Bees, wonderful bees!!

[journey11]

That's awesome news, Thistlebloom! How's that for serendipity! Word-of-mouth was how I got into the bee business too.

 

[thistlebloom]

It's funny because I switched lines twice, always looking for the shortest one you know . I've been checking out that site you recommended, Beesource, and reading things I've had questions about, and it looks like a door just opened right up!
I'm a little bit excited...

 

[Collector]

Oh I'm so excited! Guess what?? I was checking out of Costco this a.m., and because I had snuck a" Bees and Beekeeping" book in with my groceries I got into a conversation with the checker.
He's an experienced beek and I mentioned that I would love to have bees but don't have a setup right now and he said just bring the lumber over and we could put one together! Then I asked if he sold bees and he said he gives them away! About 20 or so starters a year!
I got his number and I'm getting on his list! That was so amazing, it's possible that I may yet get a hive this year. Some of my other projects will get sidelined if this works out, but that's okay, it'll give me something to do in my dotage.

I always have more projects on my list than I can do.
when opportunities come up that are on my list I jump on them. My project lists are pretty flexible, thats why I have at least 5 going at a time usually. I just run around from job to job doing a little at a time on each. HMM, maybe it is not the most productive way to do it, OH WELL.

 

[journey11]

LOL, I hear ya, Collector! I have a wish-list as long as my arm, but I have to tackle one new thing per year or else I'll get overwhelmed and throw in the towel.

Didn't used to be that way....just since my kid came along! It's hard to just go and work my bees when I want or need to (or when the weather's cooperating). I always have to line up a babysitter first. A couple more years, she'll be older and it hopefully won't be so bad...

Thistlebloom, that's really something now! Truly was your lucky day! :coolsun

 

[thistlebloom]

Collector, I know exactly what you mean about your list. I seem to add more projects than I could ever reasonably accomplish. For every one I complete I add three more.

Journey, I know everyone says this, but cherish every second of your daughters childhood, every minute you can be with her, because it is gone like a mist so quickly.( And I'm sure you do. ) Things don't get done but ultimately it's only the time we have together that matters.

The thing I think about with this whole bee thing is how it really began about 36 years ago and now without actually making a hard plan, I'm stepping into a new season of sorts. It kind of amazes me.

 

[KevsFarm]

After losing my 4 hives this winter, i just installed two 4lb packages.This will be my 6th yrs as a beek, and i'm so happy to see bees flying around my hives again...!This time i'm trying Russians, i had Italians the last five yrs.I love having honeybees around.Good luck to you newcomers, honeybees are so cool...

 

[journey11]

Right on, Thistlebloom. I sure try to anyway. I'm hoping she'll be interested in them enough for me to get her a little beesuit and she can come along when she gets older.

 

[thistlebloom]

Right on, Thistlebloom. I sure try to anyway. I'm hoping she'll be interested in them enough for me to get her a little beesuit and she can come along when she gets older.

That would be awesome, Journey. My own kids didn't pick up on my interests, even though they were awfully good sports about hanging out with me, and they did have fun when they were pre-teenage, doing things I liked. They rode horseback with me on their own ponies, and gardened in their own garden plots, and we all hiked and camped and mountain biked, but with just a few exceptions they haven't been inclined to pursue any of that now.

But that's ok, I didn't expect to raise clones!

 

[JimWWhite]

We got our new bees this past Saturday and we've set up 3 new hives. We drove up to Brushy Mountain Bee Farm near Wilkesboro, NC which is only about an hour from Statesville and picked them up. When we got there that big storm was just blowing through. I thought there was no way we'd get them installed in the hives on Saturday but when we finally got back home at about 3pm the skies had cleared. Still windy but a sunny afternoon. Teresa is the official beekeeper in the family so she suited up and did all the work herself. I'm the photographer and the go-fer. 'Go get this... Go get that...' I'll post some new pics when I have an hour or so to download them and clean them up.

When we left Brushy Mountain it took almost 3 hours to get home because there was a very large oak tree that fell across the road coming down out of the mountains. We were the first to come along to find it and I was trying to figure out how to navigate home when this fellow in a pickup came along with a chainsaw in the back. I helped him cut it up, get it off the road, then load up some of the wood in his pickup. By the time we were done there were about 10 of us working to remove the tree.

 

[journey11]

Jim - boy, I sure would love to visit Brushy Mtn! I get all my stuff from them. I do have a friend who has relatives in that area. She said she could pick up my orders for me and save me some shipping (if I can plan it out ahead of time to coincide with her trips down there.)

I saw on the news that NC had some very bad storms this week, tornadoes even? What is up with this crazy spring weather? I'm starting to worry a little about my bees. They haven't had much opportunity to get out in the fields this past couple of weeks. The rain and high winds have knocked all the blooms off the fruit trees very quickly too. Good thing I let my backyard go to the dandelions...that is about all that is left right now!

I've got splits to do in the next week or so. I'm getting a little nervous. I am so far behind on everything right now. It just won't stop raining here.