The rule is simple. It you get stung by a bee on your hand, immediately remove your rings. Simple rule, but not well published. Instead, what is published is a physiological description of what happens. “Under muscular control, the two sliding lanclets move rapidly backwards and forwards, alternately, past each other, effectively sawing into yourContinueContinue reading “Grabbing the Ring”
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Beekeeper’s Apprentice, Part ii
My first time to work with Steven Coy, I learned a lot, and got a certain level of confidence in working with the bees. Not necessarily competence. But confidence.Confident = not wearing a veil. Competent = knowing when it is OK to not wear a veil.So for the second trip, I volunteered again, with theContinueContinue reading “Beekeeper’s Apprentice, Part ii”
Swarms
“We have a swarm of bees over here at the Harbor. Can anyone come and help us?”The message was sent by social media late in the afternoon, and I had guests in town, so I missed it. I woke up the next morning and saw the message, and immediately called to find out.”No, it appearsContinueContinue reading “Swarms”
The Land of Milk and WHAT?!
I am about to try beekeeping again.Last year about this time, I drove to Hattiesburg, MS to pick up a nuc. It was a day of joy and trepidation. The end result, though, was that my bees died.Since then I have read, thought, asked, contemplated, and just generally worried the problem like a sore tooth. ContinueContinue reading “The Land of Milk and WHAT?!”
Beautiful Day
Everybody loves some henbit nectar.I tried to come up with a nice pun for the title of this blog entry. I really did. But the day was too nice to try and be clever about it. As I write this, the smoky smell of burned pine straw and the sweet smell of dripped honey stillContinueContinue reading “Beautiful Day”
Eulogy fit for a Queen
The Queen is Dead. Long live the Queen.So I am researching what happens to a bee colony when it dies. There are a lot of websites, and a lot of sections in the books on what can do a hive in.Yes, I am doing my beehive post mortem.I am also dealing with some sadness, becauseContinueContinue reading “Eulogy fit for a Queen”
Mentoring
My bees are not drawing comb as fast as I thought they should. Is it just the nectar flow in my neighborhood, or is something wrong? That’s not unusual, Kip told me. You might want to put an empty frame between two brood frames. They HATE having an empty frame there, and will fill it upContinueContinue reading “Mentoring”
Feeling Stabby
Some days, it is simply hard to focus. Those are the days to avoid working with the bees. Yesterday, the smoke wasn’t coming out right – I was alternating between dragonfire and snuffed candlesmoke. I was pushing to get done before dark. I was rushing through steps and feeling awkward. And I was dealing withContinueContinue reading “Feeling Stabby”
Bee Majick
There is something magical that happens to me when I open the hive. One day, it will become a chore. Some day, at some point, the mystery of the work will become commonplace; it will be nothing more than background noise in my life. But for now, I will revel in the magic of theContinueContinue reading “Bee Majick”
Waggle Dance
When I worked in Yucatan, I got fascinated with the physical differences between our cultures in how people give directions. To say that the path takes you a long away, point with your hand and swing forward in an arc that extends all the way to the top of your head. Turn right is indicatedContinueContinue reading “Waggle Dance”
Company Bee Blog 