Our bees; thus ends season two, to be continued in the spring.
Our first frost was this past week, and most of our goldenrod is no longer blooming. Our bees had been happily storing the goldenrod nectar for winter, and we had treated them for mites. So, it was time to see what they were up to. In the photo above, Mikkel is holding a frame that the bees have filled with honey and capped with wax, for use during the winter. We were happy to see that they had an amazing amount of stores for the winter.
Thus ended our second season with our bees, and we have learned so much. We still have so very much more to learn, but we feel comfortable at this point with moving forward with expanding our apiary in the spring.
Our pollinators, both native and our bees, are so important to us on our farm. We leave wild blackberry, goldenrod, dandelions, and assorted other pollen and nectar sources to grow as they please over several acres, and we mow paths between and around them. In addition, we have planted clover, and many trees, grasses, and flowers for our native pollinators in other areas, including our dedicated pollinator habitat. Then, of course, we appreciate our pollinators helping us with our elderberries, blueberries, and assorted other fruit shrubs and trees. We really feel that having the benefit of all of these pollinator plants helped smooth our learning curves as beginning beekeepers. Our bees have had an abundance of food through all the seasons, and have thrived.
You don’t have to have any of this to be successful as a beekeeper, though. We feel like it was easier for us in the beginning, due to the bees having everything they needed close at hand. However, many people raise bees successfully in subdivisions, and even in cities. If you’re considering raising bees in your area, now is the time to find a local beekeeping group and local classes, and to read, research, and learn. Having bees has been an amazing experience for us. Initially, learning how to take care of bees is intense, but when you see honey pouring into a bottle for the first time, from frames you have harvested, every moment of panicked research becomes worthwhile.
As we opened the hives for the last time until spring, we talked to our bees. We thanked them for the honey they gave us this season, and wished them a safe and easy winter. We know anything can happen, and even more experienced beekeepers lose hives over the winter. All we can hope is that we did everything they need to make it through. To be continued….
