Bad, Bad, Deer!

Mid-April  

The new queens are laying, so except for cutting away some unusual comb (some of it with drone brood) I left them alone.  This unusual comb (a second layer attached to the same top of a frame) results from the way the queen's box is hung between frames when the colony is first introduced.  They have about 3-4 days to build comb with the box hanging between the frames.  The frames are normally kept at bee-space width (normally around 3/8"), but the little box the queen is transported in is too large to maintain that optimal space between the frames in which she is hanging.  Bee space can be anything from about 1/4" to 3/8".  Any thing larger and they create extra comb (as is the case with what I cut out).  Anything smaller and they will fill the space with propolis.

Hive Names?

One day my wife suggested we should name the colonies.  "OK, how 'bout 1, 2, and 3".  She gave me a "no, silly" look so I then suggested "Tom, Dick, and Harry".  I can't begin to describe the look she gave me then.

Blackberries

What a great surprise!

A week ago I found a very large blackberry bush hidden along the west side of the little creek that carries the pond overflow.  This bush is about twice as tall as I am and as big as our present kitchen - that's not saying much but it is a large bramble.  It was in full bloom and the bees were all over it.  I was out walking one day trying to envision what we should do with the property to improve the quail habitat (jumped a covey of about 20 birds one day), honey production, and overall beauty.  I think a few northern red oaks will improve the fall colors around here, it isn't hard to improve on brown.  The blackberry bush caught my eye because it was the only thing blooming on that side of the property.  We are looking forward to some blackberry syrup, jam and cobbler.  Next spring will be a good time to plant some quail habitat and more deciduous trees.

Deer Damage

Bad, Bad, Deer!

Yesterday, April 28th, I cultivated the sunflower patch and the strawberry patch, which really needed it.  I was very disappointed to find that deer had been eating the tops off of the sunflowers (about 50% had been chomped down a bit).  Since the deer were thoughtful enough to leave us some leaves on each plant I have hope they will recover.  I installed some deer repellent around the sunflowers and strawberry plants.  I planted at least 75 more sunflower seeds today.  I hope the repellant works.