S. paid a visit to the store today, and inevitably we got to talking bees. When I described what Beedicca went through at the beginning of July, his first response was, I bet they swarmed.
He should know. Their bees have swarmed 4 times this year alone, and the most recent one was about two weeks after Beedicca's population crash. We talked it over a little more and he still thought that sounded like a good explanation.
> all that honey was gone: before swarming bees depart, they gorge on as much honey as possible, to get them through their journey.
>The bees were lethargic and faded-looking: the older bees stay with the hive and raise a new queen.
>it was raining a lot, which might have kept them from foraging: we can't find enough food here, so we better move.
He made me feel a little better, less anxious, because Beedicca is thriving again now, and a swarm is not a failure, it's a success. We sent some bees out into the world.
He said he's just come to understand that the bees have reasons for all they do, reasons that may or may not be visible to us, and they do things in their own time and when they need to. All we can do is support them and celebrate their success. And enjoy the honey :)
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