The Bee Dr. Is In

Good Almost-spring day to everyone!

I hope everyone is having an enjoyable end of winter. It's finally looking like there is light at the end of the tunnel here in Edmonton. We just made it past a nasty cold snap at the start of March and things are looking warmer for the next week or so. Hopefully it will melt all this snow we have, the snow is making things feel more depressing despite how much has already melted away


I was a tad concerned about the recent cold snap so when it was nice and warm yesterday, about 2°C, I went to ensure the girls were still alright. To my pleasure things looked great. They was a lot of activity at the top entrance as everyone was out enjoying the sun. I took this opportunity to test out a method of checking on hives during cold weather, despite being obvious from the activity they were doing extremely well. The method is meant more for checking during colder weather when there is no sign of activity at all. My nurse friend was kind enough to snag me a spare stethoscope. The premise is simple, using the stethoscope you listen for the gentle hum of the cluster. With my curiosity peaked, I tested it out yesterday. The hum was extremely loud due to all the activity but the method seemed to work well regardless of all the extra wrapping Mario had added to the hive. If it does get really cold again, I'll have to go test it out then to see if I can hear anything when the bees are clustered more tightly.

I also took the opportunity to find my smoker yesterday. I was searching all over my garage without a trace and then I remember I use to store it beneath the wood pile next to my hive at the bee yard, I must have left it there. If such was the case, I would have to remove it before the snow started to melt causing it to rust. The only thing that lay between it and myself was a waist high snow bank......


Let this be a lesson to always keep your smoker in a safe and dry place, although it did bring back fond memories of building snow forts as a kid.


The speckled landscape of bee poop....lots and lots of bee poop.


Girls gotta stick together as my wife helps out a stranded bee.

This week I'll be making some candy boards to put on top of the hive in the next week or so. Food stores will be getting towards the low end and the bees will need something to feed on until the snow melts and the dandelions bloom. Check back soon for pics and instructions on how to get that done.

I'd also like to thank my wife for another great artistic picture of me in the bee yard. Check it out on the main page, it will be a great alternate "About Me" picture during the winter months.