the arrival of the bee box

Today, I went and picked up my Italian honeybees from Ruhl's Bee Supply in Gladstone, Oregon. The bee box was smaller than expected and less quiet after my numerous readings of Sylvia Plath's poem, "The Arrival of the Bee Box." Leno (Lee-no) was intrigued.

I pried off the top, and pulled out the feeder after preparing my tools and misting the cage with honey water.

Then I took out the queen's box, set her aside, and brushed the bees off the top of the box with the grass. Then, I put the wooden board over the hole created by the removal of the feeder. I took the cork out of the bee box, simply popping it out with a small blade, and I stuck a small marshmallow into her entrance. She will hopefully munch her way out in the next day or two. I then tied a wire to a top bar and to her box, so that she would hang in the hive.

Finally, I removed the wooden board from the bee box, placed it into the tb hive, and replaced the top bars and the lid. They discovered their entrance almost immediately.

Then, I watched in awe and took some photos.

Here's one of the many bees that landed on me. And below, they are discovering the entrance to their new home.