Small steps toward winter preparation - 9/24/15

I went into the hive today to see how things are looking.  I still have bees, which is a good thing, but I don't see much brood and I couldn't find the queen either.  But the hives feel pretty heavy so hoping there is enough food in there for the winter...but am not really that sure so I've made more sugar syrup that I will give them.

I added on the mouse guard.  Last year, I wondered why  it kept ending up on the ground until I saw a video that showed it being screwed in.  So today, I screwed it in to keep it in place.

I also added a super with the cedar pillow for some insulation, even though nights aren't terribly cold yet.  Nights are still in the 40's here in southern Vermont.  But a cold spell could happen any minute so I wanted to be prepared.

A bit later, I will add the roofing paper around the hive for added insulation and will pack a few bales of hay around the hive too.  I generally add a piece of plywood over the top cover too to prevent the front of the hive from getting rain or snow hitting it.  I cleaned out a lot of old wood from my basement this year so hope I've kept a good board for this purpose.

So basically I'm done for the season.  I am certain I'll be purchasing a Nuc for next spring.  I still want to grow to two hives so starting with a Nuc as opposed to a package of bees will give me a better start toward that goal.

I also still have the electric fence in operation.  I will keep that going until I'm sure the bears are in hibernation.

Sept. 6 - Flower gardens helping one healthy hive

The one hive appears to be doing really good during today's checkup.  I wanted to inspect all of it.  Here's what I found:

1.  The syrup in the top box was not empty and it looked to have a sort of mold skimming the top so I dumped it and added fresh syrup.

2. The next box down, the white deep, was pretty heavy with honey, capped and uncapped. And lots of pretty yellow and orange pollen in there too.  This is good news since that's what they'll be eating all winter.

3.  The bottom deep is coming along.  I saw some of the frames perfectly laid out with capped honey on the top  and brood and pollen below.  I saw plenty of larvae on some of the frames.  I hope there's enough time to see these turn into bees before cold weather hits.

It's probably a good time to take a look at the bee's surroundings at the end of this summer here in southern Vermont.  Of course the bees don't all stay close to home to gather nectar and pollen...they'll travel up to 5 miles and somehow find their way back.

Some of the golden colored pollen comes from these sunflowers and saw a bunch of my bees on them yesterday.  Down the hill is loaded with goldenrod...not fun for the sinuses but great for the bees.

I didn't see any pink pollen in the hive but something is helping them bloom as lush as they are.

In front of the hive are a few wood chairs where I like to sit in the evening and watch bee action. Finally the morning glories are blooming.  Not as lush as I'd like to see them but each year, it seems better and better.

To the right of the driveway is my spring garden where there are daffodils, tulips sometimes, if I keep planting them, vinca, violets, and hyacinths. I'm in the process of dressing it up for the fall with potted marigolds, sedum, potted zinias and corn stalks.  When pumpkin are ready a few will go here as well. (Fence hides compost bins and it's made of misc wood lengths and widths. I saw it done on TV and loved the idea of recycling the wood.)

One of three drying racks for the calandula that is growing in the garden. I will dry it, use some, and sell the rest on ebay later on.

This is the area where I let the goldenrod take over behind the fence.  There's a hill there and lots of goldenrod like it, as well as other yellow fall flowers.  On this side of the fence, there is a new crop of dianthus that I started this year.  I have a few other colors that were elsewhere in the yard and I'll add them here. In the spring, there is a beautiful old fashioned rosebush in bloom here.  If I'm lucky, another rosebush will be there in the spring, the Cecil Brunner rose.  It doesn't like our winters here, and I often lose it, even when insulating it with leaves etc.  I have been nursing one in a pot this summer so if I can keep it alive, it will go here at the fence in the spring.  I may try housing it in the unheated greenhouse which should be warmer than the ground outside.

So, for now, there seems to be enough food the the bees, in my yard and outside of it.