Miss Beehaven with Hobbit Queen

The last blog I posted on May 15 of this year, in some respects seems like yesterday, and in others, it seems like a lifetime ago.

Just where does time go?

How do I begin to catch you up on all of the happenings of honey bee life here on Hobbit’s Bend?

When we received our bees, it was wonderful to see them become acclimated to their new homes. Four hives! Four hives with 20,000 to 30,000 bees each, and each with a lovely queen.

Beehives with Bee Nucs - Waiting

Notice the bee nucs sitting on top of each hive. This is to let the little ladies get used to the idea of their new environment.

Aligning beehive frames using spacers

In this hive, the four “nuc” frames have been removed from the nuc box and placed into the hive. Next, the frames are spaced using special spacers to align the frames, which allows the honey bees to have the correct amount of space to continue to build and fill out each frame in the hive.

The nuc box is placed at the entrance to the hive in order to allow the lingering bees to move into the hive. The bees follow the scents and smells of their fellow bees and cluster at the entrance.

Nuc Box placed at entrance of bee hive

Below, you see Hobbit King brushing the bees into their new hive. After you place the four frames from the nuc into the hive, the brushing helps those lingering bees leave  the box.

Brushing lingering bees from nuc box into hive

Here you see the little ladies moving into their new home. Notice how they are clustering around the opening. They are also checking each other out, touching antennae, and brushing up against one another.

Honey Bees checking out their new crib

In this picture, you will notice bees are clustered around a small box with a screen on it. This is how the bees get to know their queen. When a  queen is placed in the hive, she is generally in a small box with a screen. On one end of the box is a hole covered with a piece of sugar candy. The bees eat away at the candy and in doing so, it helps the bees get acquainted with the queen and her hormones. This way the bees bond and become one unit. When the candy is eaten through, the queen moves out of the little box and into the hive and begins her daily work of laying the brood

New Queen Introduction to a bee hive

After repeating the above process three more times, we then placed the yellow syrup feeders on each hive in order to provide the bees with a little shot of food until they have time to learn where the flowers, pollen, and nectar are located within their foraging areas.

Hives at the ready - Honey Bees new homes at Hobbit's Bend

Each hive has a yellow sugar syrup container,  four frames of honey bees (~about 20,000 to 30,000), and a queen.

We now sit back to see how it goes…

I hope you find this information helpful and you are able to learn more about the lovely honey bee and all of her habits.

In my next post, I’ll share various encounters we had during the summer, along with the trials, tribulations, and a few challenges. Learning to be a honey beekeeper has taught me one very valuable lesson – Patience! I’m learning to let go of my “Type A” way of life. I’m learning to be more relaxed, thoughtful, and strive to live a  purposeful  life. These last six months, I have come to cherish my time with the honey bees and have enjoyed each encounter with awe and wonder.  It is hoped that the reading of this blog brings some of that experience to life for you.

Honey Cheers to You and Yours,

Hobbit Queen

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