Goldenrod

A honey bee on Goldenrod in my garden!

August is the month of Goldenrod (Solidago) in Minnesota, one of the last flowers the bees will enjoy before winter arrives. As I drove to Shakopee through Chanhassen this weekend, I could see the golden flowers dancing in the light breeze. This plant attract so many bees/pollinators, it is incredible! When I was taking this picture, I saw a sweat bee, a carpenter bee, a wasp, a bumblebee and a honey bee...all that in 3 minutes!

Many beekeepers say that when the honey bees collect pollen and nectar from the Goldenrod, the whole hive smells like old sweaty socks! That's our signal that the bees have visited those plants. To me it is the signal that summer is coming to an end.

Our bees are all doing well, even the Russian bees have recovered. The queen is laying many eggs and "everyone", from nurse bees to foragers seem to have found a job to do. I am relieved and happy for them. I really wanted to save them :)

Benoit and I will watch carefully for the next few weeks, to make sure they are still bringing the necessary nectar and needed pollen as a reserve for the long anticipated winter months.

2 honeybee colonies in Shakopee

We will harvest our honey sometimes in September with the help of a friend. Our most productive colonies are in Shakopee with 4 and 7 supers respectively! However they are more difficult to access. I don't know if we will be able to drive in the pumpkin field this year. I will keep you posted...can be an adventure!

A reminder that a super (box) full of honey can weigh about 40-60 lb. ( 18-27 kg); walking with one...the whole length of the field can be challenging!

Our five new hives will not produce enough honey for us to harvest. This was expected because those bees were from new packages this spring, younger-lived than our other honeybees. What we are seeing right now in the colonies would be for the honey bees to eat. We only harvest the surplus nothing else.

Enjoy the beautiful, cooler days of summer!