Hi folks!
I have 30 fruit trees and a veggie garden in Massachusetts that desperately needed pollinators--in 2009, my trees all bloomed beautifully, but produced hardly any fruit. We have some local bumblebees, but clearly not enough. Started beekeeping spring 2010 with an Italian package in a Langstroth hive. Everything seemed to be going swimmingly with a great harvest in 2010: bushels of peaches and plums (I started the bees too late to catch the apple blossoms), plenty of veggies. Everything seemed to be going swimmingly until today, when I found a whole bunch of dead bees all over the orchard (maybe a hundred). Being new at this, I promptly freaked out, and found this place via Google--where thankfully a bunch of other wonderful people were asking the same question. It's a nice day here, 45F and sunny, so I popped open the hive roof expecting to see a bunch of dead bees or a smallish cluster, and instead found a freakin' HUGE cluster the size of a beach ball! They et up all the stores (3 full deeps I could barely lift, had to be 130 lbs. at least) and were right at the top. Putting on some food today, while the weather holds.
Seems like this is a great place to come for advice and opinions. Thanks ever so much for soothing my panic attack already!
It's great to hear that your bees are doing well Roslind and welcome to the forums :-D
When you get a chance go ahead and fill in your location in your profile. That way we won't have to keep asking where you are.
Scott
Hello Rosiland.
I know a bit about bees, but little about chickens.
My first year with chickens. ;)
Welcome to the forum.
Thanks guys!
BjornBee, this will be my fourth year with chickens of my own, and my family always had a flock when I was growing up. I keep a laying flock of various heritage & ornamental breeds--Cochin & half-Cochin mutts, EEs, Barnevelder, Welsummer, bunch of Silkies, Silver & Gold Duckwing Phoenix and just hatched a pair of Yokohama longtails this year. I used to keep Buttercups too, but when the last one died of egg-binding, I threw in the towel on Mediterraneans. If you have any questions, let me know and I will do my best to help!