Chewed Newspaper and Good Weather

It looks like we successfully managed the swarm hive. They had eaten away most of the newspaper and they have been working hard to build new comb. We are hoping that the queen will start laying eggs in the bottom  of the hive because right now there is brood in the honey super. That couldn't be helped though considering that they swarmed and Matt had to put them into a new hive a.s.a.p. They looked good though and we decided to stop feeding the sugar syrup. Matt gave me a turn with the entrance feeder so they didn't have to quit the syrup cold turkey. 

Himalayan Blackberry. Photo by Cheryl Moorehead

It has finally warmed up and stopped raining! It is the middle of the blackberry bloom which is a huge source of nectar for the bees. Nectar is what they use to make honey. When it is raining, the nectar washes away. We are crossing our fingers that the bees can still get enough nectar from the blackberries. 

The bees crack me up when they cling together in chains like circus acrobats!

Matt's hive is doing well too. Matt did scrape off a queen cell. We only found that one, so hopefully the bees aren't getting any ideas . . . Matt also drilled a bee sized hole in his honey super so the bees could have another entrance and more ventilation. The picture was blurry so I will show it next time.

Scraping off burr comb

Lots of bees!