Requeening

April 12, 2018 Update - I checked 2017 Hive and 0318 Hive.  0318 Hive was doing fine but the 2017 Hive did not have brood and did not see a queen.  I called Mr. Ellis and he came by late afternoon with a queen and to help me check both hives.  Neither of us saw a queen in 2017 Hive and he agreed she must be gone.  So we put the new queen in the 2017 Hive.  Sat her on top of the super and put a small frame box (about 1-2") on top and closed the hive.  This will give the bees room to take care of the queen, get the candy from the box and release the queen.
We did see the queen in 0318 Hive - it's always exciting (nerd alert!).  
The weather has been cold and very windy so I have not checked the hive.  Will do tomorrow (the 18th) since the temps will be in the 70's or higher. I'm still continuing to feed all the hives.  They are slowly taking the sugar syrup.
April 20, 2018 Update - On Wednesday, I opened 2017 Hive, the queen was still in her little box so I took the screened top off and she went inside the hive.  I was more careful when opening and releasing since I lost a queen last year - didn't want to make the same mistake again. 

Queen Bee

So all the hives are working, still feeding and hope we have warmer and more consistent weather soon.  I covered my ferns again last night and will tonight since it'll be in the 30's again.  Have a couple of tomato plants but will wait another week or so before putting them out.

2018 Marked Queen

When buying a Queen, they are marked  with a dot of paint on their thorax.  The color code indicates the birth year of the queen  - red is the color for queen bees for 2018.  Makes the Queen a little easier to find in the hive.

These are photos from the internet.  Just wanted to have an example of what the queen cage looks like and also a marked queen. 

Two Packages

Packages of bees are measured by the pound.  There are 3-4,000 bees per pound so Monday I got two 3-lb packages of about 10,000 bees in each package and a mated queen. Packages consist of bees who didn't know that they were leaving home when they woke up on the morning they were poured into a box (package) with a bunch of other bees with a queen who wasn't their mother. If they were swarming bees, they would have filled their bellies with honey in preparation for the swarm. So it's like leaving home with no luggage. They have to draw wax and get started the minute they are installed but without honey in their honey stomachs so they have no resources to make wax. Even with the honey flow and stuff out there, they have to be fed and continue feeding until they stop taking the sugar syrup.

The initial worker bees in the package are not offspring of the queen, and may be any breed. They are usually Italian, as Italians are known to build up fast. The bees and queen have to become accustomed to each other and that's why she is separated at the beginning of this journey. The worker bees will eat thru the candy in her little box so she can get out and get busy laying eggs.

The worker bees draw out comb, collect nectar and pollen, and the queen begins laying eggs, and those eggs begin to mature and emerge. It takes about 21 days for the egg to grow into a bee. Meanwhile, the initial work force will slowly die off, hopefully to be replaced by young bees. The emerging bees are offspring of the queen, and will be true to the queen and her mates. 

0418 Hive #1

0418 Hive #2

Bee Yard April 2018

Yesterday I quickly opened each hive and took out the package bee box and put in the remaining 5 frames.  The bees are working and have settled down.
Bees are amazing just like all the insects, birds, animals - we take so much for granted in our little world.

 

Two for One or One for Two

Well, I'm not sure which is which . . . but last Wednesday I checked Hive #2.  I thought they might need a super and just to see what was going on inside the hive.  This is the first day we've had in a long time that was warm (above 50 degrees).

So there were two supers and a deep.  I took off the two supers and looked in the deep - guess what!  A queen - yes, there she was so I put the frame back in the deep and put the first super on and checked that super.  Everything looked okay and then I put the top super back on the hive and checked the frames on that super.  Well, lo and behold, there was another queen!  

Inside 2017 Hive

I put everything back together and thought about what I needed to do - this gave the bees times to settle down and when I took the super off to move, I didn't smoke the bees.  I wanted as many bees in the top super as possible. I checked to make sure there was a queen in the super after moving and put a jar of sugar water on the hive.  


0318 Hive

Fast forward to today and the bees are doing fine in both hives.  Feeding both hives and they are bringing in pollen - red, orange, yellow.   

The package bees were delayed a couple of weeks.  Should get them around income tax time. I feel very fortunate or lucky that I found both queens.  So with the packages, I'll have four hives.  Good way to start the new beekeeping year.



DAR

I'm soon to become a member of the National Society of  Daughters of the American Revolution or DAR.  I started years ago but got sidetracked but just recently got all my paperwork in order with help from the DAR group I'll be joining.  Generation 8 (1700's) on my Mother's side of the family - my GGGGGGrandfather served in the American Revolution and fought at the battle of Moore's Creek Bridge, a very early decisive victory for the Patriots.   I hope I have the number of GG's right but you get the general idea. 

It will be several months before I will become "certified" if that's the right term.  The DAR is very particular about their paperwork. Only direct female descendants of Revolutionary soldiers or participants in Revolutionary causes are eligible for membership.

"Thirteen colonies fought to gain independence from the British Empire, resulting in the Revolutionary War from 1775 to 1783. The colonies penned the Declaration of Independence in 1776, and the war was finally won after many bloody battles in 1781. Those who fought in the Revolution were known as patriots. For membership purposes, DAR defines “patriot” as “one who provided service or direct assistance in achieving America's independence” [source: DAR].

My GGGrandfather served in the Civil War and fought at Fort Fisher but that's another story for another day.  I have relatives on my Father's side of the family in both wars but unfortunately the paper trail is incomplete. 

New Bee Packages

The beginning of a new year for beekeeping. 

The weather has been different again this year and continues with the same - last night we had a mix of snow, sleet, and rain.  Cold, damp and wet this morning. The high today will be 52 but it won't feel like that.  I hope this is the last of the cold and we're headed toward warmer and not a blast of hot weather.  Midweek is supposed to be in the 70's. 

Today Mr. Ellis is picking up two packages of bees for me and I'll bring them home late afternoon.  They'll stay in the barn (out of the wind/cold) till it warms up a little - maybe Tuesday.

New Hives March, 25, 2018

Yesterday I made two new hive boxes - one with a nuc box and one regular. I have one hive that overwintered.  I have had to move the hives down in the garden.  I'm running out of sun but I don't want to cut down any trees (they are along the fence and block out the traffic noise) so I'll see how this works.  

Beeyard March 25, 2018

It's the little things . . .

Yes, it's snowing outside if you can believe it!  I was Down East today and drove back in snow/rain/ice/sleet conditions.  I saw the most wrecks between LaGrange and the exit for 795/Wilson - I bet in 5 miles I saw 10-12 cars upside down in the ditch or overturned in the woods.  It was crazy!  So I got behind this little car with their flashers on and we went about 45-50 miles an hour for a long, long time. 

But I'm home now and having a glass of wine (I have not been drinking lately due to a cold that I got from those cute, sweet little grandkids) and it is the little things that make life good.  Getting home safe and having a glass of wine - Lily and Little Kitty inside all safe and sound with me.

Not bad, not bad at all!  Stay inside tonight - you won't need anything from the grocery store - it'll be gone tomorrow afternoon. 

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood

 













 "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" - it's been 50 years since Fred Rogers first appeared on TV screens - can you believe that?  When my girls were little, we always watched Mister Rogers.  Just the best show in the world - even now, it's so relevant.  We could relax, take a breath and listen to that calm voice and song "Won't you Be My Neighbor?" and "I like you just the way you are," are there any words better to hear.

My grandchildren watch "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" which was created by Angela Santomero, who grew up watching Mister Rogers.  So now PBS will have a special in March, a new postage stamp, a feature-length documentary this summer and plans for a Tom Hanks-led biopic.

I remember when he went to the crayon factory and we learned how crayons were made and towels - who knew!  I loved watching Mister Rogers probably as much as my girls.