Kim Knox, Master Beekeeper

Beekeeping

Written by Kim Knox

I raced home from a meeting this afternoon. It was a special day, and one I’d looked forward to even before we had adopted the North Sicilian colony onto Topa Topa Drive. The bees had been with us a month, and it was time to check the hive box to determine whether or not it was time to add the Super.

The bees had become a special sort of mindfulness activity—like a walking meditation… but more. I watched them, their motions, their energy; their furry, snuggly little bodies coming to rest on me… always left with a freshness in my soul that didn’t exist before. I adored the bees.

The day was lovely and warm. I arrived promptly at 5:30 and changed clothes… from a skirt to pants. I donned my veiled hat. Chuck and Javier joined me also with veils, but none of us wore anything else protective. Chuck had the smoker, the bee brush. I had the hive tool and a flashlight. Javier carried the Super—10 frames I had just loaded with delicate sheets of beeswax…a natural substrate for the bees to draw their comb upon. In about a month’s time, each frame would hold about 10 lbs of pure honey.

The bees start to turn in for the day at around 6:00, and I wanted to be there before that. Loading the frames took me by surprise, but by 5:45 we were at the hive.

Chuck was working the smoker, made ineffective by a modest breeze. I lifted the top, and then the second lid and he put the smoker down. No need. The bees were gently going about their business. The sound of their humming was calming. I had placed The Queen Excluder (a plastic grid to exclude only The Queen) on top of the hive from the beginning. We could see through the slats and its partial translucency. There were peaks and forms of pure white comb, much of it capped like snow! This was a happy hive! Thousands of bees, simply about their work… near the end of their day. Magic.

We did not lift up the excluder, as I have been told that time is of the essence in exposing the hive to light and temperature, so we simply added the Super, added the two covers, and reinstalled the rock weight. Mission accomplished.

We all smiled about our protected faces… absolutely unnecessary.

Javier and Chuck went to do some last minute work on the irrigation around the apiary, and I went off to my grandfather’s 86th birthday celebration with a delicious bowl full of cookies I’d baked for him earlier that day.

Chuck and I talked later that evening about the magical little animals. No other word… they are magic, and we both feel lucky to have had the experience… The awe and the wonder—the process—of life itself… a part of the process that only gives, and only gives more. At least from an aerial view, the role of the bee is one that transcends the food chain. Except for an occasional tasty snack (bees themselves are sweet) bees are not a food source for any animal. They devour no one, and cause no harm except their own in defense of the hive. They simply spread love, literally making love to the flowers, and then the honey… in great excess.
And their little personalities? Loving. Sweet. Gentle. Cuddly.

Magic.