Author Archives: jkmcintyre

Bees in the Trees

Posted on January 15, 2014 by jkmcintyre

After a week of gale winds and sideways rain, this morning was still, 50 F, and sunny.  So the bees came out.  I was anxious for the weather to calm down because the witch hazel has entered its first bloom … Continue reading →

Posted in bees, honeybees, winter, witch hazel | 2 Comments

The Bees are Alive!

Posted on January 6, 2014 by jkmcintyre

We haven’t seen much of the bees since we turned the corner into winter.  Last week Scott said, “I think the bees are dead”.  But Saturday was 46 degF and sunny.  For the few hours that the hives were in … Continue reading →

Posted in animal behaviour, bees, honeybees, tomatoes, vegetable garden, winter | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Buzz-Kill at the Bee Hive: The importance of hive inspection

Posted on December 12, 2013 by jkmcintyre

After inspecting our hives weekly during May and then monthly into mid-summer, we left the bees to their own bees-ness during the remainder of summer and fall. This was in part because they appeared to be doing well, in part … Continue reading →

Posted in bees, top bar hive, winter | 1 Comment

Watching Chicken TV in Winter

Posted on November 5, 2013 by jkmcintyre

We don’t see the chickens as much in winter. It’s just too cold and rainy (duh – Seattle!) to spend much time outside with them. But since I built the chicken food fence, there is the added benefit of watching … Continue reading →

Posted in animal behaviour, chicken behaviour, chickens, food fence, winter | Tagged | Leave a comment