Forget the Zombie Apocalypse, my Honey Bees are battling the Ant Apocalypse!  I’ve prepared them for Bear attacks.  I’ve protected them from Mice.  But somehow the smallest invaders have stormed my apiary kingdom!  Ok, I may have been a bit distracted lately by my adventures, not to mention all the rain we’ve had lately, so it’s been over a week since I’ve checked my hives.  You can’t imagine my astonishment when Dad checked them this weekend and found the outside of Azzza Hive covered in Ants!

The Ant Apocalypse was triggered by the perfect storm.  The unrelenting rain we’ve been experiencing lately completely saturated the ground around our hives, making puddles in places we’ve never had puddles before.  All that rain also washed away enough of the sticky goop Dad painted on the base of our stands, making it possible for the Ants to climb up and seek shelter on the hive.  Adding to the perfect storm was during a recent feeding while dividing Azzza Hive and Chuck BEEly Hive Dad spilled sugar water down the side of Azzza Hive, which apparently left enough of a residue to make it an alluring location compared to the other hives.  Thus triggering the Ant Apocalypse!  But have no fear!  Although the Ants were a nuisance, our Honey Bees were prepared to defend themselves.  Dad carefully inspected Azzza Hive and found not a single Ant inside!  Our ladies won the war!  Ok, so Mom and Dad helped too by scraping off the offending invaders so they wouldn’t pester them anymore.  Although there weren’t any signs of Ants on the other hives, Dad carefully checked them too, and all was quiet there as well.  Good job ladies!  We promise to keep better watch over your kingdom and reapply the sticky goop after heavy rains.

In other good news, Azzza Hive and Chuck BEEly Hive have been successfully divided.  My pet Honey Bees are back where they belong in Chuck BEEly Hive!  Ok, so a few of Asa’s Bees probably made the move too, but it doesn’t matter.  My hive is a buzzing happy home once more!  As you may recall, last fall after struggling to keep my Queen alive, I was left with no choice but to combine my Bees with Azzza Hive.  Although I was mad at the time, I admit it was a good move because Azzza Hive was a much stronger colony and together the Honey Bees had a good winter.  But now that spring is here, things were getting crowded in there, and the hive was starting to show signs they were ready to swarm!  That’s when Dad intervened and enticed my Honey Bees into making the move back to their old home.

In preparation to split the hives, Dad turned Azzza Hive into a giant skyscraper!  Dad moved the frames with the Queen Bee cells, as well as a few others with eggs, and added them to my old hive now stacked on top of Azzza Hive.  His goal was to lure the nurse Worker Bees up there to care for the baby Bees, especially the potentially new Queen.  Then we left them alone and waited to see if the hive would naturally divide itself.  After a few days, and seeing positive signs of activity in both the top and bottom hives of the skyscraper, Dad moved Chuck BEEly Hive back to it’s old spot.  That move was a bit of a gamble.  Some beekeepers suggest when dividing a hive one must keep them at least two miles apart, or else they’ll all just return to the old hive.  We did consider letting my good friend, Inky, take over as a foster beekeeper, but Dad had faith our Honey Bees could adjust.

By the looks of things his gamble paid off both and both hives are active and adjusting well to the split.  However, Chuck BEEly Hive isn’t out of the woods just yet.  There are signs of Queen cells being formed and Drone cells, but no tell tale brood to indicate we have a happy Queen in there just yet.  So Dad will continue to monitor them to see if one emerges as a clear ruler of Chuck BEEly Hive.  At least though in the meantime both hives are producing honey with plenty of room to grow and thrive, and are buzzing with excitement once more!  As for our two new hives, Dire Wolf Beez and Lemmeez Hive, they are both adjusting well to their new homes.  All is right in my little apiary kingdom!