Monday, March 19, 2012

SPRING 2012


Spring seems to be upon us very early this year, and my bees are certainly getting busy early as well. Because we had such a mild winter, there were days they came out to explore in January! By Mid March, my bees were in full swing collecting pollen. There wasn't a thing in bloom in my garden, or so it seemed. Where were they collecting? Many people think of only herbaceous flowers when it comes to bees collecting honey, however inconspicuous tree flowers (in my case the blossoms from my Silver Maples) are a major early source when little else is blooming. These blossoms, while not very noticeable to us, are loaded with pollen, and just what a bustling Spring hive needs to boost thier food supply to keep up with the soon to be increasing number of eggs the queen will lay. The natural "reproduction" of hives comes from bees swarming activities. This occurs when another queen is born and she takes a portion of the colony with her to start a new hive. Last year, my bees swarmed in May, and I missed their capture. Swarms can move fast or linger as scouts select a new home for the rogue bees. Last year a swarm from my hive settled on a nearby tree, and just as I was preparing to capture them in a box, they took off to parts unknown. This year, I am getting a hive all lined up in anticipation for swarm capture this Spring. In the next week or so, if the warm weather holds, I am planning to crack open the hive in hopes to glimpse my queen and check on the general welfare of the colony. Perhaps I will be able to spot a future mutinous queen larvae to truly get a feel for future bee plans. Until then-

No comments:

Post a Comment