A View of Today

It wasn't until I sat down and looked back at the day that I realized how many little bits of "nature" had affected me today, even though I didn't go outside until late afternoon.

I talked to my mother this afternoon, she was ecstatic about the beautiful weather we're having, and excited to tell me that she and Dad had seen honeybees and blooms all over their yard today.

My oldest daughter spent the night with friends. Today, they went down to the river to look at how high it had gotten from all the rain we'd had (yesterday, some spots in town were underwater).
I phoned a friend, and we ended up talking about ponds and fishing. I have a great-aunt and great-uncle who fish together; wherever they live, they like to have a good pond nearby. I love to fish. I could stare at a bobber or the ripples on the water for hours, plenty of time for contemplation, no pressure to do anything else. It would be a nice way to spend old age. My husband doesn't like the idea of actually catching fish, but he'd come along to read a book. He's got the idea, he just doesn't know it. You can fish without bait or a hook, you know. ;)

I mowed some of the yard with the new reel mower. It's no harder to push than a gas mower, and works well, but the bolt that holds the little back wheel on keeps working its way out, so I guess I'll have to dig through the toolbox for something I can use to tighten it. The kids were fascinated with the whole thing, and followed me around, asking questions and pointing out spots that I'd missed. I explained the scissor-like cutting action, that it was a bit like giving the grass a haircut, and they let me know that the grass was thanking me, the barber. Apparently I couldn't hear the grass, so they translated, before running off to build more "anthills" under the swingset.

After we watched three deer cross the road, I took them walking to look for any signs of wild asparagus on a hill near our house. Nothing yet, but we'll keep checking. I collected seeds from the fall plants a couple of years ago, and I didn't know if they were still viable, but the ones I sowed this winter are germinating! Long, white radicles are reaching out and pushing into the soil. I wonder if the spears on the hill will come up at the same time as the sprouts. Hmm...

On the walk, we stopped to look at tiny spring flowers, and when we found acorns, the 6yo remembered last summer's acorn collection. Did we still have it? Sure! So when we got back, he decided that he and his little sister would plant them all, throughout the yard. I didn't put up too much of a protest; they're probably dried out, so I don't expect little oak trees everywhere. But you never know!

While they dug and planted, I sat down at an outdoor table and leafed through Eliot Coleman's Four-Season Harvest, thinking about all of those seeds and roots sitting in my kitchen, waiting to go into the ground. I heard a clicking noise and looked up to see my first bat of the year, fluttering around above our heads. There was still a good amount of light, and there was a reddish tint to its fur where last bit of sunlight was hitting it. Click, click. Click, click. That was interesting, I've never heard one do that before. Another bat showed up before long, but it was smaller, darker, flapped its wings more...frantically? I watched them swoop and dive for a while, that sudden stop-then-dart thing they do, then wider and wider circles over an area.

You know how, on summer nights, kids like to throw rocks in the air, then watch a bat dive down to follow it for a bit? I got a silly notion, and wondered if there were other ways to play with a bat. Would waves of any sort interfere with a bat's perception? How about cell phone signals? Don't laugh, it was the only thing I had on me. Okay, so just for the record, cell phone tones, at least, don't seem to send out anything particularly interesting, based on limited study. LOL I do wonder about waves in general, though, and got the idea it could make the basis of an interesting short story. Bats driven mad by personal devices invade city! ANYway.

So, I'll skip all of the birds, the spring peepers singing, the way the cat's pawprints look in the pressed-flat, wet clay spots in our yard. It's been a good day, with exhilarating air, and almost drowse-inducing sunshine. A day to be outside.

And a bit ago, I found the 6yo using scissors to give the grass a trim!

I'll Try It Again: Keeping Bees

Okay, this one's getting started, because now it's official - a few minutes ago, I ordered a package of bees, to be shipped on April 29th. Woo hoo! I got an adrenaline rush, just making the call.

*gulp*

Okay, so now on to the details. I have my old hive, which has been damaged a bit by exposure and high winds. It's still usable, but I need a few new pieces, and I think I'll give it a fresh coat of white paint, even though the bees won't mind the grey of weathered wood.

I've also been doing some reading, trying to catch up with the current state of beekeeping. The big concerns last time were varroa and tracheal mites, treating your hives for them,and the concern that feral honeybees were disappearing across the country.

Those are still a concern, but now there's something bigger: CCD, Colony Collapse Disorder. Unexplained disappearance or dwindling of hives, on a large scale, and showing up everywhere. Coincidentally, in the UK, they're calling it "Marie Celeste syndrome" (that's the third time that name has come up for me this week, including on this board!).

Tons of theories flying, no one thing pinpointed yet. Is it the mites? Is it a new virus? Is it that they're foraging in pesticide-laden fields? With GMO crops? There does seem to be some sort of immunity compromise. But again, nothing conclusive. Then, other factors:

- It's more prevalent in commercial hives than in smaller hobbyists' yards.

- Beekeepers managing their hives organically are not reporting issues with CCD.

That has added other potential influences. Commercial keepers are more likely to feed their overwintering bees with HFCS (high-fructose corn syrup) than sugar syrup or honey (not to mention the fact that the corn used may be GM).

Commercial hives are moved often, being rented out to orchards and other farmers who need the pollination. This stresses the bees.

Non-organic beekeepers use more chemicals, pesticides, medication, etc.

Something that I didn't know, and found interesting: The standard starter combs used in the industry, [url=http://bushfarms.com/bees.htm]have larger openings than that drawn in a natural hive[/url]. This apparently produces larger bees, as well as leaving more time for mites to get into a cell before it is capped off. Organic keepers are now switching to the smaller cell size.

Many keepers are now using plastic starter frames, rather than wood and beeswax. Bees sometimes have a hard time adapting to the plastic. I tried a couple of frames last time, but the bees never really built on them.

And organic management means being far enough from pesticide-treated fields to avoid having it show up in the honey.

There are many other common practices that might be factors. Some may even be reducing the quality or quantity of propolis that the bees are producing - their natural sealant, used to protect the hive from germs or pests.

It already suits my nature to lean toward the idea that the more naturally you manage a hive, as with most things, the better results you are likely to have. Hopefully there is still room in our chemical-laden landscape to do that. Looks like I will have to do some digging into this idea of organic/natural beekeeping.

Spastica said:

Holy C**p! They send you bees in the mail? A box containing 12,000 bees?

That’s insane! And so, so funny! I can’t even imagine the postal workers… "Whatever you do, don’t drop it…" "Wha? Sh*t! Sh*t! Sh*t!"

I can’t stop laughing. That image is so funny.

The cool thing is that a swarm of bees, whether in a box, or hanging from your porch railing or from a tree branch, is actually not as dangerous as messing with a hive of bees. When you see one, you know they are on the move, looking for a new home. They are usually full of honey (or sugar water in the case of the box), stored up for the journey (and for building new honeycomb in their next home), and that keeps them pretty calm. Same reason you use smoke to work in a hive; something about it, possibly the instinct to evacuate the hive in the case of a fire, sets them to gorging themselves on honey, which keeps them busy, then calm.

Ever see one of those crazy people who make a "beard" of bees, or cover their head with them? Those bees are in a swarm. They’re just hanging out in a cluster, waiting for one of a few scout bees to come back and tell them she’s found the spot for a new hive.

If you do see a swarm hanging out around your house, and you’re worried about them building, say, in the walls of your house (or even if it’s just freaking you out), you can call a local beekeeper to come and get them. They are usually glad to come, because they can take the bees back to their own beeyard, to set them up in a new hive.

You’d also be doing the bees a favor; due to various mites and viruses, honeybees are in danger of being wiped out in the wild.