Primary Role for the New Season

New Year for the world. One thing I try to do now is to reevaluate my role and my goals for the upcoming year. Near at hand is the fact that I will be feeding all of my bees frequently over the coming seasons. My hive in the city has by far the most stored food. The hives on two different farms are woefully short supplied. I am thinking that I should consider not only feeding the bees with the usual sugar syrup but also adding something that contains vitamins and minerals, as they will not be eating honey much over the winter. Cane sugar syrup is pure carbohydrate and will be completely utilized by the bees for energy . This is easier on their digestive systems because there is no waste to be stored in their digestive tracts. That means a reduction in gut waste and bacteria and the diseases to which that exposes the bees. The question is will the length of time only eating sugar syrup substantially weaken bees who must survive and work to rebuild their colony for the Spring and how can I balance the exposure to waste derived illness from added nutrients stored in the bees digestive systems with the sugar syrup diet. I must pursue answers to these questions- that is my primary role as a beekeeper for this season.

Evaluating the Season

Part of gathering the harvest is evaluating the year that has passed, which leads to hopes and plans for the upcoming year. As I was busy removing the honey from my hives, I was noticing that the stores for the upcoming winter seem significantly more in my hive in the city. The hives in the country, on a farm, have been fraught with problems, one after another.

One might expect that the city would be a dubious place for a hive because of all the buildings, people and traffic. In reality, the nature of my neighborhood in the city makes it an ideal location for a beehive. There are street trees by the dozen- all mature, that produce hundreds of thousands of Linden blossoms for well over three weeks. There are flowering and fruiting trees and bushes. There are the spring bulbs, summer flowers and vegetable gardens all through the neighborhood. People have planted so many varieties of vegetation that there is something blooming in almost every season.

Out in the country with fields and woods seems the obvious place for success as a beekeeper but I am finding that to be untrue. There were a variety of flowering plants around the farm where I have placed my hives- Wild raspberries, Black Locust trees, Jewel weed, Clover. A nearby farmer plants Alfalfa and there are all sorts of garden flowers and landscaping in the vicinity. So why do the bees seem to have put so little away for the winter out there? Weather is a factor in any place, for all agricultural endeavors and this seasons has been unusually wet. Yet, that didn't seem to be a problem in the city. Perhaps I didn't pick the best location for the hives. I think I need a second year in that space to evaluate that properly. The alfalfa farmer may not have let his field flower and that would be a big problem for my bees. I have learned that the current way of crop management may not suit honeybees at all. In fact, Alfalfa that is grown for hay makes a more nutrient-rich product if it is not allowed to flower.

There seems to be large amounts of the country floral sources I mentioned above but there is empty time between the flowerings- perhaps the bees eat most of the previous harvest before the next is available. There isn't much edge space along fields and forest anymore what with the use of pest and herbicides, so there are not many wildflowers growing there anymore, just mown grass. This is no good for honeybees or for any other pollinators. It is also a problem for predatory insects that might eat field crop pests and raise their young on these wild edge areas.

It is a real dilemma for beekeepers and for all of us who depend on the honeybees and other pollinators for our food. This season I will be thinking about how to improve that situation.

Garden Harvest

Autumn is the time when we gather and put away our harvest for the winter. While the honey harvest has been taken off and processed into delicious treats for the year, the honeybees are still busy gathering nectar and pollen for their trip through the coming winter. Early autumn is when the queen bee and her workers are raising the bees that will over-winter and they are very much in need of both pollen and nectar.

Autumn flowers are very important sources of honey and pollen for the bees and there are a number that will help the bees make enough food to carry them through until spring. Some of the most floriferous are Asters, Solidago, commonly known as Goldenrod and Vitex. Asters come in both annual and perennial varieties. Goldenrod has many varieties, some of which have more nectar and are thus more attractive to honeybees. Vitex agnus costus is a flowering bush that blooms well into autumn here in the mid-Atlantic. Another beautiful and useful crop to both bees and us is the fall blooming Crocus sativus, also known as the Saffron crocus. Plant enough of them and you will have saffron for your cooking while the bees have lovely orange pollen and nectar for their stores.Later in the season and into the winter there will be Witch hazel and Hellebores blooming, both of which can be important for honeybees in our area during the warmer days when they will venture out of their hives.

As we finish with our harvesting it is becoming the time for thinking and planning the garden for the spring. It is the time when I look for gardening books in the library and order plant catalogs for my winter musings. Just thinking about cozying up with some hot mulled cider and some catalogs filled with beautiful photos gives me a warm happy feeling, perhaps like my bees all snuggled up with their mom and sisters and lots of honey.