When I started keeping bees and put up my bee yard, my plan has been to adorn the fencing with various bee/nature related themed art. I had Buddha on the ground and the Virgin Mary to keep him company, but the fencing has remained pretty bare. One piece I wanted Read more…
The varroa mite (aptly named varroa destructor) is a parasitic mite that attacks honey bees. It attaches to the bee larva while it’s developing and feeds on the bee’s “blood” (hemolymph). This weakens the bee and makes it susceptible to infections and diseases. Originally from Asia, it came to the Read more…
It’s that time again! Time for me to tell you what’s happening with my prostate cancer (PCa) journey. I post these PSAs not only to keep my friends and family informed but also as a resource for anyone else who has the misfortune to get a prostate cancer diagnosis. This Read more…
My brother and his kids were visiting from Rhode Island last week. They have not had any experience around bees, so I figured I’d give them a whole hearted introduction by harvesting some honey while they were here. My niece was particularly uncomfortable by the idea of bees buzzing about. Read more…
We are blessed with a wonderful young family for neighbors. Now that our kids are (mostly) out of the house and on to other interests, I’ve been using the neighbor kids as surrogates to practice my grandparenting skills (although I hope the real thing is still a ways off). In Read more…
Last week, my youngest son and I went out to Oregon and Washington to look at colleges. Patrick is going to be a high school senior (or rising senior as they all say now), so he’s been making a list of schools he’s interested in. I have a good friend Read more…
I’ve been pretty impressed with how well my colonies have been building straight combs this year. In a top bar hive, it’s good to check frequently to make sure that the combs are built straight. Since there is no sheet of foundation for them to build on, like in most Read more…