On Sunday, April 7, one week and one day after installing my first package of bees, I opened the hive to see how things were progressing. Here's a video of that day's adventure in beekeeping:
Looking for a Queen
It was a very distressing and disturbing time as I did not expect to see the Queen box and a clump of burr comb the size of a dinner plate on the bottom of my hive. I ended up closing the hive and leaving the "mess" in there.
The following week, I consulted with everybody I could think of who might be able to guide me in finding a solution. All of the answers, except one, were "Wow! I've never heard of that before!".
My husband and I went to Carolina Bee Company in Travelers Rest last Saturday to buy a couple of deep body hives. While there, I talked to one of the owners about my dilemma and he said, "That burr comb must come out." So, when we returned home on Saturday afternoon, I donned by bee suit and veil AND gloves (which I don't normally wear) and went in and removed all of the "mess" that I had left during my previous "visit" to the hive.
The good news is...I finally met the Queen! And, as it stands today, I am working for the Queen. I knew that the worker bees (and Drones) existed for the Queen, but I didn't realize the level of my employment to her until Saturday.
Humbly Serving Her Highness,
~ Donna
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