My BEES

[squid_ink]

are ALLLLIVVVEEE!

I traipsed through knee-deep snow (yes it's been 50F but THERE IS STILL SO MUCH SNOW)... my bees are off in an unplowed field. My shoes were FILLED with snow and my socks were SOAKED but when I got to my hives..

I smiled



the ladies are OKAY and they were FLYING HIGH today



Elizabeth/Devine ( Carniolans )



Victoria/RuPaul (Italians)

so far so good.
I left some sugar fondant as a treat to hold them over

here's hoping for an early Spring!

Comments

Applause

[dragoncaller.livejournal.com]

Wonderful!

[rhodielady-47.livejournal.com]

Getting a bit of fresh air is good for the bees and us too!
I aired out the house for several hours the other day. We always seem to feel better for doing this and the house smells better too.
:)

[rhodielady-47.livejournal.com]

BTW: Which variety of bee are you liking best?
:)

[squid-ink.livejournal.com]

I can't really tell at this point.. the Carniolans are supposed to be more aggressive but that hasn't been my experience. I think they're stronger and overwintered better, but that's just my observation from one winter.

[rhodielady-47.livejournal.com]

I guess you'll have a better idea once spring really does get here to stay.
:)

[virginiadear.livejournal.com]

You do have snow!

I'm glad the bees are alive and apparently happy.

What is the significance of the colors on the hives? (Usually, one sees hives painted solid white. I assume there's a reason for that, as well as for these colors.)
I know insects have limited color vision: only what they need to see their food sources, is that right?

[squid-ink.livejournal.com]

ha, those were the only colors I had, and I had them in small quantities.

Scientific, I know...!

[virginiadear.livejournal.com]

Betcha the bees like them! :-)

[traveling-storm.livejournal.com]

Yay! Way to survive ladies!

[squid-ink.livejournal.com]

my girls are FIERCE!

[the-lighthouse.livejournal.com]

What do the bees do in the winter? Just go about their usual business or do they mostly stay sort of sleepy and in the hive?

[squid-ink.livejournal.com]

They stay indoors just like we do, try and keep the queen warm by forming a cluster, and venture outside if it's above 50F for a 'cleansing flight'

normally it should be around 90F in a beehive, so it's hard work.

In the fall the drones (males) are pushed out to their death, so those are all females in the hive with the queen. The queen will start laying eggs to create more drones when it gets warmer. Funny, this part was not in that 'Bee Movie' LOL ("Mommy why is the lady bee shoving the dad out to his death in the freezing cold????")

[lo-anxiety.livejournal.com]

You're the coolest person ever for having bees. Just sayn. Now, I want some honey comb mmm.

[momomom.livejournal.com]

NICE! I'd so love to keep bees but we have some Draconian regulations that classify bee hives as a farm shelter and require a bigger set back from other houses than I can manage.