MORE ABOUT HONEY BEES

As you know Mickey became a Bee Keeper last spring. You can read all about it on my June 6th post when the hive he ordered arrived.

Soon after his first hive arrived and he had set it up and gotten his bees he knew he wanted another hive so he began building it himself this time.

(click on all pictures to enlarge)
Here is the almost completed hive he built in his work shop. On the saw horses you will see the Base. This is the large white piece on the bottom. On top of that is the Super. Inside the Super you can see 8 Frames. It is on these Frames the bee's actually build their home, and raise their young, known as The Brood Chamber.

Leaning up against the saw horses is the sheet metal cover which will go on top on the completed Hive.

Setting on the floor is another Super, that will be added when needed as the Bee's increase their Colony size.

Last Friday Mickey extracted the honey, for the first time, from his very own hive.

We are thrilled with our wonderful tasting fresh, pure, honey.

"My son, eat honey, because it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste." Proverbs 24:12 Amplified Bible

Well, I'm coming to learn that being a wife of a Bee Keeper can be a very exciting life!! Saturday, right after lunch, Mickey comes in all excited saying, "I think my bee's are trying to swarm." Now what this means is.....some (not all) are trying to run away from home!! In other words, he is about to lose part of his bees. He quickly calls Ronnie to come help and they get this group of bee's and put them in the new hive. Thank goodness he had a new hive built and ready.

Now this Bee Keeper's wife (me) was not about to get out into THAT and take pictures.....so we have none :o( Let me tell you, it was quite an interesting and exciting ordeal (as I observed out of the safety of my French door!!).

Then yesterday Mickey & Ronnie went to get a swarm of bee's from a man's house that had called and wanted them extracted. Both Ronnie and John (our other Church family Bee Keeper) get a lot of calls to remove unwanted bee's from peoples homes because they are well know in this community for doing this. Ronnie had called Mickey to see if he wanted to help with this and then add these bee's to his second hive

The above three shots show them working to get the bee's in the new hive.

Here are the two bee hives, the purchased one on the right and the one he built on the left, loaded with bee's and ready to be wintered over until next spring. Please note the glass jars attached to each hive. Mickey is filling these daily with a mixture of sugar and water so the bee's can build out the comb for the new Brood and their winter honey storage to feed on.

My Show & Tell tomorrow will be about melting the honey comb!!!!

Yet another exciting adventure.