Dandelions! Yes they are dandy and edible as long as you don't use weed killer in your yard. We've never put anything on our property in 20 years! So today I decided to go foraging in my abundant dandelion crop. Everything about the dandelion is edible: the flowers, the leaves, even the roots. You can read about eating dandelions here.
I think next bee check we'll definitely use the smoker. I looked at the swarm trap hive first. No sign of wax moth invasion so I left it alone. Hopefully we'll catch a good-natured queen and start a friendly new colony. I checked the hive next to it and just lifted the top box which is already pretty heavy. I looked at one end frame which was full of uncapped nectar. Added a box of undrawn frames which will give that hive plenty of work to do.
It's swarm season and a good time to try to attract one to our bee yard. So today I set up a swarm trap/bait hive. It looks the same on the outside but inside it has only two frames of drawn comb instead of nine frames. (For non-beekeepers drawn comb are frames the girls have already built on. You start with wax foundation which is like a blueprint. The bees build it out to make cells for pollen and nectar storage and egg laying. I added a few drops of lemon grass essential oil to provide a scent that attracts the bees. Now we wait and see. I'm asking all the patrons of beekeepers to invite swarms to check out our lovely little dwelling.
We checked the hives last week and decided we needed to split the big hive on the first warm day. The colony is huge and will definitely swarm if we don't do something although there are no immediate signs in the hive that they're ready to swarm.
One of the baby chicks died during the night. I checked them last night and two had clogged vents (also called "pasty butt") when dried feces hardens around the exit hole and prevents the chick from excreting. I read about it and it can be fatal. I followed the instructions to gently remove the feces and hoped for the best. But when I came down this morning poor Raptor was dead. The other chick is doing fine. So I've buried my first baby chick and have been reflecting on how people can kill human babies with nary a tear. I'm crying over a five-day-old chick and abortionists are murdering babies who can live independently outside the womb.
