The short story is this: my hive swarmed in late April, and I still don't know if I have a laying queen -- a queen who has had a successful mating flight and is now safely inside the hive laying eggs.
The last time I looked inside, early May, this is what I saw. I didn't linger long enough to fully search for eggs. Still too much of a nervous nellie. But I may do an inspection today. It's also a perfect day for a swarm...nice quiet sunny day after many days of off-and-on rain and winds. The irony is (I think it's an irony) that if I do have a swarm today it means I DO/DID have a queen.
From the outside, the hive behaves perfectly normally. Lots of bees coming and going, guard bees chasing me away if I bother them, even a little bearding on the few warmish humid nights we've had.
I call this post a psychological tale because this hive still drives me crazy. Obviously, the condition of a beehive is not knowable except for those rare times when a human rudely and cruelly rips off the top of the hive and pulls out the frames, destroying comb, squishing bees and larvae, spilling honey. Oh it's a mess when I examine a hive. So I try not to inspect very often. Instead I worry, and read, and muse, and ponder about my beehive. Should I re-queen even though I don't know if I need to? How can I get up the courage to do a good, full inspection? The stacked hive boxes are really, really heavy so why am I risking my back health by not buying a bee veil and jacket for Doug or Greg, both of whom have offered to help me lift the damn things? Can you spell stubborn?
I think I've probably said all of this a dozen times on this blog, but I'm not going to go back and check. I apparently need to say it quite often.
4 comments:
is it a situation where you can go, thoroughly inspect and be done with it?
may be less destructive than a few half-hearted peeks?
mainly, i'm curious too. wish i could have bees to fret over. lol
I wish I had some advice for you, Pam, but the only experience I have with bees comes from my early years of watching Romper Room, featuring "Mr. Do-Bee" and "Mr. Don't Bee!"
I have been wondering about the swarm earlier this spring. I know you were concerned and hoping the girls would come back.
Also, I wonder if there are other beekeepers nearby who could stop in to lend you a hand in checking the hive situation?
I'm lucky to have my two bee partners to help with the heavy lifting (literally and figuratively). We're going to try to harvest some honey this weekend, but will have to borrow some equipment. Do you have a bee club you could contact for another set of hands?
"a perfect day for a swarm..."
I'm a total ignoramus about such things, but reading your note at first glace made me think of Bert Parks singing and crowning a queen and a first runner up.
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