Checking the hives for the first time

Two days ago, it was time for us to check the hives for the first time. We needed to see if the queen was laying eggs. We suited up, taped up the seams and openings, put on our hats, veils and gloves and went out to the hives. Looking back, I guess maybe we did not need all of that gear, but we didn't really know what to expect and so we followed the Boy Scout motto - BEE prepared.

We decided to check my hive first, since it is in a corner. We thought that if the bees got mad, we could get out of the area and leave them all alone. But, they really didn't get mad at all. But more about that in a minute.

First I had to take off the top, then the first box, then the inner cover with the feeder on top. Rod held that, since there were bees on the bottom of it, and if we set it down on the ground, it would have squished some bees.

In the hive, this is what we saw:


There were a lot of bees on top of the frames. I took one of the end frames out, then slowly moved the frames so that I could lift out a center frame. I very slowly lifted out the center frame, and on it, there were a lot of bees. It looked like they had been drawing out the comb (I think that is what we saw). In other words, it looked like they had been working. In some of the cells there was a dark honey/brown color of stuff too. I looked for eggs, but wasn't sure what to look for. It was kind of difficult because there were so many bees all over the frame. So, I put the frame back in, and slowly reversed everything, putting it all back in place.

We then did the same thing for Rod's hive, with the same results. It was very interesting seeing the bees working, and they really did not care at all that we were moving stuff, picking some of them up on the frames. They seemed very gentle. The few that buzzed around us did not buzz at us, or act like they were mad. That is good!

After we were done, we decided we would really like to see someone else's hive, to see what we should be seeing in our hives. Rod posted on the bee club forum, and a member called and invited us to come see his hives. So we will go see and hopefully we will then know what to look for in ours. I feel like there is a lot to learn about the bees - not only their care, but about them and what they do.

So Who Knew...
I'm going to periodically add a "Bee Fact" to this blog; things I noticed, or read about. Here is the first thing that I had no idea about, but found out as soon as we picked up our bees at Beez Neez:

• Bees generate heat. The first time I picked up the bees in the box they came in, the box was very warm. After putting them in the hive, I have felt the sides of the hive box a couple of times, and it is warm too. I guess maybe they do it with their wings, I am not sure. But it is pretty amazing that something that small could make that much heat. I am going to have to check into why and how they do this. So who knew?