It is a bittersweet moment when a beehive fails. It is mostly sad but the bees worked so hard to make the golden syrup that we would hate for it to go to waste. My failed hive left a completely full foundation of golden honey and several partial foundations. With a little prodding by my kids, I just couldn’t resist trying to get to that honey.
I got almost a quart from just one foundation.

Spring is here or so it feels like it. My condolences to all who live back east! But the bees here in Placerville, CA are busy, busy, busy!
Well, at least one of my hives is. Sadly, one of my two hives was badly affected by shade, wet and cold and probably won’t make it. I’m down to a handful of bees and a queen. I suspected colony collapse a month ago when I was seeing dead bees on the bottom storyboard. Normally, the worker bees would have cleaned up but this was far too many. I’ve reduced down to one super (box) and narrowed their entry. There is plenty of honey for the meager few. So…I’d hate for it to go to waste. Maybe I’ll harvest just one foundation but I feel so guilty since they are struggling.