Getting ready

-Posted by Isaac

I’m torn this week. The bigger deal is Grandma Krieger turning 90 and the surprise party we threw in the old folks home. Complete with bad live music. That’s what’s fresh on my mind, but I told you last week I’d fill you in on what we’re doing with the bees.

So for now, we’ll stick with that— Our girls are going to the almonds! California bound in two weeks. No more nasty Ohio weather for most of them. About 70% will be put on a truck, hauled 2400 miles, then spend the next three months in the sun. Almond pollen in February.

In fact, they were originally scheduled to be leaving this week, but I backed the trucker up because I didn’t think we could get everything done in time. Turns out, we were fine. Oh well.

So let me fill you in on the prep.

In late October after the fall honey came off, I started gathering.

Every morning I’d head out before daylight, pick up a yard or two and get the bees back home before it got too warm.

At first it seemed like a big task with 42 out yards, but looking back, it went pretty smooth and quick.

After two weeks, we had accumulated around 600 hives.

This gave Lafe and his supervisor plenty to do.

While he worked on painting and fixing (Got to have them looking good for the big dance!), I spent a few hours a day checking, feeding and shuffling.

Every hive heading out needs to be heavy (plenty of food) and big (plenty of bees). Since this is my first time, I’m trying to error on the side of caution. In almond pollination, it’s all for naught if the hives don’t make “grade.”

Grade is a minimum of eight frames covered with bees.

My own criteria is a top box full of bees and the bottom box at least half full.

The weaker hives will stay here and I’ll try to nurse them through the winter. At least now they’ll all be at home and I won’t have to fight my way through the mud to the out yards.

After the checking, I gave them one last shot of probiotic.

Snake oil? Who knows… but it makes me feel good. So that counts for something.

Our last big job is cleaning the pallets.

California won’t let you in if they find strange things riding with the bees. I’m not sure what it would take for them to actually reject a load, but I don’t want to push the envelope.

Anyway, for about an hour a day, it’s not a bad job. Every pallet, every hive gets a look. Sometimes I see something that jogs a specific memory.

Here’s one that got chewed on…

….by goats.

That box happened to be in a stack of dead-outs by the goat pen during the winter of 2013-14. We lost 70% of the bees that year. There was talk of me needing to go back to teaching school. I remember finding that group of chewed-on boxes and suddenly feeling way over my head with this beekeeping thing. And also feeling really pissed at the goats.

Now that box is heading to the almonds. I guess we’ve come a long way.

I’m still feeling way over my head with this beekeeping thing. But the goats get a pass this year.