They Survived

After a week of Arctic blast temperature here, we have a balmy 60°F temperature this morning though raining.  The rain will continue for the rest of the day and is expected to stop by Saturday morning.  But 60 degrees Fahrenheit is high enough for the honeybees to come out of their hives and start cleaning themselves.  This weekend the temperature is predicted to drop below freezing again.  After I looked at the thermometer on the patio, I promptly took an umbrella and cellphone out to the garden.  What I saw really made my morning.

We’re so happy to see them pull through a brutally cold, -5°F some nights, and uneven temperatures throughout.  If they pull through this winter, the next generation will be more adaptable to the climate in our neighborhood.  My concern is hive 3, the smallest one.  There were a lot of dead bees in front of the hive when I checked on them the first time this winter.

My consolation is that they have to have live ones to carry the dead out.  Even this morning, there are fresh dead bees on the landing.  I have hope for them.

At least two more months before spring comes, I hope they have enough food to last until then.  Heavy feeding since late summer should help.  In the meantime, the squirrels are making a lot of pockmarks in the lawn, digging up crocuses that we planted for the bees.