These are little homes of honey bee hope. At least that is how I think of hives in this time of honey bee fragility. As the seasons first snow begins to fall outside my window I'm thinking of the beekeepers I know in different areas of Western WA and hoping the predicted temperatures, in the mid to low teens for some of the nights this week, do no harm. Each has struggled with the challenges bee health has seen in the last few years.
These hives in the countryside near Chehalis, WA provide honey, wax and pollination to the nearby gardens; fashioned in plantings commonly found in the 1800's. What magical little soft bodied, winged workers bees are. The Egyptians held bees in godly stead. Considering how critical bees are to tree, ground and bush crops, they may not have been too far off the mark. On this snowy evening, I'm just thinking...give bees a chance!
6 comments:
I feel your angst. Bees used to be everywhere, buzzing around, making life go round. Try as I might (as do others around me), we can't get the bees to return, save for one or two. It's sad. But another year approches and hope reigns.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.
Hi Kittie,
I agree, hope reigns.
The person I know who is the most involved with beekeeping tells me, though his hives were mostly wiped out over the last few years, as with flu resistance and other things, the strongest seem to have survived.
By adding other strong bees, through purchase, they were able to rebuild enough to get a pretty good yield this year. It certainly tastes good. He has also been doing honey extractions for other folks and they seem to have had pretty good yields this year as well. Keeping my fingers crossed anyway.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family as well Kittie. I can't BELIEVE it's this week!
Hugs,
Chris
Love this post. Bees seem to be akin to the canary in the coal mine idea, telling us when things aren't so good... Nice to see that it may be swinging around again. Like your photo of the hives covered with little metal roofs. Happy Thanksgiving, Chris.
I have been observing the bee population in our area over the past few years... I have added some flowering shrubs, like Russian Sage, and Cat Mint, and we always get a large crop of Brown-eyed Susans in the summer... lots of humming bees have been in residence! Don't know where their hives are, but they are regular visitors to the property, so I feel hopeful...
Teresa,
Bees do seem to be just like those canary indicators. There seems to be a tug of war going on with the why aspect of their decline. Early talk was a type of mite, then discussions popped up about chemicals and on and on.
It would sure be nice if mother nature gave them a break weather wise. Hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving!
Hugs, Chris
Hi Judy,
That is so good to hear. We have tried to nurture the plants we have that draw them as well. And when no one is watching I keep my fingers crossed as well. What ever works!
Hugs, Chris
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