So, 2 years ago we had 1 bee hive at the edge of our woods. It didn’t survive the winter. When we opened the hive, they were soaked, so we are pretty sure they froze from the condensation they made.
Last year, we got 2 hives, and moved them to the chicken yard. We figured the chickens would help fight off ants and hive beetles, and it’s a sunnier location to keep them warmer in the winter. We made quilt boxes for condensation and insulated the outside of the hives, but our chickens messed with the insulation, and we are pretty sure both hives got too cold again.
We weren’t planning on trying again this year, so we had a friend bring his extraction equipment over and we harvested our honey. We got 7.625 gallons from 2 mostly full deeps, and 2 mostly full mediums. There’s still a little bit draining from the beeswax that we didn’t count, but we jarred 37 pints and 12 quarts!
I know for sure that goldenrod and clover were big components of this honey, but it truly is a rural mixture of pollen.
In other news, the nest in the shed beside the house (that I never saw eggs in), produced a few fledglings yesterday!
Stay safe! ☄🌟