Beezy Day (har)
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Originally uploaded by ladyryokomuyoThis morning was the much awaited bee installation and work in the bee yard. It was a lot of fun, and not as nerve wracking as expected. The only moment of fright/concern was the first two or three fly-byes, I'd walked into the yard unveiled and could hear how close and how loud the bee was buzzing next to my ear. Luckily it didn't take long to realize bees are actually very gentle and curious creatures, and as with anything, if you respect them, they respect you. By the end of the day, I was pretty much used to getting inspected by bees and hand them landing all over me, as the little lady in the photo shows, they are perfectly content when left alone. I am however very glad J bought me a full beekeeper suit for my birthday, I can be a lot more confident walking out there knowing there is practically no way a bee can sting me aside from my hands (most keepers find gloves unwieldy)
There were some weather concerns at first, as you don't want to work a hive in the rain, as its possible for your bees to drown, or simply lose too much heat in the hive and die. Our patience was rewarded however, and once the weather cleared we were able to get into the hives and take a look.
When starting the course, the focus was on urban beekeeping, but most of the instructors seemed to have farms or some other large plots of land they kept their hives on. Today's excursion was at Conrad Hive and Honey which was only a twenty minute drive away. Granted, Barry has a lot more space than I've got, but his set up was really simple, and can be done to a smaller extent in just about any back yard.
I'm hoping that my beekeeping skills will develop throughout the year, and plan to set up at least two of my own hives next year. After stopping and checking out the moms yard, I think I could even expand to her property, between the apple tree, the grape vine and the random dandelions, its a bee haven over there.
For those interested in the rest of the photo set, including a really cool pic of the "nucs" the bees come in (literally, its a box filled with bees) click the image to view the rest of the set.