Fabulous little bee-hive. Did you make that copper roof?

I agree...wonderful beehive! What are Russian honeybees?

Your photos are lovely, especially the close up of the gaillardia. So pretty!

Thanks for sharing!

Marcia

so gary i have at least a hundred peaches on my flordabell. way too many to bring to harvest... i think. do you cull your peaches?

The copper roof came with the beginner's kit I bought, Russian honeybees are just a subspecies, there are quite a few different ones. The Russians are more resistant to things which can be causes of colony collapse, such as varroa mites. I understand bee sting can be good for arthritis, which is probably in my future (stings too actually). I'm interested in royal jelly too, which appears to be kind of a miracle product. The only difference between a queen and another bee, is that it consumed royal jelly as a larvae. That in itself is somewhat amazing.

Ill, I would thin peaches so none are closer together on a branch than 6 inches. I thinned off over 200 peaches. I'm going to keep less than usual to protect from caribbean fruit fly. I'll be bagging them.

Gary

Great shots Gary! Excellent job pruning that peach tree, it has a great shape. Smart thinning job as well...
Congrats on the bees, if you run into any troubles let me know, my father in law is a beekeeper.

Scott

Gary,congrats on your bees.I know that you will have awsome experiences with them.
I got stung about 4 times a few days ago while I was shaking the hive,as I was told to do each morning.
Great pictures.
Felix

Beautiful shots, Gary!
Congratulations on your honeybees. Honey and pollinators, it is a winning combination.

Very nice pics.

Thanks for the comments Scott, didn't know that about your FIL. Had you considered having a hive yourself?

Felix, how come you have to shake the hive, just the new one? I don't think I'd want to be around when my hive gets shaken :)

I was already getting lots of honeybees, but am happy to provide another home for them to live without pesticide stress and no threat of destroyed habitat. Long live the bees.

Gary

That hive is so cute! Hope it thrives and gives you lots of enjoyment and delicious honey. How long does it take to harvest honey from a new hive? I have lots of bees already this year buzzing mainly the citrus. Hope they're making a comeback.

Ginny