Sarah surprised us with a cute "Bee Mine" cupcake cake from the Piggly Wiggly bakery for Valentine's Day.
This afternoon Mark and I walked out to Bee Hill to see if the bees were eating any of the candy we put out. In Hive 4, we had one candy patty with a plate still stuck to it that didn't seem to be touched. The other patty we'd put in (minus the plate) was eaten through in a 1 1/2 inch section right down the middle. Apparently we'd put it right above the cluster and they could easily access it. Several bees were around it, eating in various spots.
All of the hives had bees flying in and out. Hive 3 had the fewest number, but interestingly there were a couple of substantially larger bees being scolded up at the top. Mark and I were both surprised, wondering if they were drones or some sort of invasive species -- they were BIG. As before, Hives 1, 5, &; 6 had the most.
This post on Global Animal highlights a leaked EPA memo that indicates the EPA knew Bayer's pesticide commonly known as "Poncho" was harmful to honey bees, yet approved its use. In light of the honey bee's decline, it would be nice if the government could help solve the problem instead of contributing to it.
I love ice cream, and in the summer when the temps are soaring ice cream is all I want to eat. Generally, I'm a Blue Bell Gold Label Homemade Vanilla purchaser because it satisfies everyone in the family. But for the best strawberry ice cream ever, it's Haagen-Daz.
So, I saw on Sherri's Sweet Life a video post that I traced back to Help the Honey Bees, a site sponsored by Haagen-Daz. The free screen saver has me longing for spring, and proceeds from t-shirt sales helps fund research. A variety of informational articles and inspirational projects, such as one boy's effort to get the Boy Scouts' beekeeping merit badge reinstated are also on the site. (For an update on his efforts, read this post by blogger Robo's World.) There's information on planting a bee-friendly garden and current research going on at Penn State. If you like bees in theory more than in reality and you have some money to spend, you can get a silver, gold, or diamond-studded bee necklace from Alex Woo Jewelry.
Image from Alex Woo Jewelry. Too cute! All you gazillionaires out there, feel free to buy me one!
