Parlor Tricks

All of the best action-adventure shows used to caution, "Don't try this at home."  Today's post falls into that category.  Unless you happen to be a mildly insane beekeeper, with a great supporting cast.

My observation hive is in the parlor of our old farmhouse style home.  A parlor is nice because doors can be closed to keep it clean for when guests arrive, or perhaps, to keep bees from infiltrating the entire house when the beekeeper chooses to tend the observation hive indoors on a 19 degree day, which is the beginning of the fun we had this weekend.

The story actually begins with a nice day last week, when the weather warmed into the high 50's and some beekeepers tended their hives.  One such beekeeper had difficulties, and accidentally killed her queen.  Not wanting to leave a queenless colony devouring the honey stores that she could otherwise save for new bees in the spring, she offered to give away her queenless bees.

Since the observation hive went into the fall with a very small cluster, the notion of boosting the population of potential brood-tending bees was enticing.  But if there was going to be brood, it would be nice to have more pollen cake than was stored in the hive.  I had frames from an outdoor hive that had been robbed, which were full of great pollen.  So in the morning, we closed those parlor doors, suited up, and opened the observation hive.  The bees were quite docile as we replaced empty frames with frames full of food.  Only a couple dozen bees were out of the hive, so we left the feeder hatch open for them to return.  Instead, the sun came out & suddenly the hive thought the room was summertime, and there were bees everywhere!  It wasn't until dusk that they migrated back, and even then some needed assistance finding their way. 

Meanwhile, we prepared a hive body with screened entrance to go accept the offered bees.  We drove to the lovely garden with the queenless hive, and there could not have been a prettier or sadder picture.  Picture perfect garden with picture perfect hive, stuffed full of healthy bees and honey.  Transferring the bees to our hive body was surprisingly like doing the same thing on a nice summer day, with fewer bees actually flying around.  We then bustled the bees into a box in the car & got them home to introduce them to the observation hive.

Our clever plan had been to pour the bees into the honey super, without frames in it, and set that on top of the hive, allowing the new bees to slowly move through the opening into the main hive.  But there were far more bees than would comfortably endure such a treatment.  So we used the same concept, but applied it to a large cardboard box with a hole in the bottom to line up with the opening in the top of the hive!  We transferred the frames from our hive, bees and all, and poured remaining bees, into that cardboard box. Then positioned it on the hive & sort of taped it in place.  The bees got the idea and overnight, there was a mass migration from the box down into the hive!  How glorious to see all of those bees in the observation hive!

Even more rewarding was when I saw my queen this morning, healthy & happy, surrounded by a full court, going along laying eggs. 

Once most of the bees were out of the cardboard box, we reverted to Plan A, and moved the remaining bees into the honey super, which is now back on the hive, allowing extra space for the nice bee population.