Flowers begin to bloom as the rains return to Miami. The winter ends as temperatures rise from the frigid 60s to the mid to upper 80s. As I walk around Coconut Grove I am blissfully aware of all the activity occurring between the pollinators and those reaping the benefit. Entire trees bloom in radiant yellows and bright purples. I stop underneath a particularly alive tree with yellow flowers that seems to be humming with life. The activity within this small ecosystem inspired me to get back on the computer to update you as to how the colonies are fairing.
The move back to the Plantation went smoothly last week! I received help from Ben and a young man named Miguel. I closed up the hives after dark using newspaper, duck tape, and thumbtacks. We gently moved them to the truck and off we went.
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| Miguel and I skillfully navigate the yard as Ben takes pics...no worries, Ben helped too. |
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| Finishing the tape up. |
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| Moving back into The Plantation! |
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| Prepping for the release. |
I went back this week to check on the hives to see if they survived the move. Unfortunately, Beeopolis swarmed prior to our move and Bernsting swarmed shortly after its relocation. I am happy to report that both have new queens and are thriving. With only a two week window between swarms during this season, a hive inspection every week and a half should help prevent future swarms. Why prevent swarms? For Bueno Bees, we have a proven laying queen in both hives. Also, by killing off potential queens (by destroying queen cells) I can keep populations high for the honey season.
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| The lighter dots are drone brood. Notice how they protrude from the cells like little bullets. |
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| Very common to colonies about to swarm, the new queen has hatched and almost all of the cells are full of worker brood to cover the gap while the new queen gets mated. |
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| No worries, it's a drone. Drones do not have stingers. |
The swarming will not be so often as the summer advances and honey production picks up.
After this next honey extraction, there should be enough excess wax to start doing something with it (candles, soap, pure beeswax cubes?). Until next time, bee kind to you neighborhood pollinators!
