mahonia Feb '21

Both backyard hives have NOD Bee Cozy R8 insulated hive wraps and do not fly during cold gray winter days.  During a week of decidedly sunny days, bees fly vigorously and are found foraging on mahonia. Standing by the mahonia, I looked in direction of the hives for the beeline bearing.  A straight 38 ft (11.6 m) line connects hives and mahonia, but the straight line nicks the corner of the chicken coop which is 7 ft (2.1 m) tall. Some bees are seen flying over the coop while other bees fly around the coop. These mahonia foraging bees are of the same mind regarding where and what to forage, but not how to get there.

winter forage

It's decidedly sunny this afternoon and both hives fly vigorously. I left a small amount of water and twigs in the dog bowl to protect bees from becoming chilled in this 40 °F weather. Some bees return to the hive with yellow pollen - most likely mahonia.

Sunny weather is a real treat. Both hives have bee cozy insulators and have not flown much during the past cold, gray winter days. 

mahonia Feb '18

For weeks now, bees forage on mahonia and maple, but as the expression goes, not in my backyard.  This iPhone photo marks a small backyard pride milestone where I can follow the entire beeline between plant and hive.   Click on the image and surprise yourself at the photo detail. 

mahonia Jan '17

In Atlanta, winter storm Helena kept the honey bees cooped up for days.  Now the bees forage in very mild 70's °F. The bees return to the hive with yellow and dark yellow colored pollen.  As you see, mahonia is a dependable early resource for bees.

winter-flowering ornamental cherry tree

Sorting through my latest camera work, I found a few lucky photos which overcome bright back-lighting, shooting through a window and fast moving honey bees.  In the backyard, the winter-flowering ornamental cherry tree bloom looks great and attracts honey bees too.  In some sunny locations, mahonia is or is about to bloom and spiderwort are still in bloom.

In Atlanta, November and the first half of December have been warm. NOAA climatology based on El Niño have yet to develop into cooler mid-Atlantic weather.  I'm watching the Arctic Oscillation 7 day forecast closely for a negative downturn before adding the bee cozy hive wrap. 

spring 2013 weather outlook

NOAA announced that "2012 was warmest and second most extreme year on record for the contiguous U.S."   Looking forward, NOAA forecasts the Atlanta spring 2013 with above normal temperatures and normal rainfall.  

On warm days, I see bees foraging for water, mahonia, rosemary and winter blooming cherry (too difficult to catch on camera).  The bee cozies are still on, but not for too much longer.  I am lucky, all three hives are still alive - I plan to spring split the strongest hives in an attempt to control swarming and create another hive.

warmth after winter freeze

 

Bee foraging on mahonia.

 

Bee foraging at birdbath.

 

Two hive entrances, as inspired by John Jones.

 

Insulating Bee Cozy and the two hive entrances, as inspired by John Jones.

Bees unable to fly.

A few days ago Atlanta experienced below freezing temperatures (two days in a row) which killed many of our potted plants.  As the weather has warmed, the bees are vigorously foraging for water and pollen.  The flight path is short and straight (bee lining), making trips to forage at the flowering mahonia and the bird bath.  I spotted red maple buds in the neighborhood, but those buds are not yet attracting bees.

Scientific American Blogs posted an article about a parasitic fly (Apocephalus borealis) which has laid eggs in 77% of the sampled California Bay Area hives.  Perhaps the parasitic fly is another honey bee stress.  I grabbed a few bees beneath the hive which were unable to fly.   I am storing these bees in a jar to see whether parasitic fly larva will emerge in the next week. 

2010 Atlanta snowfall

Today, there is 1/4 inch of snow on the ground and the sunny backyard scene is magical.  Birds are foraging and the bees are mostly tucked inside their hives. The last extensive outside bee activity was 01-Jan-2010 when the mid-day temperature went to 48°F.

Spring is around the corner--I say "bring on the Mahonia and Red Maple bee forage". In the book Eating Animals, Jonathan Safran Foer says "everything is possible again." That's how I feel.