Continuing from my 2018 report card in my prior post, another yearly tradition: my 2019 goals. This is, perhaps, overdue, it being mid-February. Although the beekeeping season ramps up with the weather, so I should be okay. I gave myself a B grade for 2018, which at the time I thought was a little generous. I am working to evolve how I involve myself in beekeeping, so my goals are perhaps reflective of this. I have also decided to establish “grading criteria” to make it easier to do my report card next year. As usual, we’ll see how it goes, feedback is appreciated, and… what will be, will be. Continue reading
Yearly Goals
A beekeeper should have a good memory
This being January, it is time for my prior year report card. This has been a good tradition to assess how I did against my goals, and it gets me thinking about what I might improve in the coming year. On my 2017 report card More than honey I gave myself a B, so time to see how we fared in 2018. Continue reading
Bee… or bee not, there is no try
It has been bitterly cold the last two weeks (at least by Virginia standards), often below 10 F (-12 C) overnight, and that is without the wind. As a young beekeeper, I worry that my hives will not handle the cold well. One or two may already have died out, for all I know. Unfortunately it is still January so we must wait. Nothing to do but publish my beekeeping goals for 2018. Continue reading
More than Honey
Happy New Year! Time for my thoughts on the past year; I will cover the year ahead in another post. Most situations can always be better or worse, and my beekeeping in 2017 was no exception. It is bitterly cold by our standards in the U.S. right now, so a fine time to curl up in my favorite chair and think about bees. Continue reading
In beekeeping one must learn to rise above principle
My hives catching the morning sun on Jan 8, 2017. My shadow is on the bottom left.
Given my prior post on goals for 2017, it seems only fair to revisit my goals from 2016, part of 1001 Arabian Mites. In the post I listed five areas to focus on in 2016. Now that we are firmly in 2017 I thought a brief report card is in order. Continue reading
Beekeeping comes but once a year
It is time for the much-anticipated annual post on my plans for the coming year. I did one for 2016, so this will be my second such post.
There is a difference between knowing something and experiencing something, perhaps theory versus practice. Agriculture, including livestock, is seasonal. There is a time for planting, a time to feed the cows hay, a time to keep the horses in the barn overnight, and a time for all the other activities that happen around a farm. We know this. Continue reading
It’s not spring until you can step on twelve bees
As you can see from the frame covered in capped brood, the bees have been busy. The flowers are slowly appearing in a steady procession of color. Last year I carefully wrote down the bloom dates of many plants around our yard, so this seems a good time to start this up again. I created a new page for this, and have an update on my spring goals as well. Continue reading
1001 Arabian Mites
Our Quince blooming on December 26, 2015
This started as my official end of year hive update, so now it has become my official beginning of the year hive update. Happy 2016 to one and all. The hives are officially closed up until spring is on the horizon. With our mostly warm days of late, this might come sooner than expected. We had some bushes start to bloom, especially our two Quince bushes, though the weather turned decidedly cold this week so winter seems to have finally arrived. Continue reading
Bees with eeb 