Bittersweet

In May of last year, I installed an observation honeybee hive in my home office. It was thrilling to watch bees zoom in and out of their entrance gathering pollen, drawing out comb, filling frames with honey. We even caught glimpses of the queen laying eggs and got to see a few baby bees emerge from their brood cells weeks later. Throughout the summer, the hive was thriving.

And then, late fall, we noticed their numbers begin to decrease. By year’s end, all the bees had disappeared. Hive beetles, an invasive pest who feasts on bee brood and honey had decimated the hive.

In the midst of this sadness, however, my family and I spent a beautiful January morning pulling the hive apart and cleaning it. We even managed to salvage a few jars of honey. 

A new package of bees has been ordered, and we’ll try again in April!