Monday, July 13, 2009

A Bee Update, Birdchick, Bill and I Check the Hives...

I've downloaded these in a somewhat random order, all the pics of the Bee Adventure with The Birdchick, and Bill. We will see what we have going on here...



Ah. The bees have been building some Funky Comb, meaning on top of their frames. We scrape this off, and put it in front of the hive. I don't know WHY it goes there, but it makes for a lovely picture. Bees were everywhere.



Here is the Birdchick and Bill looking like Mad Scientists. Bill may BE a Mad Scientist, besides being the genius behind the movie THACO, hard to tell. But in this case they are building, on the Marble Table Hans made, some Ross Rounds.

Ross Rounds are what we call the frames that Bees build honey in we intend to steal and leave in the comb, as opposed to extracting it for pure honey. The Marble Table was something Hans dreamed up after he found a huge piece of marble behind the shed. Of Course.



When we want the bees to Move, we Smoke them. This, theoretically, makes them think a fire is coming, and they go into the hive. Personally, if I were a BEE, and had WINGS, it would make me think "I AM SO OUT OF HERE" but that's not what happens.

Here we are trying to get them to do IN so we do not squash them as we put the top back on. Mostly worked.



This one is meant to be me being mystical, thru the smoke, conjuring up serious Bee Magic, in an attempt to make some art, and bring the Zen that is beekeeping into a photo, for all to feel. Or something. I think.



We added out first Honey Super! That means the bees have enough of their own honey to live, and we can put little boxes on and have them fill it and steal it for our own personal enjoyment. The bees don't really MIND. They make honey. They're Bees. They will keep doing it as long as they have room to grow.

If they run out of room, they Swarm, which means Queenie takes off with half the hive, and looks for a new home. We hate this. Unless they call us to come for a Swarm. Then we will get excited. Yes, we are on Swarm Patrol. (Real thing, people, kid you not)



And finally, if there IS a chipmunk in there, Cabel will find it. I think Mr Chipmonk has as much fun with this game as Cabel does. He never catches them, so it seems as safe enough amusement...

Love and Bees,
lorraine

78 Comments:

At 22:26 Blogger DataGoddess said...

The bee stuff is so cool! (and I'm so eloquent, heh) I think the picture of you through the smoke looks somewhat mystical and zen.

And maybe that chipmunk is teasing Cabal with bones, or something.

At 22:26 Blogger Beez said...

Mystical Quichie Bee Magic!

...and with that I should probably go to bed.

It did look like a perfect day outside.

At 22:27 Blogger AletaMay said...

The bees. Fod I love the bees.

A bee post always makes me feel calm and peaceful and hopeful.

Thanks.

At 22:43 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Bees do inspire calm, peace and relaxing. Odd thing that, but once you can ban fear, that's what left.

At 22:48 Blogger Dragonsally said...

I'm with you Lorraine, if I had wings and I was being swamped by smoke I'd fly away too.
Hans builds the coolest things

At 22:53 Blogger vampi said...

birdchick also had neat bee post. much like the horses, i think it's awesome how you have set out to do something and conquered it.i don't think i understand ross round. i used my google-fu to find this birdchick showing harvested ross rounds so that's just a fancy way to say "pretty honeycomb" you can share with friends that look s like what people expect honeycomb to look like. because the other boxes you harvest scrape and spin, so he comb gets all destroyed, right?

beekeeing is really quite fascinating to me. and i do have to say that since i've been reading your bog, i am less freaked out by bees, and take tons of pictures of them. i still have issues with unexepected bees, but i'm working on it.

At 23:11 Blogger Na said...

beeeeezzzzz. they are most excellent creatures. have seen many bee boxes across the Dakotas and Saskatchewan. I suspect they're there for pollinating fields? Though loads of clover across this bit of the continent, too. Maybe honey, too. Curiouser and curiouser.

{{{{ani}}}} be well!

welcome, lbwitch. :D

At 00:28 Blogger spacedlaw said...

Fun picture of you!
The dead empty stray wax thingies are indeed very photogenic. Today I have a picture up of bees building such a stray on to inside lid of a hive, the silly creatures...

At 00:30 Blogger Bridget said...

Our very tiny city-sized patch of backyard in Toronto is a small field of clover. This year we decided, partly from laziness and partly from curiosity, to not mow it. The clover doesn't really get more than knee- high, and never so high that you can't walk through it, so it's not diminishing our enjoyment of the backyard.

To the contrary.

We have beeeeees. Lots and lots of bees. Mostly fuzzywuzzy bumblebees, but we've also seen some honeybees here and there. I haz a happy.

I hope we'll also have lots of plums again this year. More bees can only help! My neighbours with their well-manicured gardens should be thanking me, I say.

At 01:14 Blogger Marjorie said...

Wonderful Beees! I love the bee posts - evey time there is something new and interesting.

At 02:50 Blogger Karen B. said...

Too bad that the marble table is outdoors, because marble is great for making lots of fudge. (I know this from having been a tourist on Mackinac Island and at fancy cooking-supply places.)

I am not an expert, but I expect making lots of candy isn't something you really want to do outdoors near lots of bees.

Yes, sounds like the chimpunk and Cabal have a fine relationship, going there...

At 04:25 Blogger louisa said...

Morning, love the bees! I was recently mistaken for a flower by one - had been sitting in the sun and one landed on my bare midriff and snuffled around, I presume looking for pollen. On not finding any, Bee decided this would be a good place to rest for a while. I wasn't so convinced. I wasn't scared, lessons learned here about being at one with the bee, but I was a bit worried I'd just forget it was there and knock it accidentally which could end badly for us both. After MUCH persuasion, Bee agreed to climb onto a sprig of catnip and return to the bee world. I ♥ bees.

At 06:17 Blogger Dan Guy said...

Lovely update!

The marble table makes me think of the Stone Table in the first Narnia book. Don't let the bees tie Cabal to it...

At 06:21 Blogger Phiala said...

Fun!

And I so recognize that dog pose at the end!

At 07:07 Blogger Lioness said...

Bridget, Toronto is just awash with clover this year, isn't it? It's taken over my back yard as well.
And I am with all of you who have been finding all these stories and pictures of bees to be a Good Thing when it comes to appreciating bees more.
Well, except for the carpenter bees that keep boring holes in my railings.

At 07:34 Blogger Ticia said...

Hans finds the best stuff. Am I the only one who thought tombstone?

At 08:00 Blogger spacedlaw said...

Tombstone?
What has he found (apart for some quiry way to have his hair stand on end)?

At 08:14 Blogger Ticia said...

Well, he DID find the tombstone in your picture. Plus the slab of marble. He also finds tons of interesting links that he posts on twitter. *grin*

At 08:29 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Someday I would like to meet these bees.

Do you think Cabel would be safe with me if we ever met? I am made out of bones after all.

At 08:47 Blogger spacedlaw said...

You'd be in far more troubles if you were made of sticks, Billy. Cabal does love a stick.

At 09:05 Blogger Jess said...

Yay for bees! They look to be doing very well.

Is anyone threatening to swarm, then?

This year I've got more Japanese beetles than honeybees. This worries me. Lots of clover in my lawn, though, so the bees must be somewhere.

Still: I wish I knew how to get rid of Japanese beetles without poisons, or those trap-bags you hang from trees. Those are gross.

At 09:17 Blogger Phiala said...

Jess, the only other Japanese beetle method is a jar of soapy water in one hand, and picking beetles with the other.

Slightly less gross than the bags, but you have to pick up the beetles.

I've never had good luck with the bags - neighborhood birds quickly learn that you caught them a nice snack and rip open the bottom.

At 09:30 Blogger Jess said...

Ew ew ew ew ew! I'm sure as heck not touching them. Ack. :P

At 09:51 Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think I'll leave being made out of sticks to the dryads.

Come to think of it that might be one of the reasons he likes the things. Poor little tree faeries!

At 10:08 Blogger gaypet said...

Great photos! Thanks. The CSA we belong to has several hives. M and I like to go watch them. I think the sound may be my favorite. The hum of hundreds of bees is so calming.

At 10:08 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Ticky box. Back at work, after an altogether too long conference.

At 10:16 Blogger spacedlaw said...

It is calming. Funny how such busy creatures can sound so relaxing. Mind you, I was never faced with angry bees. I doubt these might be soothing.

At 10:31 Blogger gaypet said...

No, I would not so much like the angry bees. We don't get THAT close. ;)

At 10:32 Blogger spacedlaw said...

Ani is out of surgery and seems alright (she's twitting).

At 10:36 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Morning!

Been up for hours, but busy with the Spooky House. Making a few changes. I'll tell you about them tonight.

Angry Bees are NOT calming. This I can tell you. Kind of the opposite of calm.

At 11:08 Blogger EmilyLady said...

I remember being stunned when Sharon told me all about how societal the bees are. It was fascinating ...

Whoo-hoo, bee magic. Teach me?

At 12:37 Blogger Chantrelle said...

I love the Bee Updates!!

Had a great time at Tori last night. Going again tonight and also to the Meet and Greet. Have to do it here if i want to talk to her, it'll be too hot to do it in Phoenix!

At 13:36 Blogger EmilyLady said...

Quiet Fiends on this day.

At 13:41 Blogger Phiala said...

Emily, I'm around, just alternately working on the Most Boring Project Ever and flipping out about trying to plan this trip to the Netherlands.

At 13:44 Blogger One Sock Short said...

I'm here too. Shouldn't be, but my brain power is at a very low ebb today. Anything to keep me awake, while I clear the decks to get back to work for real tomorrow...

How have you been, Emily?

At 15:18 Blogger Jess said...

Hi Emily. I've been mulching the plants. Like I should have done about three months ago.

Now I am roasting beets. Yum.

Phiala, you're going to the Netherlands? How did I miss that? When? \o/

At 15:19 Blogger Jane said...

I'm here, too, just reading the comments...

Have Practical Demonkeeping on hold at the library. Looking forward to it.

At 15:39 Blogger EmilyLady said...

The Netherlands, Phiala? That's marvelous! I love Dutch and have read book after book on Dutch culture! Have you been before?

I'm well, OSS! Having a good time at the library!

At 15:42 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Were you traveling before, Emily? This is probably something I ought to remember, but I'm doing well to remember what day it is. It's Thursday, right? ;-)

At 15:47 Blogger Phiala said...

OSS, I don't think so, but all I can tell you for sure is there aren't enough days between now and deadlines.

I'm giving a talk at a textile history conference the second week of September. I've never been to the Netherlands before. It should be a great deal of fun, if I ever get the travel plans figured out.

At 15:47 Blogger Fluffy said...

I've been catching up on exercise, yardwork, Facebook, letters to camp, laundry, food shopping and reading. I haven't sat and read like this for a while. Nice! I feel virtuous while reading, though, if the laundry is going because I can convince myself I'm "working."

I caught up here as well, and wish Ani a short stay and a speedy recovery.

I like bees too. And hummingbirds.

For camp letters I've been cutting and pasting the daughters' friends' FB shenanigans, lolcats and various articles about How Dangerous It Can Be To Be A Teenager Nowadays: Falling in manholes while texting, getting arrested for sexting, or for posting nudie pics for the boyfriend on MySpace... it's all so complicated! Well, not really - if we just pay attention to our mothers: "Watch where you're walking," and "Do not ever post nude pictures of yourself or anyone else ever!!!" The last one I don't think my grandma would have said, but maybe something similar for Polaroid pictures.

Back later, I hope. I'm going out of town again tomorrow and will have computer but no interwebs at the friend's house.

Ariandalen, we will pick up Tall, Tanned and Fit on August 5, I think. If she doesn't get the Swine Flu first...

At 15:50 Blogger Fluffy said...

Oh, and how is that for irony? Revelle's camp (Jewish, kosher food and all) had nine cases of swine flu the first session this summer. NOT kosher!

At 16:03 Blogger vampi said...

muahahahaha. swine flu at jew camp, i love it.

i loved my youth group i was in usy, tyg, and bbyo. (the kid population in canton was kind of small, so a lot of use floated between all of the youth groups.)♦ i never went to any of the summer camps though.♦

At 16:12 Blogger Marjorie said...

I'm here. But not for long, I think it's bedtime. Sometime in the next 24 hours I have to make the place look respectable as my parents are visiting.

I wonder whether Tybalt could be persuaded to vacuum while I am in court tomorrow?

At 16:53 Blogger EmilyLady said...

OSS, I went to Scituate in Mass. for a week to be a nanny. It was fun but didn't come close to the wonderful MN trip; this one was, er, work.

At 17:11 Blogger One Sock Short said...

I hope you had some fun there too. You seem to be really good with kids.

I am settling in for an evening of cat, lap, tea, and book. It's good to have my apt to myself again, even though I did have low-maint company. Not to mention they are people I quite like.

Still, after a stress-filled conference (though with the highlight of meeting Lynn and hearing Boss), I am very glad for a quiet evening.

At 17:14 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Der. You already said it was fun. Did I mention I was tired and brainless today?

At 17:19 Blogger Dan Guy said...

I only quiet because the pain meds have me thinking that I can astrally project my consciousness to the mid-west in order to inhabit Beth's body and hang out with the boss and AFP.

At 17:38 Blogger EmilyLady said...

No worries. I don't mind brainlessness. And it was fun playing with the eight-month-old, no matter how much I got puked on.

Dan Guy, I hope things are getting a bit better for you.

At 17:47 Blogger Dan Guy said...

I'm a hot girl, in the delicious throes of new love, hanging out with Quiche, AFP, and the Gaimans -- it doesn't get any better than this!

At 17:54 Blogger vampi said...

lol @dan.

At 17:56 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Huh. You got any more of those drugs, Dan? Enough to share? ;-)

At 18:23 Blogger Dan Guy said...

Hee hee hee.

See, the dentist gave me a prescription for percocet, that I filled. Then the E.R. gave me a prescription for oxycodone, which I filled. Then I found a huge bottle of hydrocodone from when Lori had Nathan. Turns out they're all the same drug! So I have TONS of it.

Wheee! Back to the astral projection.

At 18:25 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Gaskell begins every section by saying that such-and-such an aspect of printing history cannot possibly be given in detail. He then proceeds to go into excruciating detail.

At 18:30 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Then send some over my way, Dan! But only if it comes with the same hallucinations. Guess there's no guarantee of that. Sigh. I'd probably just project into someone trying to find her locker. That's as interesting as my night dreams get, anyway.

At 19:11 Blogger dabbler said...

OSS, that locker dream is a real anxiety signal dream for me. Either I can't find it, or I can't get the lock open when I do. And then there's the day of the final for the class I never went to....

Can you tell I went to school for far too long? And September is definitely the New Year in my internal world.

I think I'd like Dan's meds, too! Though the one and only time I took a percocet, I lay on my side and drooled. So, maybe not...

At 19:13 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Beth says she wants some of your pain meds, Dan.....

At 19:14 Blogger dabbler said...

The only thing interesting around here is watching to see if the vaguely-bull's -eye-shaped thing under my right arm gets bigger, or if it responds to the antifungal cream. if it gets bigger, its probably Lyme. Bah. I really don't want six weeks of doxycycline. But, equally, I don't want chronic Lyme disease either. Go fungus!
(Not something I ever thought I would say.)

At 19:16 Blogger dabbler said...

Off to watch the All-Star game, and fold DD's amazing pile of laundry. Like Fluffy, if I'm doing laundry, I'm working. Yup. Hard.

At 19:21 Blogger One Sock Short said...

But Beth already gets to be the astral projection destination. No double-dipping, the rest of us say!

Dabbler - Eeek! Go fungus, indeed. Definitely better than Lyme.

At 19:36 Blogger Beez said...

Hip hip hurrah! go...fungus!?!

(really? Fungus? see why I never wanted to be a cheerleader)

But eh, before Lyme we should have a fungus among us.

Love the bee pics- I feel like planting swathes of clover and see what I can do for the local bees. Minneapolis has finally approved beekeeping in town (with a permit, neighbors OK and a flyway construction unless it's on the roof). Ha, give the girl a new house and she goes CRAZEEEEE....with added E's.

I want some of the drugs too. Dan, can you astrally project a few this way?

At 20:38 Blogger Dragonsally said...

I can just see a worldwide planting of clover coming up...not only good for the bees, but provides hours of entertainment as you look for that special 4 leafed beauty.

At 20:42 Blogger Fluffy said...

Glad to see Dan is feeling a tiny bit better. I like his new identity, too. He's giggling!! Post pictures, please!!

Go FUNGUS!!

Got to pack. Dr. Wicked told me to prepare for dragons. Dammit. That'll cost me an extra $30 in luggage fees.

At 20:54 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Home!

Lovely, long busy day. Really likeing Beth, AFP's assistant who is out here for a few days. Liked her on the phone and online, and now I know her in person. She rocks. And she's GOOD. At the Assistanting thing.

Her hair is more colourful than mine, which is not something I can say about many people.

At 21:03 Blogger Fluffy said...

Dan needs to check out @authorguy's tweet about the NHS sex education pamphlet. And click on the link - it's to a Sunday Times article.

I hope he survives.

At 21:29 Blogger Phiala said...

Whew.

Have plane tix for Amsterdam for the second week of September. Meltdown avoided, tho I don't have lodging yet. Was forced by inconvenient schedules to stay an extra day (drat!).

Also finished another important task this evening. But I see it is 10:30 pm Phiala Local Time, and I'm tired. The third Very Important Thing will not be completed tonight (nor will the fourth, fifth, or on down the series).

Tired.

At 21:30 Blogger Ticia said...

Nighty-night Phiala! You did good tonight. Sleep well. The list will still be there in the morning. ((hugs))

At 21:48 Blogger Beez said...

And a Happy Birthday to our Gayle Fiend!

At 21:56 Blogger dabbler said...

Night, Phiala...it's that time here as well.
Happy Birthday to Gayle...and sweet dream, (not of lockers) to all evening fiends. Good morning to the early birds.

At 22:07 Blogger Bulfinch's Aglaia said...

These are wonderful pictures, Queen Quiche, as always. You are amazingly and lovely and so are the thousand thousand things you do. Thank you, again, for sharing!

Missing you all quite dreadfully...

At 22:28 Blogger El said...

Oh, fiends, what a day. Just a ticky box tonight, and a note that yes, there was a tornado and no, no lasting damage to my parents' place was done and now I'm back at home ready for an interview tomorrow and happy birthday gayle in a couple hours!

Whew.

At 22:30 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

New Post is up.

I know what to do about the Royals, and am at peace.

At 22:34 Blogger Beez said...

And a Happy Birthday to our Gayle Fiend!

At 23:22 Blogger Beez said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

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