Freshly harvested local morels…
newbie beekeeper lessons
As a brand new beekeeper with lots of newbie questions, I learned pretty quickly there is no one right answer to most of my questions. Questions like: How much should I feed my new bees? It depends — folks say you don’t want them to weaken and starve just as they’re getting established, but you do want them to have an incentive to forage on their own. Knowing the right amount to feed takes watching the bees — are they actively foraging and are they coming back heavy with pollen and nectar? Is the activity of the hive increasing, diminishing, or staying about the same? When you’re an inexperienced beekeeper like I
May 17, 2016
bees thirsty after rain
The girls were stuck in their hives for a couple of days with the rain. They apparently don’t like to fly when it’s cold and wet outside. As soon as the sun peeked out from behind the clouds, though, they were all over the garden lapping up raindrops from leaves and flowers. Coming back to the hive I noticed some of the bees were undershooting the landing board. I think because they were so heavy with water and nectar, they ended up landing on the ground until they could either drop some water weight or muster the strength to make it back up to the hive entrance.
first 2016 radish
Will leave the rest to get a bit bigger, but couldn’t resist an early sample.
market time
Seedlings are ready for the first farmers’ markets of the 2016 season. The Early Golden Crookneck Squash is already full of blooms. The Purple Jalapeno and Goat Horn chilies I started March 22nd are doing great and ready to be transplanted. Only 3 of the Chocolate Habaneros I started March 16th made it to transplant stage. Of the 3, only one has survived. It seems to be doing well. Tomatoes always thrive. The Cherokee Purples above I started from seed 3/28 are already 8″ tall. They are one of my favorite tomatoes so far — they are easy to grow, grow quickly, and the fruit tastes amazing. I’ll also have the usual
May 13, 2016
the girls have arrived
Two bee colonies arrived last night in “nuc” boxes. I hear it isn’t a good idea to move bees once they’ve made their way home inside the hive at night, so I removed the yellow entrance blocker from their boxes and left them to come and go as they please until the next day. Today I installed them in their new home. The bee provider was kind enough to locate the queens and put them in a queen cage for transport so I could be sure I have a live queen for each hive. Installation was easy. I put on my bee suit, lit my smoker, smoked around the nuc box a
May 3, 2016
earth day fun
If you’re local or happen to be in the Whitefish, Montana area on April 23rd, drop by the park by Whitefish Depot between 10 and 1. We’ll be doing a grow-your-own sunflower greens demo for kids (and adults). We’ll also have grow-your-own sunflower greens kits for sale so you can take the fun home! Here are the details: Earth Day in the Park. Hope to see you there!
garden beds getting ready
Decided to do a mix of straw bale and in-ground garden this year. The sheet mulching we did in the fall resulted in a nice, loamy compost. I put 750 lbs of organic soil on top of the sheet mulch today, and will add some more tomorrow. Straw bales are creating a border around the in-ground beds. Next week we’ll be conditioning the straw bales and creating the garden beds. Apple, peach, and cherry trees arrive Monday. They’ll get planted in the new orchard area beyond where you see the far straw bales. I’ll also be planting blackberry and blueberry bushes, as well as installing irrigation, fencing, and tree cages.
April 9, 2016
on food and gardens
Ruth Reichl’s memoirs — Tender at the Bone, Comfort Me with Apples, and Garlic and Sapphires — are among my favorite foodie reads. If you’re a fan of hers —or just someone interested in food culture, gardening, and changing the way we eat — Ruth Reichl’s Commonwealth Club podcast interview is worth a listen.
spring joy
Today feels like the first real day of spring, and the forecast is for warm weather this week. Time to put the tomatoes I started in January into the sunshine! Some are still in blossom phase. Others are full-on green tomatoes — a bit bigger than ping pong balls at this stage. They’ll go back into the hothouse at night — nights are still pretty cold here in NW Montana. Got the beehives set up outside as well, ready to be populated with new bees in a few weeks. After the dark and cold of winter, it’s pure spring joy here at Planet B.