Observations From Greg

The last two weeks have certainly been busy around here. We have been sending out and catching some early swarms. We are checking and adding supers as needed. We are getting ready to get package bees and even make some splits (if queens are available). The KSBA Spring Meeting at Camp Crescendo was well attended, but not at capacity, and the speaker presentations were excellent. I will not promise, or say, that I will use every idea I get from this type of meeting, but I get a lot of ideas I do use, and the others may come in handy someday foir me oir somebody else. The pre-registration is open now for the KSBA Summer meeting at the Walter T. Kelley Company campus in Clarkson on June 5, 2010. You can get the form and more info at the KSBA website. These meetings and bee school are definitely worth attending.

In the last few days, the locust bloom seems to have started. Of course, it comes with cool, rainy, windy weather! Sometimes I think locust trees are stimulated to bloom by a cool, damp weather system. On the other hand, we were getting a little short on rain and given the choice of cool, damp, wet locust bloom, or a no kidding drought situation, I will give up the locust honey. This year we should get a significant clover honey crop. I say should, but I really mean could. We have had very little clover the last 2 to 3 years due to several situations occuring at the same time. The first is drought stress on the plants. Another is graziers have been forced by dry weather to feed hay earlier in the fall and later in spring than usual. This high demand for hay coupled with slow growth due to drought meant that a lot of acres that normally could produce a significant clover bloom simply never got to the blooming stage. I have spoken to quite a few other beekeepers who did not get as much from goldenrod or ironweed blooms in the fall as they usually get. Hopefully, this year we will get the moisture, the flying weather, and the bloom we need to make a good crop of clover and summer/fall honey. Personally, I think that darker honey tastes better anyway.