You can see the bees flying around the fireplace chimney and the bush. They are just beginning their swarm!
The funny part is, my neighbor had just dropped by after seeing me with my new weed eater. The same owner owns his home and mine, and the vegetation has been out of control for years. We shared yard work stories, and he shared the story of the bee swarm his wife witnessed last summer. No less than 2 hours later, Phoenix and I found ourselves standing in the middle of it.
The swarm at about 7am this morning.
The kids and I all piled into my bedroom to watch out our window. The buzzing was so incredibly loud we could hear it through the window. Slowly thousands upon thousands of bees crossed our small yard and starting swarming around our outdoor fireplace. I thought they were going to take up residence in the chimneys, but instead they found a nearby bush. By the end of the day, they were packed tightly into a little, OK, BIG swarm.
Local beekeeper Brad attempting to drop the swarm into the box.
I called a local beekeeper who was more than willing to come on over and capture the bees. It’s his first year capturing swarms and he seems to really like his work. He answered some of our questions and amazed us with his bravery! Look mom! No gloves!
Success!
The job seemed relatively easy for him. I’m so happy we called him. He closed up the box and put a weight on top. It seems that he was successful in capturing the Queen since all the bees have now left the branches.
The bee box. Waiting for Brad to pick it up this evening.
I have this nagging feeling to open the box and look inside! But I won’t. I’ll wait for Brad to come this evening and pick up his new bees. This has certainly sparked an interest in all of us, and we may be setting up to keep bees in the very near future. If anyone has suggestions on books, websites, beginner supplies, or anything else they’d like to share, please do!
!!!
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Wow! pretty amazing stuff!
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I’m so jealous!! I wish I had some links for you but beekeeping is only something I’ve flirted with so far. It simultaneously scares the crap out of me and excites me. Maybe when we make it your way you’ll be ready for your own hive and we can help!
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Wow, very interesting and what a great experience for you all.
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Heather Reply:
May 13th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
I’ve been researching all day! We’re pretty excited at the prospect of getting our OWN bees!
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I just heard something about beekeeping on KUOW’s gardening show. They said “Beekeeping for Dummies”, believe it or not, is a good book to start with.
There are other kinds of bees, too, if you’re thinking more about pollination and less about honey. There are PNW native bees, called mason bees, that are solitary instead of hive-forming; you drill holes for them to lay eggs in (or you can get a nesty-thing with the holes already drilled). You might ask your local nursery about them if you are interested.
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Fun! When we lived in Bellingham, we had a swarm the day before our house went on the market. Oh and they moved into our house, through a hole in one of the boards. Good times.
I’m intrigued by bees and the idea of becoming a beekeeper someday. I have a friend who is doing this in Alaska. But first I want some girls.
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Wow -that photo of the swarm at 7am is crazy! What a cool experience!
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How cool! No links to share but I know our local 4H extension office has information available and has had a bee keeper come in for talks before. I would love to have bees one day.
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I want to get bees! So many people that live around me get them during the summer and I’m jealous. I know nothing about them, but then again, I didn’t know much about anything I wanted to accomplish when we moved here. Someday I will have to get bees!
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