Me, myself and the Bees

Me, myself and the Bees: February 2013

Thursday 14 February 2013

Checking on the ladies and Natural Beekeeping...

February 14th has been quite an exciting bee day...

Firstly, we had fine weather for the early part of the day, with the sun shining brightly, much less wind and lack of rain, could only mean one thing, check on the ladies...

So this morning when I ventured up to the workshop, the expectation was high on seeing flying bees.  What I got in actuality was somewhat more.

The ladies were flying, which was a great sight to see and relieved some anxiety.  I thought it best to check on their food stores, so after putting on the beekeeping suit I went to get a closer look. 

First impressions were fantastic, there were dozens of the little darlings flying just outside their hive, hovering around the entrance.  Then I noticed even more good news, they were not just stretching their wings, some were venturing much further afield.  

I started to notice pollen coming in, what a great feeling that is, knowing that they're helping themselves with any opportunity that the weather gives them.  A light rose colour, a pale yellow and a blend of yellow / mustard coloured pollen was entering the hive stored on the back legs of a few bees.

Then I could see the cleaners were busy at work.  They were bringing out dead bees and dragging them about 1 metre away from the entrance before taking a little break and returning to the hive.  

Such great optimistic, visual signs, from just kneeling down besides them, that a healthy colony is bringing home some food, doing a spot of house cleaning and stretching their wings.

As usual I stayed to watch them for a little while to see if any other colours of pollen would bee brought into the hive.

As for this evening I attending a talk hosted by the Gwent Beekeepers Association on Natural Beekeeping by Dr Nicola Bradbear who is a long standing advocate of beekeeping.  She spoke to inform people about what natural beekeeping is all about.  Lots was talked about, with some questions afterwards.  

A "Warre Hive" otherwise known as "the Peoples Hive" was on display which did get quite a bit of attention from interested people.

It was nice to see some old faces (meaning those people I haven't seen in a while, not describing the demographic of the group), and the confirmation of the benefits that natural beekeeping could bring to the British bee population.

So all in all, it has been a great day, lets see what tomorrow brings.







Labels: , , ,

Friday 1 February 2013

The hive is alive... With the sight of flying...

Once I got to the workshop this Wednesday morning, before entering I noticed a honey bee on the floor.   So after a massive grin appeared on my face I headed towards Gwenyn Mel 2 to see what I could see.

What a glorious sight... Dozens of lovely ladies flying around the entrance and heading out into the wilderness of Cwmbran.

I thought that this is an excellent opportunity to check a little further on how the ladies are coping in their home.  And so after heading into the workshop to don my bee suit and grabbing my phone (which takes great photos) I headed back to the ladies to get a closer look...

After 5 minutes of watching their flying habitats I lifted the roof to give a very quick check on how much food they have left. Excellent to see their own food and some of my food which I gave them still there.  I helped them out by removing dead bees from the top and closed the hive up after a few seconds.

My excitement on seeing them meant, that I just HAD to hang around for a little while longer to watch them fly. I have missed seeing them over the winter period, watching them coming into land, the noise they make, even missed them walking over my fingers.

Honey bees bring me great satisfaction and I want to share my enthusiasm with you. One way for me to do this is to take photos so you can also admire them, but I have one problem with this... These photos do not do any justice when compared to getting up close and personal with them around their home.

As wonderful as these photos are... They can not portray the impact they have on my senses such as smell and sound.

So after seeing the ladies doing well today, my thoughts are now aware that it is time, for the temperamental part of year that is... the end of winter into early spring time (quite often the hardest time for our Honey bees).



Labels: ,