Freeing the queen

Yesterday evening, I checked on the queen.
Activity around the hive had settled into a normal pattern, but I wanted to make sure she’d been freed from her cage properly. At sunset, A. and I opened the hive (my first opening without the patient oversight of TJ) to find that she was nearly freed but not [...]

Bee Lessons: Worker Brood

Here’s another lesson from the Albuquerque bee man, TJ, and his rooftop hives.

Comb filled with tight even worker brood like this is pure eye candy for the beekeeper opening her hives in Spring. Lots of worker brood means a strong workforce able to harvest spring nectar.
At my place in the city of Albuquerque, [...]

It’s bee day

I started my first urban beehive today with the help of a nucleus colony ordered from Texas and the advice of local bee sage, TJ.
Here’s the story.

Bad luck beekeeper

As if a bee swarm itself weren’t enough to turn a day bad, Jack from the Self-Sufficient Steward experienced a double-whammy this week.
So, I flunk basic beekeeping once - preempting the swarm is pretty rudimentary stuff and I blew it. But now I have a chance to really earn my beekeeping merit badge by capturing [...]

Spring hive inspection with TJ

On Saturday, TJ issued an invitation irresistible to any new beekeeper: a hands-on demo of his spring hive inspection.
My first hive opening, it was magic. Check out some annotated photos from the inspection and a slideshow version below

My lovely new topbar hive

Props to local woodworker, Bill H., for crafting this lovely little bee home. It’s a Kenyan Top Bar Hive with plenty of modifications designed by local bee sage, TJ.
I’ve got a lot of old men looking out for me.

death comes to the beekeeper

One of the most generous beeks in our local community examined his hives this weekend and found tragedy.
2 entirely dead hives
It’s the sort of thing that drops your heart right through your feet, crashing like a pebble on the dirt below.
Immediately the examination of conscience begins like Sister Rose Angela in the 3rd grade quizzing [...]

Securing a package

Not that I’ve ever had problems securing a burgeoning Springtime package before… but we’re talking about bees.
Between colony collapse disorder and nonspecific newbie floundering, a starter bee colony has been difficult to come by. Finally today, I received news that I’m solid.
Upon the advice of a local bee sage named T.J., I’ve ordered a #3 [...]