Spring Bees and Miracles. . .

Steve and Donna Victors delivered yet another beautiful shipment of honeybees to the Interior yesterday afternoon. I'm so impressed with the brand new packages, very few dead bees in the bottom of the boxes and it's been over two weeks since the first shipment arrived and I haven't gotten any calls for replacement queens. In my opinion, we have the best supplier in the state of Alaska!! People who got their bees on April 12th should be seeing all four stages of the metamorphosis of our honeybees now. The pupal stage should present itself in a full oval pattern without empty or "spotty" cells. If you are seeing a lot of drones (several hundred or thousand) there's something wrong. For people who hived their colonies onto bare foundation, keep feeding sugar water and don't let it run out as this is mandatory for comb build-up. The bees are bringing in plenty of pollen so no need for pollen patties until we have cold or rainy weather in the forecast for more than a day or two. Make sure you have a water source near by! People with drawn-out comb can add a second box anytime now (underneath the first box). Entrances can be increased during the day and reduced before it gets below 40* at night. I did a hive check at the Ekblad home last weekend and their new hives look so nice out in their back yard. We found lots of queen evidence in both hives, watched the bees bringing in lots of willow pollen and heard their peaceful hum. All the while, we were discussing how great a Creator we have to be able to participate in such miracles!