Bees
So, my parents have had this beehive in their backyard for maybe five or six years now. Really, although the location is less than ideal, the bees are fairly good tenants.
They originally acquired the bees when, shortly after the completion of a new retaining wall (directly in front of the old retaining wall), a swarm settled down in the gap between the new and old walls. They ignored the bees for a year or so, maybe two years, and then got in touch with a beekeeper who came out and (tried to) remove them--he said it was the largest hive that he had ever seen and that these were really 'good' bees. However, removing the bees didn't take. They stayed gone for nearly six months, but apparently the beekeeper had failed to get the queen and by the next summer it was clear that the bees were still there. At this point we all decided that my parents were meant to have bees and went back to ignoring them. This was about three years ago.
Apparently the hive has finally outgrown their space. Late last week, some of the bees swarmed. My parents don't know where that swarm went--they only know that it happened because one of the neighbors called to ask about it. Over the weekend, some more of the bees swarmed and ended up in the lemon tree. My parents had the beekeeper come get them. Yesterday, yet more of the bees swarmed. These ended up in a neighbor's front yard. My dad retrieved the bees and handed them over to the beekeeper.
Today, dad is apparently building a beehive into which he will attempt to relocate the remaining bees or yet another swarm. I'm not holding out a lot of hope, but if they have to have bees in the backyard, having access to the honey would be nice. Also, building a beehive is probably more fun than job hunting :).
They originally acquired the bees when, shortly after the completion of a new retaining wall (directly in front of the old retaining wall), a swarm settled down in the gap between the new and old walls. They ignored the bees for a year or so, maybe two years, and then got in touch with a beekeeper who came out and (tried to) remove them--he said it was the largest hive that he had ever seen and that these were really 'good' bees. However, removing the bees didn't take. They stayed gone for nearly six months, but apparently the beekeeper had failed to get the queen and by the next summer it was clear that the bees were still there. At this point we all decided that my parents were meant to have bees and went back to ignoring them. This was about three years ago.
Apparently the hive has finally outgrown their space. Late last week, some of the bees swarmed. My parents don't know where that swarm went--they only know that it happened because one of the neighbors called to ask about it. Over the weekend, some more of the bees swarmed and ended up in the lemon tree. My parents had the beekeeper come get them. Yesterday, yet more of the bees swarmed. These ended up in a neighbor's front yard. My dad retrieved the bees and handed them over to the beekeeper.
Today, dad is apparently building a beehive into which he will attempt to relocate the remaining bees or yet another swarm. I'm not holding out a lot of hope, but if they have to have bees in the backyard, having access to the honey would be nice. Also, building a beehive is probably more fun than job hunting :).