Frances and the Bee

We were able to go out for a lovely evening inspection of our hives last night. The sun was setting, the breeze was blowing, and there was green everywhere. My husband opened our four hives, one by one, so we could check on the progress of our colonies. At this point in the season, we are checking a bunch of items inside each hive. Three of these many items are the brood/queen, space for growing colony, and irregularities. During each inspection, we look for eggs and covered brood. Now that some time has gone by since our queens have started laying, we are also looking for characteristics of the brood pattern, emerging and working bees and the queens themselves, if possible. Here is an example of a nice brood pattern: This is from our second hive, which is the strongest out of all them at this point. This queen is doing an amazing job! We know this because there aren't very many open spaces here. Each cell holds a developing larva that will soon be hatching as a bran...

Mr. Bee and I went without the kiddos this time to do a bigger inspection and move some boxes around to get ready for the "honey flow".  This is when the nectar flows are in peak and the bees make tons of comb and honey, and it's important for us to make sure they have plenty of frames available to work on. While Mr. Bee and I were getting suited up to do our big inspection, I saw a strange insect pollinating some little wildflowers nearby.  Upon a closer look, I was amazed that it looked just like a honeybee...except with a bright green body!  I've looked into it and I'm pretty sure this was a "Green Metallic Bee", of the genus Agapostemon.  According to Wikipedia, there "are some 45 species" of this type of insect, and their range goes all the way from Canada to Argentina! ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agapostemon ) ( photo below mine) Green Metallic Bee, Clear Lake, MN by Erica Knudson Our girls are working hard.  The third hive...

This time of year, everyone seems to be asking us, "What do you do with the bees for winter?"   First, don't forget that the bees were getting for winter with their work over the summer!  We left approximately 60 pounds of honey in each hive for them to eat during the long Minnesota winter.  They have also been hard at work sealing every miniscule crack in the hive with propolis - it's very sticky stuff.   Unlike the dwellings of some other stinging insects, the honeybee hive is year-round.  The bees themselves cut down in number, carting the deceased or lazy outside and dumping them outside the entrance.  The remaining bees huddle with the queen and do a sort of hibernation.  Bees become quite inactive, but they are able to survive by clustering together and doing their normal work of regulating the temperature of the hive. It can be hard to winter bees in Minnesota, but we are going for it!  "Discarded" Honeybees   To...

Our bees have been in the hive a week now, but we're unable to open the hives up to inspect the frames for a few more days - until the rain is gone.  From what we understand, it's good to open the hives on a sunny, calm day.   Even though we're aching to look inside those boxes and see if they're establishing themselves well, we've been patient and watching from the outside of the hives instead.  It's not too hard to enjoy the outdoors here in the springtime.     Little Ones in the Spring Sunshine   Bird Camouflage  I always love seeing robins because it tells me that spring is really upon us. They sing a beautiful song while the sun is setting.    We have gone out several times to look at the bees working. Watching the bees at the entrance of the hive can give some indications.  The photo below, for example, shows that the bees are foraging and finding pollen to bring back to the hive for food.  You c...