Again--make sure you are ahead of the bees with your supers. If you haven't put on a honey super, do it now!
Top -bar hives continue to do well. I added 4 more bars for the bees on Thursday.Sure has been interesting.
Some more new flowers follow.
The blossoms have really come out in the last two days---rain and warmth do wonders.
Again--make sure you are ahead of the bees with your supers. If you haven't put on a honey super, do it now! Top -bar hives continue to do well. I added 4 more bars for the bees on Thursday.Sure has been interesting. Some more new flowers follow.
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We are on the cusp for a large nectar flow from white sweet clover. It is beginning to bloom in the city of Marquette and a few days away inland.
"Tis the swarming season" -- be ready if you want to capture a swarm. You might set out a bait hive in an attempt to get them into a place of your choosing. A few drops of lemon grass oil in an empty hive might help. A frame or two of empty comb is helpful as well. Thanks to Jane for a link to another article on CCD. Researchers continue to search for answers for this global bee problem. Good links on this also. The EPA will be deciding this week whether to continue allowing use of the pesticide Clothianidin, that's causing bees to die-off at an alarming rate. You can sign a petition to urge the EPA to take action, before it's too late for this cornerstone of our food system. The next batch of flowers has arrived. The berries produce good nectar but most of the others are minor contributors. Note the yellow sweet clover and white clover. They are good producers for the bees. I'm sure I have missed some flowers - fill in as you are able. White sweet clover is about ready to bloom.
WHEN THE SWEET CLOVER BLOSSOMS, YOU SHOULD HAVE OR BE PUTTING ON A HONEY SUPER--ESPECIALLY THOSE OF YOU WITH OVERWINTERED HIVES. I HAD TWO SWARMS LAST YEAR ON THE 13TH OF JUNE. JUST TO BE ON THE SAFE SIDE, I SUPERED MY NEW PACKAGE HIVES AS WELL MY OVERWINTERED HIVES. I USUALLY LIKE TO PLAY IT A LITTLE CLOSER TO HONEY FLOW IN LATE JUNE OR EARLY JULY. BUT THIS YEAR IS DIFFERENT, MOST THINGS HAVE BEEN EARLY SO I WILL BE ALSO.
There are many wildflowers beginning to blossom. At the moment,none of them are major sources of nectar. A little here, a little there,is keeping the bees busy. I am going to begin posting pictures of flowers as they come out in this area. There are many micro climates in the Upper Peninsula. If you have some different flowers in your area,take a picture and send it to me.Flowers have different names or I could just get the identification wrong----let me know. Soon to come--sweet clover,yarrow,white clover, and the berries.
The bees have generally been inside since last Tuesday. During those times, they eat alot of their stores of honey/nectar and really hit the feeding stations--if you are doing that.
Sun out,temps up and the bees are flying today. If you are feeding, check yoour supply and replenish as necessary. The rain should help bring out the June production of blossoms. |
Joel LantzKeeper of bees. Archives
February 2022
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