homework for June '25. Winter Beehaviour.

[Ron]

Winter Beehaviour.
© Ron Boughton June ‘25.

When those Winter winds whip and whine and chill right to the bone,
a cosy fire and glass of wine is counter to atone!
I've checked the hives, the bees are good and they’ve prepared their stocks
in case a frigid mother should, try freezing each brood box!
For all through Autumn they have worked to future proof their lot,
with not a single bee who’d shirk thus Winter’s prep. boycott!
Now shorter days and longer nights, means gathering is quite slow
which means pollen and nectar flights, have counts now very low.

So stocks of honey must be made, en masse, to feed the hive,
where every bee, their part has played, so Winter they’ll survive.
The supers have been taken down, for more warmth in each brood,
and there the Queen still wears her crown, as workers bring her food.
Amassing in a huddle then, combined warmth their insight,
a living primal blanket when, required for each cold night!
About Six weeks, the average for, a honey bees life span
so each bee, an intensive chore, gives to the hives grand plan!

A healthy hive in numbers can, be sixty thousand bees,
and in Summer they all will fan, to cool a few degrees!
Collectively they work as one, a firm unwritten creed,
To share the load is how it’s done, with no such thing as greed!
But for now, it’s when Spring arrives, with crunch of frost now gone,
that bees start pollination drives, and so -the world moves on!
And soon honey will be on tap, a culinary need!
and yes that ‘cozy fire’ nightcap, will be …a glass of mead!

[Terry]

G/day Ron

Loved your poem it reignited my dream of having a hive of my own.

The poem is so descriptive and offers a real insight into life inside the beehive,
and all the little drama's that are continually being played out.
They have to pack a lot of living and nonstop work into those six short weeks.

Once again loved it.

Terry

[Ron]

Thanks Terry,
Yes they are amazing, the more info I find out about them the more incredible they become!
Cheers mate,
Ron,

[Maureen K Clifford]

Love it - such underestimated, hard working little things who make our lives sweeter every day - and what a community spirit they have. If only we humans could learn from them.

One of the residents in our village has a 'hive' full of native bees which he is guarding and enjoying learning about these little friends

[Ron]

Thanks so much Maureen,
Yes for sure, given the state of the world at the moment, we could learn a few lessons from them.
The native bees are certainly interesting too. There are, I think about Two hundred different types but only a very few make honey, the rest are pollinators. And of course, are a very important link in the chain!
Thanks again
Ron.