What did you do in the garden today?

[reddogmaster2]

Just walked thru for the evening after talking to the girls, took some pics to share. View attachment 2278105View attachment 2278106View attachment 2278107View attachment 2278108

Awesome garden and coop! Thumbs Up!!!!

 

[WthrLady]

You lost your hive @WthrLady and that was not the first to Moths?

It's my second, but it was being watched and was treated for prevent moths. It's infuriating. The whole valley is battling them!

I stripped out the hive and put fresh everything inside. The bees were not happy, but I still have drones and workers. I will look for a queen again tomorrow. I will treat every couple of days. I hope maybe the ones left will make a queen and stay.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Oh my Lord never heard of that I am so sorry damn moths?

 

[karenerwin]

@WthrLady I am battling small hive beetles in my hive(s). A couple of people suggested Swiffer dry sweeping cloths so I am trying those. I am sorry that you are having so much trouble with your bee adventures this year.

In the garden, I harvested some more tomatoes, and tomatillos. I went to a friend's house to pick Dawson Plums. I had never heard of them. She said she remembers her mom and Grandma making jelly out of them. When I got there she couldn't figure out which tree they were coming from so I picked them up from the ground. It turns out that all of the ones I got were no good. But I did save some seeds. She said I could come back any time and try to figure out which tree it is and gather more. I tossed them in the coops this evening for the girls to enjoy. They look like persimmons, especially when not ripe. When they ripen they turn purple (instead of orange like a persimmon). Has lots of flat seeds like a persimmon does and the "cap" on top looks just like a persimmons too.

Oh, I butchered the turkey yesterday. Caught him trying to mate with another chicken hen. This one at least lived through the experience.

My sad news is that my mom is going to be evaluated for Hospice tomorrow. I believe she is ready. She has gotten so weak she can hardly even sit up much less do anything else. She is also in almost constant pain ( yes, she has pain meds). She has pretty much stopped eating and only rarely answers her phone anymore (and never calls anyone). I will meet with the hospice worker at 4:00 in the parking lot since this pandemic keeps me from being able to go in the facility.

 

[WthrLady]

Oh my Lord never heard of that I am so sorry damn moths?

Wax Moths. Brutal. Sneaky.

 

[pennyJo1960]

This is what popped up on google now I admit never hears a wax moth
This the website I found
https://backyardbeekeeping.iamcountryside.com/health-pests/wax-moth-treatment/
All hives, even healthy ones, will have wax moths. I didn’t understand this when we first started beekeeping. I thought that if we were good beekeepers our hives wouldn’t get wax moths. It wasn’t until one of our hives was destroyed by wax moths, and I started searching for wax moth treatments that I realized wax moths are just something that all hives face. However, that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing we can do to help the bees win the battle.

Wax moths are moths that sneak their way into a hive and lay eggs in the honeycomb. When the eggs hatch, the wax worm will eat through the beeswax, honey, pollen and sometimes even the bee larvae and pupae. As they eat their way through the hive they leave a trail of webs and feces. The webbing hinders the bees from being able to catch the worms and remove them from the hive. The bees can’t use the wax or even clean it when it has webbing.


In a strong colony, the house bees will find and remove the wax worms before much damage is done. In strong hives there is no need for wax moth treatment, just let the bees do what they’re supposed to do. In a weak hive, the wax worms can get the upper hand and destroy the hive in 10-14 days.

 

[WthrLady]

This is what popped up on google now I admit never hears a wax moth
This the website I found
https://backyardbeekeeping.iamcountryside.com/health-pests/wax-moth-treatment/
All hives, even healthy ones, will have wax moths. I didn’t understand this when we first started beekeeping. I thought that if we were good beekeepers our hives wouldn’t get wax moths. It wasn’t until one of our hives was destroyed by wax moths, and I started searching for wax moth treatments that I realized wax moths are just something that all hives face. However, that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing we can do to help the bees win the battle.

Wax moths are moths that sneak their way into a hive and lay eggs in the honeycomb. When the eggs hatch, the wax worm will eat through the beeswax, honey, pollen and sometimes even the bee larvae and pupae. As they eat their way through the hive they leave a trail of webs and feces. The webbing hinders the bees from being able to catch the worms and remove them from the hive. The bees can’t use the wax or even clean it when it has webbing.


In a strong colony, the house bees will find and remove the wax worms before much damage is done. In strong hives there is no need for wax moth treatment, just let the bees do what they’re supposed to do. In a weak hive, the wax worms can get the upper hand and destroy the hive in 10-14 days.

Am familiar with the beasts. This was a new colony that was overrun by several moths. The weather has been prime for rapid spread. I'll be increasing treatment and traps this week.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Is there a way to rebuild the one hive save it? I am not trying to guide you just carp I found it makes me ill to think we loose these creatures that are so vital

 

[WthrLady]

Is there a way to rebuild the one hive save it? I am not trying to guide you just carp I found it makes me ill to think we loose these creatures that are so vital

Yup.strip it, clean it, freeze it. Bees will make more. My bees left. They didn't die, so they're out there somewhere.

 

[TropicalBabies]

I thought the mail service was ok up until a few years ago. These last few years... I have lost and late packages 5 out of 10 times. If it gets mailed Fed Ex it now gets stuck on a boat and takes 4-6 weeks to get here, not 2 days- that is a 3 year old policy. We are not lucky enough to have home delivery. We walk, bike, scoot or drive to our dilapidated post office a proud 1/4 mile up the road where they have some nice A/C in the building where they work. It used to be a nice place to buy stamps and cool off before Covid19, now, not so much. Our boxes are not in the inclosed A/C building, just a room that gets hotter every year. Our last postmaster put in for some funding and got the parking lot fix and some of the rotted siding repaired and painted 5 years ago but that is the most I have ever seen done in my 40 years of looking at it. Of course 20 years ago it only needed help with the parking lot.
I have been raising chicks for my island community because we don't have 2 day or overnight mail and now... with this not-so-new admin, chicks (if we can get) can take 5 to 6 days. Eggs are in question too. And it is only supposed to get worse. Be nice if someone with a brain could rescue our postal service, save the jobs of those nice hard working people so they are not added onto the list of the tens of millions of other people who are now unemployed. We can spend trillions on our armed forces during peaceful times, trillions in tax breaks for the wealthy... why do we have a failed postal service?

I'd say our country is burning down the way some wanted. Yes, you are going to hear some complaints, it would be remiss as Americans if we did not. These are embarrassing times and I am old enough to remember Nixon.