Springing to life

What a wonderful week in the gardens! The peas and potatoes tripled in size in response to some water, fertilizer, and a week of 75 degree temperatures. The lettuces and turnips popped up in only a week, and I even thinned the new turnip rows! Here you see the peas, already in need of some twine to help them aloft. The mesh you see is the new low fence installed to keep the vegetable eating dogs from destroying the spring crops. Who would have thought THAT would be necessary?

The most excitement is in the bee yard. A new package, 3 pounds of bees and a queen, was installed in one hive on Friday evening. A call from a friend and beekeeper led to catching and installing a huge swarm in the other hive on Sunday! Back in business as an active beekeeper.
One photo shows the swarm bees gathering on the outside of the hive before marching in to join the queen. The other shows thousands in the air just after I dumped the box of bees into the open top of the hive, before they realized the queen was inside. Catching swarms is easily my favorite part of beekeeping, so it was a great day.