My Queen and Her Subjects Arrive - Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper - page 42

T HE FOLLOWING AFTERNOON, I CHECKED MY BEES for what seemed like the fiftieth
time and carried them up from the basement to the patio to enjoy the warm sunny day
while they waited for their move to the hive. It was Mother's Day. What day could be
a more perfect day to meet the queen and hive my honeybees? It turned out that in the
Northeast “beehiving day,” as we beekeepers call it, always seems to fall on Mother's
Day.
Mr. B would be along any minute. I reviewed my notes and prepared my smoker
with some newspaper and twigs. My hive tool, bee veil, and beekeeper's jacket were
readytogo.Iworebluejeanstuckedintoworkboots,sobeescouldnotflyupmypants
legs. I showered, washed my hair with fragrance-free shampoo, and brushed my teeth,
becauseIhadreadthathoneybeesreactunfavorablytobodyodorandperfumes,aswell
as the smell of leather or wool. Apparently bees sense these odors as similar to those of
a wild predator, and may become agitated if the beekeeper smells like a threat to them.
Thisiswhybeekeepersoftendonotvisittheirbeehiveswearingleathershoes,boots,or
watchbands.
At exactly eleven thirty, Mr. B's old pickup truck ambled into my gravel driveway
and stopped abruptly up against the old stone wall. The driver's side door opened, and
Mr.Bclimbedoutempty-handed.“Hmm,nobeeveil,”Ithought.Hesmiledandwalked
directly toward the hive, motioning for me to bring my box of bees and follow him. He
was clearly not going to leave me any time to be nervous.
When we arrived at the hive, he briefed me on the sequence of events for getting the
bees into the hive and on the special handling of the queen. Then he handed me two
small hive-frame nails and asked me to bend them to ninety degrees with a rock. I had
forgotten what these nails were for, but I obliged. Next I removed the outer and inner
hive covers, and the top deep, as well as five frames from the bottom deep, in order to
createspaceforthreepoundsoflivebeestobepouredintothehive.Threepounds!The
idea was thrilling and dreadful at the same time. Then, with the hive ready, my moment
hadcome.Iheldtheboxofbeesbyitscornersandbangeditonthegroundafewtimes,
so the bees would fall to the bottom of the box. Oh, they did not like that one bit! Next,
using my hive tool, I pried the small wooden plate off the top of the box and removed
the tin can full of sugar water that had been placed inside for feeding. Then I replaced
thewoodenplateontopsothebeescouldnotescape.Oncethecanwasoutoftheway,I
slowly slid the wooden plate to the side again and removed the queen cage. Once again
I slid the wooden door back in place.