Category Archives: Pests – Bees

The Return of the Hives!

One good thing about this time of year is that I can perform full checks of 18 hives in just a couple of hours!   While I’d hate to see so few bees and no honey come June, it sure is nice to be able to knock out half the bee yard before lunch without evenContinue reading “The Return of the Hives!”

Gains and losses

While I was checking hives on Saturday, I suddenly noticed bearding on the back of one of our weak hives.   I was in the middle of inspecting a strong hive, so all I could do was keep an eye on them.  The beard grew and then the dancing started — clearly a swarm in progress.  Continue reading “Gains and losses”

Many Happy Returns

If you read my blog from two weeks ago, you’ll know that at that time we did not have a single bee anywhere in our yard — not even on a feeder bucket.   Well, we left the bucket out and on Thursday we found a handful of bees feasting away.    There were a few moreContinue reading “Many Happy Returns”

Rain is a Good Thing

Luke Bryan sings that “rain makes corn…” but we are happy that rain also makes honey.   This time last year we were in a severe drought in both Georgia and South Carolina and our bees had few resources of their own to get them through the dearth.  Right now, there are no signs of aContinue reading “Rain is a Good Thing”

Helicopters and Bees

For the past three days, helicopters have flown low over the area, usually in the mornings.  The timber company across the creek is either thinning trees or clear-cutting, so maybe they’re checking the progress.   During the fly-overs today, hubby was checking hives across the road at the neighbor’s sunflower field and I was checking someContinue reading “Helicopters and Bees”

Happy People: Happy Bees

Last night, as we were deciding which trees were ready to fend for themselves at the farm, hubby spotted another swarm of bees in our yard.  Once again, they were behind the trealis and a fence post. The poor honeysuckle is still recovering from the last swarm extraction, and this time the two grapevines gotContinue reading “Happy People: Happy Bees”