Honey Bees

Wednesday, our dwarf Rex and professional composter. Photo courtesy Lisa McDonnell.We're so excited about this new bee venture we can hardly stand it!

We're getting ready to plant our annuals garden, which we do every fall in southwest Florida. The odd seasons take some getting used to. It might even be stranger than one's first year someplace like Argentina, which is going into spring and summer now. We have to keep reminding ourselves it's the subtropics, with very Caribbean seasons.

For us autumn means dragonflies come by the thousands in successive waves of color and eat every mosquito in a mad dash to reproduce before they die. It's a beautiful dance. Autumn means the sea breezes pick up, and waft the now pleasant warmth through the house. The rains let up, though this year has been wet. And the frangiapanis bloom, smelling of candy and sweet coconut. And it means we're buying squashes and apples while planning what would be spring crops up north and eating local mangoes. Dizzying.

This year we'll be planting many more flowers for our new arrivals.

We used to live in Hell's Kitchen in NYC and the community garden there had bees. I think that's where we caught the bug, so to speak. Their honey was so good, tasting of the apple tree, the alliums with their garlicky bite, and all the super sweet lilies from the surrounding flower shops. So many layers of flavor, a great analog to the city. I actually really like honey with a little onion spark in it! 

Our garden is in a wild state, with the beds needing much love. I got one cleared of weeds, so I'll begin giving it some bunny manure, organic composted mulch, and castings from my wonderful African nightcrawler worm bin.

I'll give it a practically homeopathic dilution of sea water for the amazing trace minerals and enzyme explosion it allows the plants to contain. We'll let all that cook for a bit and then put in baby plants purchased from John at Garden At Eden. All organically grown. Lots of dark green leafies, summer squashes and love! Yum!

Expect more reports on the bees. Their house should arrive any day, and then we're going to rescue a wild hive from a fix'n'flip property a friend is turning.

Comments

[Una Morera]

I keep bees. I clicked on your link...bushy...we keep them in top bar hives, which are frameless...perhaps something to invest in. we only have a bee suit and the hives, no fancy equipment! http://www.backyardhive.com/General/General/BackYardHive_Beekeeping_Shop/

i look forward to hearing about your beekeeping! it's a wonderful and complicated harmony. hugs!

[Miranda]

Hey Una, I did know this about you! Part of my inspiration, actually... We went with Langsroth vs. topbar because the local keepers who have used both have told us the integrated pest management necessary in Florida requires the Langsroth. I was all gung ho about topbar having done a bunch of research. But the locals here just have not had success with topbar, and in fact were sort of miffed about the whole thing. We decided to defer to local experience and wisdom! If/when we get some property farther north, we'll topbar for sure! Hugs right back!