10 November 2013

metal + wax

ackee to be trimmed

teaching

beveling

Our morning started off with the time-consuming process of trimming the ackee, the seed and pulp is poisonous and needs to be removed. After boiled, it makes a delectable treat. Some of the German folk who have been staying next door at Strawberry Fields for a yoga retreat came over to learn how to bevel a cutlass from Kwao and Melchizedek. Beveling can be lengthy process but it makes the blade last much longer. 
queen surrounded by workers

odd bee behavior 1

odd bee behavior 2

flat comb
We fed and inspected ten top-bar hives and noticed some interesting bee behavior from one of them. The clustered all around the top-bar, not fanning but just humming and watching us sort through their hive, looking for eggs and creating enough space for them to expand. These colonies are doing exceptionally well compared to the others that are 100 - 200 feet away. Agape's reasoning was that the other hives are closer to the road so the exhaust may be affecting them. I thought that it may be the sun since the ten hives are located in such a spot where they would receive direct sunlight during the hottest part of the day and shade in the morning and evenings. The hives closer to the road seem to be in a shadier area. Kwao thinks it's the genetics. It's most likely a mix of all. Some combs were flat on one side, having been pressed against the end where the bees were unable to build up the other side due to lack of space.

rainbow blessings after bee-tending









caribbean love

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