We headed back to the Ranch on June 4th and now it was time to inspect the AWOL hive. Having attended the mentoring session at Craig’s, Worth and I had a much better idea of what we were actually looking for. In addition, we were not quite as reluctant to handle and move the frames around. It was a sight for sore eyes when we saw one of the frames in the AWOL hive had yielded a fantastic combination of brood at various stages of development. The presence of the “egg of the day” meant that the queen was present and actively laying. I would sleep better that night knowing that the split that Craig talked me through had actually worked… my colleagues (Raj and Sandra) at work now refer to Craig as the “Bee Whisperer.”

Pollen, Capped Brood, Larva and “Egg of the Day”

The “weak” AWOL hive with a huge desire to thrive.

A Friend at the Hives
On our way back to the farm we encountered a rather interesting sight. At first glance it looked like a ball of fur on top of a fence post. When Worth backed up the truck so that we could get a second look, we found it most certainly was a ball of fur and that it was also alive!

A real cutie – woodchuck – I think!?
WOW!!! great to see all doing well. I am also thinking of a bee hive. I hear you can have one in your yard in Edmonton. Will talk to you soon about the challenges.
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Your backyard would be an absolute haven for bees. I would be so interested to see what color and flavor of honey you would produce.
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