This little clump is pretty connected to the flower pot.
Another miscellaneous topic: when you buy a package of bees, there are going to be a certain number of bees that die in transit. This happens simply by the attrition. In a hive a number of bees die everyday, but in the package, random bees have been shaken in together. For some of them, their time is up in transit and they die. In the particular package that I installed in this hive below, there were stacks of bodies on the floor of the package.
Bees don't like to have dead bees in their hive. So the bees quickly moved out the dead bodies. Compare the scene in front of the hive above with the small number of bodies on the ground in front of the other package hive installed the same day pictured below. The package for the hive below had very few dead bees on the bottom of the package.
And the last miscellaneous bit, the tulip poplar is blooming in Atlanta evidenced by the bloom on the ground below. This signals the beginning of the nectar flow in Atlanta - much earlier than usual. Typically in Atlanta the tulip poplar blooms from mid April - mid May. Now with everything blooming earlier, the question is how will the early spring affect the honey crop this year.
Linda - I live in Dawsonvile. My wife and I are wanting to start beekeeping. We thought we would start with 2 hives. Do you have any suggestions on we're locally we can get started?
ReplyDeleteLinda,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up on the tulip tree nectar flow. I think Atlanta is about a week ahead of Northern VA. I'll be ready for it: 30 years ago our main tulip tree flow was reliably around Memorial Day, then moved up to early May, then mid-April. My scale hive has gained 24.5 lbs from Mar. 13 - 30, so this is a bizarre spring.
Hi Linda
ReplyDeleteFound your site via Pinterest. I am getting three hives this April. I very much enjoyed your site. I am your newest follower, and your 500th!! Looking forward to using you as a great resource!!
Cheryl @ goodnufranch.blogspot.ca
I wonder if a few of the bees are clustered in the swarm trap still because of the lingering scent of the swarm lure? I've heard swarm lure is pretty irresistible stuff (for the bees)?!
ReplyDeleteNow there's a thought - maybe it was the swarm lure! Now they are all in the hive and apparently doing well. I'll check them in about a week and we'll see.
ReplyDeleteTo Anonymous in Dawsonville, It's a little late to get started this year. However, there may be a beekeeper in your area who has bees to sell. Check with the Clarkesville Beekeeping group - they are a good and active group. There may be another group closer to you - Forsyth County beekeepers are the group that meets in Clarkesville. You might want to find a beekeeper to shadow in your area this year and then start with bees next year. Use this year to get educated.
ReplyDelete