Category Archives: Apis mellifera

White heath aster

Posted on October 11, 2011 by
Posted in Apis mellifera, Garden, Plants | 1 Comment

Extracting honey

Posted on September 3, 2011 by

I took two boxes (called “supers”) of honey from our hives. Each super has ten rectangular frames that hang vertically inside the super. The bees store their honey inside wax cells on each frame. Each hexagonal cell on the frame … Continue reading →

Posted in Apis mellifera, Garden | 7 Comments

Bees pollinating corn

Posted on July 30, 2011 by

Corn is usually described as “wind pollinated,” but honey bees love to gather its pollen to take back to their hive to feed to their babies. As the bees rummage through the corn tassels, they release clouds of pollen that … Continue reading →

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City bee

Posted on May 24, 2011 by

This honey bee was working the ornamental dwarf boxwoods in front of a sidewalk café in downtown Philadelphia. Even the most urban of habitats has a few drops of wild sweetness. Somewhere in the concrete someone has a hive on … Continue reading →

Posted in Apis mellifera, Travels | Leave a comment

Tending bees

Posted on May 19, 2011 by

The bees were active today, the first sunny day in a week, so I took the opportunity to add frames to their hives. First task: use the smoker to puff smoke into the hive entrance. This causes the bees to … Continue reading →

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