Bee Day
Thanks to Jan Demers, who alerts me that August 16th is National Honey Bee day!!
From EarthJustice:
From EarthJustice:
CELEBRATING ALL HONEY BEES! Did you know that 1 out of every 3 bites of food we eat is pollinated by bees? That's why we are doing everything we can to protect their survival – including a lawsuit to stop the use of neonics – a highly toxic pesticide – that is one of the main culprits behind colony collapse disorder. Here’s a closer look at a major cause of widespread bee die-offs, what it means to us, and what we can do to help >> http://ow.ly/x23Xy
Also, a friendly reminder to all the amazing gardeners out there: Many of the plants you buy at Home Depot and Lowe's may be treated with bee-killing neonictinoids. Because there's no clear labeling, many good-intentioned gardeners end up poisoning the very bees they are trying to help! Check it out this link to learn more about protecting the bees >>http://ow.ly/xakJk
Also, a friendly reminder to all the amazing gardeners out there: Many of the plants you buy at Home Depot and Lowe's may be treated with bee-killing neonictinoids. Because there's no clear labeling, many good-intentioned gardeners end up poisoning the very bees they are trying to help! Check it out this link to learn more about protecting the bees >>http://ow.ly/xakJk
Bee Tattoo!
From Rebecca Stimpson:
It's a beautiful tattoo. I don't think I'll ever get one myself, but there are some gorgeous bee images around on people's skins.
It's a beautiful tattoo. I don't think I'll ever get one myself, but there are some gorgeous bee images around on people's skins.
August 24: Full Hive Inspection
August 24, 2014:
We opened up the whole hive again today to see what progress the bees have made on filling the honey supers, and what the brood nest is looking like now.
The answer for the supers is...not much progress. About a week and a half ago I switched the honey supers, hoping that the closer proximity of the nearly-empty super would encourage the bees to start filling it. Alas, everything has slowed way down. The top super is full of nectar, with a few patches of capping here and there; the bottom super is fully drawn comb, but no nectar.
I decided mid-inspection to remove that empty super, so as to let the bees concentrate on getting the nectar capped on the other one. I knocked the bees off the frames one by one, and carried them out of range of the hive--and the bees pretty much just let it all go. That surprised me, but then there's no honey or brood in that comb. I'll save it, and use it next year.
The two hive bodies look great. The top is packed full of capped honey and a bit of pollen. The bottom is about 1/2 brood, plus more honey and pollen. I think they'll be in good shape for the fall and the upcoming winter.
I'm only about 90% sure I'll need it, but my honey extractor and supply kit arrived in the mail this week. THAT is quite exciting. I do hope I get to use it, not just for the honey itself, but for the adventure of that process. The beekeeping blogs all say that people get into beekeeping for the bees, but leave it because of the honey. It's supposed to be a difficult and messy process. But since I do so much home canning, I'm up for the challenge.
We opened up the whole hive again today to see what progress the bees have made on filling the honey supers, and what the brood nest is looking like now.
The answer for the supers is...not much progress. About a week and a half ago I switched the honey supers, hoping that the closer proximity of the nearly-empty super would encourage the bees to start filling it. Alas, everything has slowed way down. The top super is full of nectar, with a few patches of capping here and there; the bottom super is fully drawn comb, but no nectar.
I decided mid-inspection to remove that empty super, so as to let the bees concentrate on getting the nectar capped on the other one. I knocked the bees off the frames one by one, and carried them out of range of the hive--and the bees pretty much just let it all go. That surprised me, but then there's no honey or brood in that comb. I'll save it, and use it next year.
The two hive bodies look great. The top is packed full of capped honey and a bit of pollen. The bottom is about 1/2 brood, plus more honey and pollen. I think they'll be in good shape for the fall and the upcoming winter.
I'm only about 90% sure I'll need it, but my honey extractor and supply kit arrived in the mail this week. THAT is quite exciting. I do hope I get to use it, not just for the honey itself, but for the adventure of that process. The beekeeping blogs all say that people get into beekeeping for the bees, but leave it because of the honey. It's supposed to be a difficult and messy process. But since I do so much home canning, I'm up for the challenge.
August 12: Everything's Going to be OK
August 12, 2014:
I pulled the mite tray again today, after 24 hours, and found quite a few mites--but not enough to warrant intervention.
There are some frustrating things about this method. It's hard to know how to count, for one thing: it was clear to me that some of the dots I counted were exoskeletons, rather than whole mites. Do they count? Surely they're a sign of a whole mite, living somewhere in the colony, but do they count for THIS count? So confusing.
At any rate, I counted two or three different ways, and had my son Sam count as well, and we got a range of anywhere from 23 to 32 mites dropped in this 24-hour period. Most of the sources I've read say that you needn't intervene until you see 50-60.
Phew.
Here's what a tray looks like, and what I'm having to count:
I pulled the mite tray again today, after 24 hours, and found quite a few mites--but not enough to warrant intervention.
There are some frustrating things about this method. It's hard to know how to count, for one thing: it was clear to me that some of the dots I counted were exoskeletons, rather than whole mites. Do they count? Surely they're a sign of a whole mite, living somewhere in the colony, but do they count for THIS count? So confusing.
At any rate, I counted two or three different ways, and had my son Sam count as well, and we got a range of anywhere from 23 to 32 mites dropped in this 24-hour period. Most of the sources I've read say that you needn't intervene until you see 50-60.
Phew.
Here's what a tray looks like, and what I'm having to count:
August 10: Mites. Ugh.
August 10, 2014:
I pulled the tray from the bottom of the hive today, and looking through the magnifying glass found...varroa mites. Damn. I know they're unbelievably common, and that the overwhelming majority of beekeepers have to cope with them, but I had hoped to escape them for this summer, at least.
My bees are supposed to be of hardy, mite-resistant stock. Perhaps they'll fight them off with no major ill effects.
I'll have to measure the level of infestation, and figure out if I need to invest in some chemical or natural treatments. Back to that sharp learning curve. I'm pretty bummed.
August 11: Some optimism.
I just went out and looked at the bees. I couldn't see any mites or deformations on any bees on the exterior of the hive, which is good news. I have a screened bottom board under my hive, and an old-fashioned lunch tray beneath it: this is a way that beekeepers monitor for mites, since when the mites die they drop down through the screen onto the tray where you can find them and count them. I saw a few on the tray last night.
Looking at it this morning, there weren't as many as my anxious mind saw last night. I cleaned the tray, drew a grid on it, and I'll check it again in 24 hours. The number of mites I find on the tray will determine whether I need to treat the hive or not (and if so, I'll have to figure out which of about 6 methods I want to use).
If it turns out I need to aggressively treat the hive and thus save the bees, I'll probably lose my honey crop, since it's still uncapped and I can't leave it on the hive while I use chemical treatments.
What I saw this morning leaves me guardedly optimistic, though.
 |
| A mite, magnified many times over. In real life they're about the size of a sesame seed. |
My bees are supposed to be of hardy, mite-resistant stock. Perhaps they'll fight them off with no major ill effects.
I'll have to measure the level of infestation, and figure out if I need to invest in some chemical or natural treatments. Back to that sharp learning curve. I'm pretty bummed.
August 11: Some optimism.
I just went out and looked at the bees. I couldn't see any mites or deformations on any bees on the exterior of the hive, which is good news. I have a screened bottom board under my hive, and an old-fashioned lunch tray beneath it: this is a way that beekeepers monitor for mites, since when the mites die they drop down through the screen onto the tray where you can find them and count them. I saw a few on the tray last night.
Looking at it this morning, there weren't as many as my anxious mind saw last night. I cleaned the tray, drew a grid on it, and I'll check it again in 24 hours. The number of mites I find on the tray will determine whether I need to treat the hive or not (and if so, I'll have to figure out which of about 6 methods I want to use).
If it turns out I need to aggressively treat the hive and thus save the bees, I'll probably lose my honey crop, since it's still uncapped and I can't leave it on the hive while I use chemical treatments.
What I saw this morning leaves me guardedly optimistic, though.
 |
| Not one of my bees, I'm happy to say. |
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