So much wonder, so little time to report it. Folks, I gave myself the gift of focusing on the conference today and last night. I’ll be coming home on Monday, tomorrow. Jacqueline is off to other parts of Europe to share with hungry beekeepers who want to sit at her table. She is quite a celebrity over here, and her celebrity is much deserved.
I’m certain she’ll be posting along the way. Much, much more to come!!
Just a couple brief shots… Here is me schmoozing with Professor Tom Seeley of Cornell University, or, in more informal terms, the King of Bees (yeah, yeah, I know…no such thing, but if there were….). I told him to pretend he liked me. Photo bomber is Mike Albers, the moderator of the Face Book page, Weaving Bee Skep Hives. He also works very closely with Ferry in their organization, Smart Beeing. Mike is one of the most genuine, fun, and easy-to-be with men I’ve had the pleasure of meeting along the way. PLUS…he taught me a few crafty weaving tips!
Here is a photo from the spontaneous weaving “class” that erupted over the past few days. Within fifteen minutes of beginning their skeps, the “students” were teaching their new craft to others who kept dropping by and expanding the circle. What fun!
Bee friends, this list below was really the starting off place. I know most folks in the states would never follow these guidelines, But for us Preservation Beekeepers, this all “old news.” Yet, it was simply the jumping off place as we leaped into the particulars of “Learning from the Bees.”
Here is one takeaway we will be sharing in an expanded session when we get home: MOLD KILLS. We cannot allow it in our hives. Can you believe it??? All these years we say, “Oh, no matter, the bees will clean up mold on the comb.” We were right. But what we didn’t say because we didn’t know til literally last night is that the rest of the story is this: “Yes, the bees will clean it up. Then, they die.” And YES, I do have the research to back this up. And we have dozens of such revelations to share. Are you ready?