After walking perhaps a 1/4 mile around the pond on the property, the thought of keeping the emergent trees at bay and mowing the lawns seemed daunting. Mowing our place takes 30 minutes with a push mower.
Exciting news on the bee front! I'm lining up a feral bee hive that is in a dying tree in Carrboro. The hive is 8 years old, the plan is to have the tree service cut out the hive in this large water oak. The portion of the tree that it is in is about 15 inches in diameter. So he'll cut the hive out, we'll secure the top and bottom and retrieve the hive after dark so all the bees will return to the hive. We'll screen the entrance and carry the hive home. Not planning on transferring the bees to a box hive until spring. Meg had told me she did not want any more hives here, but a wild hive really peaks her interest so she wants me to bring it home.
You are thinking of moving?
ReplyDeleteKitty,
ReplyDeleteMeg gets tired of all the driving to work in Durham and then to Chapel Hill to help her parents. Not planning to move unless we find the right place. Most places in our budget are usually cheaply made and poorly planned or a bad location. it is tough when you custom design your house for your own taste then look for something to replace it.
Collecting a feral bee hive sounds interesting. Good luck! Shade is a must. I would never buy a place without it around my house for sure. 11 acres sounds idyllic though.
ReplyDeleteInteresting Dragonhunter dragonfly-kind of a cannibalistic sort! Beautiful insect-great photos :)
ReplyDeleteThe older I get, the more I appreciate the shade... I would be happy if 100% of our gardens were shaded! Larry
ReplyDeleteYour dragonfly pictures are great! Such amazing insects! Shade is so important, especially with the way so much of the country is experiencing record-breaking hot and dry conditions lately.
ReplyDeleteHi Randy, i've just commented at Gail-Clay and Limestone and mentioned about you being my idol in many things. Being a bee-person is a plus plus more! :-)) If i am not mistaken your cultured bees are Apis mellifera, i wonder if those wild ones are the same species. Our native species, Apis cerana, has wonderful honey but it seems it is not easy to culture as they leave easily the hives. I wonder why, maybe i should ask the authorities about the reason.
ReplyDeleteI wondered about you moving too. We were just talking, after watching HGTV show about remodeling, what we would change in our place...down the road a good bit. Hard to think of anything, like you said, when you design your place it is hard to make a change.
ReplyDeleteLove the dragonfly pics!! Slowly but surely you will educate me on these beautiful creatures.
Don't settle for any place without shade.
ReplyDeleteI always appreciate your dragonfly photos. I spent the last of the daylight yesterday watching the dragonflies swooping up their prey. Oh, and even though the sun was no longer beating down oppressively, I sat in the shade :)
Your insect pics are always the best.
ReplyDeleteWe almost have too much shade at our house, but here in Idaho one needs it!