Bees are truly incredible creatures. They have complex communication and social systems. They are hardworking, intelligent and organized. They pollinate our flowers, fruits, trees and plants. Without their hard work our gardens would not grow. They make delicious honey- a natural antibiotic and delicious vaccine for pollen allergies. We literally could not live without them.
At Olsen Farm we started keeping bees last year because of the importance of supporting pollinators and our drive to practice natural farm and gardening techniques. We have a responsibility to protect native bees by planting healthy gardens- free of chemicals and pesticides, as well as a responsibility to care for our domestic bees like any other pet.
Our colony survived the winter last year but was not able to survive the unfortunate February early thaw and sudden temperature drop. Bees are powerful and delicate, with our quickly changing climate and growing use of toxic pesticides their world is in great danger- and in consequence so is ours.
This year we have added a second hive, and are continuing our hope for the bees and all they share with us.
Here are some photos of the hive-filling process:
Prepping the smoker, dried grass makes great smoke!Chris puts on gear to protect his hands, face and arms while filling the hivePrying the lid off to remove the queen’s cageRemoving lid to expose can of sugar water queen’s cage is attached to during travelThe queen’s cage is attached by a strap that has to be pried off for removalPulling out the can and queen cageThis can is covered in bees! As soon everything else will be too…Detaching the queen’s cage from the canChris gently brushes bees off the outside of the queen’s cage and into the hive box, setting queen’s cage aside for placement laterHolding the bee package upside down over the brooding box, Chris gets ready to shake them outThe most exciting step- shaking, or tapping, three pounds of live bees into their new home. No stings to date!Chris carefully places the queen’s cage between two frames so the colony can get used to her pheromones and she can be released in a day or soGiving the colony some smoke to calm themChris carefully stacks the super on top of the brooder boxStacking on the inner narrow lidPlacing on the hive lid, or outer coverWeighing down the lid cover with a cement flatWe use a ratchet strap to secure our hive boxes together, making it more of a challenge for a bear to break them apart if ever one gets through our electric fenceHive one is live!Happy bees, already getting to work cleaning up a honey drip in their new home
Hello all, Chris and Kristen from Olsen Farm in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, here (along with some of our fine feathered friends).
At Olsen Farm we currently raise chickens and guinea fowl, as well as bees. We are working to reclaim old orchards and both graft and plant new apple, pear, peach and nut trees. We also grow fruits, herbs and veggies in our garden using sustainable and biodynamic gardening techniques and NO pesticides.
We are looking forward to sharing updates, farm tips and news from our farm with you in weeks and months to come!
