#dai's bees

[bookscorpion]

A look inside the hive - our hive has a window that’s normally covered. It’s super useful for quick checks without disturbing the bees. These combs visible here are still empty, but brood and honey production is in full swing in the older combs.

[ooksaidthelibrarian]

It's hot and the bees are beating their wings to ventilate the hive

[bookscorpion]

A drone, a male bee. The worker bee flew right into him and fell over...

Drones are part of a hive from spring to midsummer. They fly out regularly to look for queens to mate with. After mating season is over, they are no longer fed (they cannot feed themselves) and not let into the hive after flying around outside. At some point, the workers kill or throw out any drones left in the hive. This is called Drohnenschlacht in German, drone battle.

[bookscorpion]

Library bees

[bookscorpion]

Bees!

[ooksaidthelibrarian]

Can you please tell your bee friends that I love them and thank them for their work? Thank you. (Also thank you for sharing them with us!)

:) I’ll be sure to tell them when I go check on them next week - I always talk to them because the bees need to know what’s going on!

[ooksaidthelibrarian]

I just spent almost a hundred Euros on plants and seeds for a garden that isn't even my own. It belongs to a good friend who allows me to house my bees there (I do hope I'll be able to get a awarm again this year) and who let's me putter around his garden. I already planted all kinds of bee-friendly plants I got from a colleague and now I'be bought seeds for wildflowers, three different Buddlejas (aka Butterfly bush) and about ten bee and butterfly-friendly species of perennial plants. They should arrive some time next week, I hope I can spend my free day on Friday digging in the garden. I also need to clean up the hive and see that it's ready for a new swarm.

[ooksaidthelibrarian]

I'm still not over losing my bees. I couldn't have prevented it, but man, I miss them. Can't wait for late spring and swarm season.