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Honey Bee Tales! #3

Hive Painting Day!

At last, a sunny warm Ohio day (combined with an open schedule on our calendar) to paint the beehives that we purchased from Eli N. Troyer Bee Supplies back in February.

Up until now, the sturdy Langstroth hives have stood in formation in our sunroom. As anxious that I am to regain use of the floor space, I admit that I will miss the scent of the wax frames and wood that permeated the room on sunny days.

The fact that our bees will be arriving soon, quickly ended that thinking and pushed me into beekeeper mode with a paintbrush in one hand and scrolling my favorite iTunes with the other.

Shortly into my painting process, I was abruptly startled by Elvis (one of our two free-range roosters) who had snuck up behind me before releasing one of his notorious crows.

I usually keep a rather close tab on his whereabouts, since he is well known for sending grown men running, cursing, or set on personally 'welcoming' Elvis for a Sunday dinner. Click the following photo, if you would like to view a previously posted video of Elvis on Instagram showing off his peculiar hop and crowing.

As my wits settled, I recognized that Elvis was simply signaling the arrival of a visitor who happened to be Scott aka my husband and paint buddy. Handing over the extra brush, I explained that we were only painting the outside of the hive boxes, since the paint scent could interfere with the process in which the bees communicate inside the hive. I also reminded him to stay clear of the box edges, so that the boxes would not become 'glued' together by the paint once stacked.

At this time we have chose to paint both beehives solid white, but I do like the idea of painting the boxes random patterns and colors (bees are attracted to blue, purple, yellow & white). If time permits, maybe I will get creatively artistic and attempt to paint our beehives like the ones I have seen on Pinterest. Or maybe I could simply order hive wraps from BeeBoxWraps.com!

Scott and I toasted 'a job well done' with tasty "Honey and Red Berry Smoothie" (page 364, "The Beekeeper's Bible"). It was the perfect afternoon treat! Note: I used frozen fruit, skipped the ice cubes and tossed in chia seeds for added protein.

Until next time ...

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