The Mesa/Tipi Clearing Before Bee Installation

The Mesa/Tipi Clearing

At the Mesa/Tipi – truck load of 100 boxes of 4pounders – 60 boxes for Mesa – 10T bees per box+ (give/take)

Two cane sugar syrup drums used to establish bees (680 pounds per drum) keeps bees in place while they become acquainted with their surrounds - those buckets will be removed within days. Then queens will be 'released' into the hives from their traveling boxes now that the colony is familiar with her as they have been attending her with food as she awaits release. If they do not want her as their queen they will 'ball' her to death / suffocate or sting her.

The clearing was a five hour day of hot long labour + drive up and down - two days of prepping the area - clearing and setting it up - fence charged initiated. This is our first time BACK to the Mesa/Tipi since the fires of 2009 - two years and the area has overgrown.

Installing

We take the remaining 40 packages plus the barrels of cane sugar syrup up to Carpenteria for avocadoes - all in all to pick up the bees in CHICO (7 hours up and another back) then to the Mesa and set up and then to Carpenteria = 1,300+ miles. Started Sunday and finished Wednesday - market on Thursday and Friday - released the queens (at The Mesa) before Monrovia Friday's market early morning, then off to market - Saturday market day and Sunday we will check- up on the Carpenteria group and release the queens.

Beet sugar gives the bees diarrhea hence the use of pure cane. Corn Syrup is not good for the bees. The sugar syrup is more expensive than the corn but in the long run, the health of the bees needs to win out.