This morning I did a little experiment in the Backyard Farm with “bee lining”. This is an old time method for finding a hive, hopefully a wild one, and not one of your neighbor’s hives. 

I have been doing some open feeding in the backyard as an act of kindness for the early spring  foragers. The bees have been mobbing the feeder. This indicates a whole lot of bees nearby! 

I went out with a fresh bottle of sugar water early this morning,  before the bees were up and out foraging. Then I waited. Once a few visitors showed up I marked one with a dot of orange paint. 

Using a stop watch timing the round trips, it appears that there is a colony/hive less than 200 yards from my yard. In less than 10 minutes the feeder was overwhelmed and it is impossible to time the round trips now!!!! 

My next experiment will be off in the woods. I want to see if I can find a wild hive and document the adventure. Keep your eyes open! 

TTFN

Bishop