From late fall to early spring the bees are on the cluster. They have been making winter bees (longer life – more suited to the winter environment). Now is the time to make enough heat and ration the stores while the winter winds blow. The polystyrene form factor equipment helps to insulate and lessen the […]
When the bush turns yellow the season is on. Forsythia is one of those shrubs that announces spring with zero subtlety—bright yellow, loud, and early. In western NJ (including Holland Township where we are), the timing shifts a bit year to year because forsythia doesn’t follow the calendar; it follows soil temperature. Once the soil […]
Bees on a visit to outyard. Suffered losses and the only way to recover is to split and rebuild. We were seeing pressure from the bees in the apiary and indications that they were starting to think about swarming. In order to recoup out losses over the winter we did a split and temporarily relocated […]
Managing colonies means inspections. We look for the health of the colony, brood patterns and queen health. If the queen isn’t robust, a colony can have a tough time thriving. Bees build amazing things, but sometimes the build is off because foundation we supply isn’t perfect. When that happens what results is an organic spacing. […]
