Home Sweet Home Part 1
The bees for the top bar hive that is at the host house arrived this morning. I got up early, got everything ready, and then went to pick them up from New England Beekeeping Supplies. There were hundreds of packages of bees, many were in a trailer with a fan blowing to help cool them …
All Ready for the Bees
The new top bar hive has been built, oiled, and placed in the garden. If all goes according to plan the bees will move in toward the end of next week. I plan to number the top bars to keep track of each bar and the movements that I make with it. While I am …
The Garden
Last year was a busy time in my garden. I planted several fruit trees, blueberry bushes, raspberries, grapes, lingonberries, and more strawberries. I also added raised beds for vegetables. Then when I got the beehive, I wanted to do more pollinator friendly planting. I added some perennials that the bees prefer and I planted some spring bulbs …
All in the Name of Science
In my house, when you want to justify crazy behavior or actions you say it’s all in the name of science! Like when my daughter was 3 and she started putting toys into the fish tank to see which sank and which would float, we decided that she was just experimenting and it …
Building the Top Bar Hive
The top bar hive arrived from Bee Thinking. I could not wait to build it, but the box sat in the kitchen for a few weeks until I found the time. I did open the box before I was ready to start. I was greeted by a very lovely smell of cedar! All of the …
Keeping Track
As a new beekeeper, I like to spend time looking for ways to help make my journey successful. Recently I came across a website, www.hivetracks.com. The site is free to use, but you can pay for an upgrade to access more tools. The free version allows you to track your yards, hives, inspections, and harvests. …
The Bee-ginning!
I have always known that my name means honey bee, but I never imagined that I would become a beekeeper. It all started last summer when I noticed that our zucchini wasn’t growing. The flowers would bloom and then fall off. I began to pay more attention to what was going on in my garden, …