From the Bee Yard

Three weeks after install is when a new package colony crosses a line. The queen has been laying long enough that you have real capped brood — which means mites have places to hide and reproduce. We ran an alcohol wash on both hives today.

Eleven days after install, the weather finally lined up — sunny, a light breeze, warm enough that the bees were foraging hard. The colonies were calm from the moment we cracked the first cover.

You do not need to open a hive to know things are going well. Sometimes you just watch the landing board. Those bright yellow pollen baskets tell the whole story.

Day three called for a quick, low-disturbance check — just enough to confirm both queens had been released and that things were moving in the right direction.

By the next morning both hives had bees moving in and out of the entrance with purpose. Not frantic, not clustered in confusion — just working. That steady, deliberate traffic is exactly what you want to see.

There is something that happens the moment you tip a package of bees and feel that low, collective hum transfer through your gloves and up your arms. Nobody warns you about that part.