Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: Kathyp on November 28, 2006, 05:51:27 PM

Title: bees in the snow
Post by: Kathyp on November 28, 2006, 05:51:27 PM
the bees were out flying between snow showers.  with the sun on the hive, it got all the way up to 39 degrees!  of course the sun only lasted a short time and back came the snow showers.

i thought it was kind of interesting.  i did not think that bees would fly at such low temps....although i'm sure it's warmer during the sun breaks inside the hive.....
Title: Re: bees in the snow
Post by: Cindi on November 29, 2006, 09:57:15 AM
Wow, you are lucky to have your bees on your deck (right?) where you can watch them so closely all the time.  Great day. Cindi
Title: Re: bees in the snow
Post by: Kathyp on November 29, 2006, 12:17:29 PM
no, my bees are way up the other end of the property.  since in still have horses and have to do all that horse stuff, i spend a lot of time out in the bad weather.  there is more work to do when the weather sucks!  :shock: i just went out to check yesterday to make sure that the snow was not blocking the hive entrance. 
Title: Re: bees in the snow
Post by: Mici on November 29, 2006, 12:43:20 PM
erm...when it snows, temperatures are a bit higher than usual. at least around here, and i think it's like this everywhere. snow is water, water rises from seas, in the summer, ciklons bring rain and reliefe from hot weather, in winter time, they bring warmer sea air.
Title: Re: bees in the snow
Post by: Brian D. Bray on November 29, 2006, 09:01:01 PM
Right now the temperature is hanging around 18 degrees Farenhiet for the 3rd straight day.  If I hadn't lost my hives to the windstorm recently I'd be running extension cords and terrarium heaters out to the hives right now.  The break from the cold weather is suppose to be warmer temps leading to rain.  Rain on top of snow usually equates to more flooding--something we had less than a month ago. 
western Washington is really taking it in the shorts this winter.  I happens about every 10 years.  The last bad winter like this was in 1996.
Title: Re: bees in the snow
Post by: Kathyp on November 29, 2006, 11:20:43 PM
boy do i remember '96.  we have cold east wind through the gorge with rain coming in.  that's usually a freezing rain event.  lots of fun :-).  the good thing is that it's supposed to warm and dry some after this.  you have the same cold air hanging over you that cindi and i have.  she started it!!   :lol:
Title: Re: bees in the snow
Post by: Cindi on November 30, 2006, 12:23:09 AM
Quote from: kathyp on November 29, 2006, 11:20:43 PM
boy do i remember '96.  we have cold east wind through the gorge with rain coming in.  that's usually a freezing rain event.  lots of fun :-).  the good thing is that it's supposed to warm and dry some after this.  you have the same cold air hanging over you that cindi and i have.  she started it!!   :lol:

Ha,ha,  Kathy, very funny, like I started the weather that makes one's head spin!! LOL.  Where on earth did it actually start.  Our weather seems to have some of the same attributes.  I heard that we are in a La Ninja (spelling) situation, I think that did occur back around 1996, I can't actually say for sure, but I think it was around then, but I know it brings rain.  Then I think the following year El Ninjo (spelling) comes.  What does that mean?  I think that it is for sure Spanish, I should ask my brother in law, who is Chilean, but I am too lazy and when I see him I forget to ask stuff.  It is supposed to warm tomorrow a little bit then then dip down to -15 celsius, I don't actually know that that equates to in F, but I am sure it is pretty darn cold.  Hold it, I am going to do the math and figure it out, hold on....this may take some good time....OK I got it it is 5 degrees F.  I guess that is pretty darn cold, considering 32 is freezing.  Right now the masses of snow is starting to melt and it is freezing now a little as it is melting and man do we have massive icicles forming, the ones that I see off my bedroom French door are nothing short of about 24 inches long and about 2 or three inches thick at the base, I don't know why they are so thick, but they are.  Yikes!!!!  I remember in October of 1994, the day that my first grandson was born, the wind was so horrible here and so freezing cold that we had a power outage for over 3 days.  It was extraordinarily cold and it was some very hard times. We also had snow then (out of season for sure) and we had to haul the hay for the horses on the snow on a black garbage bag up to the barns cause we could not get a vehicle to bring the hay close enough. We got through it though, all a little stronger and wishfully wiser.  Great day. Cindi