Daisies and Vireo

We have had a couple of sunny days so I went up to our back pasture, the one that usually has donkeys on it.


Field of Ox-Eye Daisies (June 13, 2009)

No donkeys but a field of daisies--acres of them have sprung up thanks to all the rain lately.



The Ox-Eye Daisy is not native and common in fields and roadsides. Like other composites, the center is composed of many small flowers, producing many seeds later.


Each little flower must have a dab of nectar for this bee or fly.


Here's another bee I don't know. I looked but there were no honeybees on these flowers. I have seen my bees on Catawba trees down the road but that's it--not much nectar collecting going on now.

A few days later, I spotted two nests in the woods.



This photo of a small nest (about 3-4 inches in diameter) was taken from below so I wasn't sure if it was occupied.




A Red-Eyed Vireo was sitting on her eggs in this nest--not quite as neat as the previous one but similar with spider webbing and some lichens holding it together. I was able to identify the bird by first cropping the photo and consulting Peterson's Eastern Birds' Nests field guide and my bird field guide. I heard the song and saw the bird last year in about the same area. The nest also was where the field guide predicted--in a small hickory tree about 10 feet from the ground.


I confirmed the red eye by cropping one photo more and increasing the color saturation to bring the red out.

Mushrooms and Ovenbird

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Orange Jelly Fungi (May 30, 2009)

We received 10 inches of rain in May which has made the woods very damp---perfect for mushrooms. I found this orange jelly several times in the winter but never as vibrant as this. With the woods so green and dark from the clouds, the orange color really stood out.


Shelf Fungi (May 30, 2009)

This shelf mushroom which I cannot identify is probably the same one I see later in the summer but then it is beige color.


This closer view shows just how fresh the mushroom is. Wonder if it's edible?


Ovenbird (May 30, 2009)

On the same walk, I spotted an ovenbird who appeared to be trying to get me away from its nest. I looked for it--supposed to look like an oven on the ground. I gave up after a little while, seeing how upset she was. The photo is a little blurred--she was going quickly from branch to branch.

I appreciate any corrections on the identifications.

Blackberry Bees

Blackberry Flowers with Honey Bee (May 21, 2009)

I have been keeping notes on where my honey bees forage. I found a few of them at a time on my blackberry patch in the yard. I noticed the bees stay a long time--maybe a minute--on a flower. I wondered if that is how they are picking up the varroa mites.

Black Bees on Blackberry Blossoms (May 21, 2009)

On the blackberries, honey bees forage right along side the native bees which outnumber them by about 10:1 most times I have observed. These black bees are about the size of the honey bees. Like the other native bees, they forage quickly. For the entomologists, please identify these for me.


Carpenter Bee on Blackberry (May 21, 2009)

The large Carpenter Bee seems to pollinate every flower in my yard. About this time, I noticed this and other native bees on my Rhododendron shrubs but no honey bees. Then, I read several accounts that the blossoms of the Catawba Rhododendron blossom have toxic nectar so I was glad they didn't forage on them.


Other Native Bees (May 21, 2009)

These unknown bees were also prolific on the blackberries, flying quickly from flower to flower. The small one is about the size of a sweat bee while the larger one is about the size of a honey bee only slimmer (or is it a wasp?).

Today, I see that there's a berry growing where each flower was so these pollinators were quite effective!

I found a great slide presentation "Native Bee Pollinators" given recently by Nancy Adamson of Virginia Tech. Gardeners and farmers alike will find good tips on pollinating their crops.

The presentation made me quite aware of where the native bees are nesting in my yard. The other day, I was putting up a trellis and noticed that the black bees shown in the the second photograph were flying in and out under a big rock at the edge of the flower bed. I didn't look under the rock but guess that's where they're living.

Bumble bees are nesting in my clay birdhouse on the front porch. It's usually occupied by Carolina Wrens but they are nesting on the other side of the porch in an A-frame birdhouse. To make a good nesting site for bumble bees you can use an empty clay flower pot--on its side with the flower end covered so that the bees will use the small hole in the bottom as an entrance.

Beekeeping Workshop

Almost two weeks ago I attended a great beekeeping workshop. Here is the apiary or cluster of hives we worked that day. Another group of hives are in those yonder mountains.



The workshop was held on an historic farm. This unoccupied building is the oldest and had been built in the late 18th century. The stone chimney on the left is for the huge stone fireplace inside on the first floor which was the dining/living area. Sturdy stairs went up to the open bedroom area or loft. In the basement, the hand-hewn timbers of the basement floor rafters were black with soot where there was another huge stone fireplace used for cooking. Before the workshop started, I enjoyed looking at all the old buildings, cemetery, and pastures.


An Ohio Buckeye tree (not native to this area) was blooming in front of the Victorian farmhouse. The huge blossoms attracted a horde of honey bees. If you stood in the path of the direct line between the tree and the hives, bees would bump into you as they flew. Guess that explains the origin of the term, bee line!



Mr. C, owner of the farm and apiary, demonstrated the powdered sugar treatment that he uses for varroa mites. He puts about a cup of the powdered sugar on the home-made screen (made of window screen) and uses the bee brush to distribute on each hive box. The powdered sugar sticks to the bees and the little mites can't hold on so they fall to the bottom through the screened bottom board. From the ground, the mites can't crawl back up into the hive. You can also use a flour sifter to evenly distribute the powdered sugar over the frames.

One experienced beekeeper said that he does the powdered sugar treatment about every 10 days. He says it does not hurt the bees because they just lick it off each other and may even eat a tracheal mite that way. This frequency of treatment is more often than I was told in my beekeeping class (once per month). They did say you should not use it on a package of bees for several weeks until the hive is well established.

After that demonstration, we divided into two groups, one beginner group to do hive inspections, the other more advanced group to learn about raising and marking queens. I stuck with the beginners.

I felt pretty good that I could easily identify the capped worker brood from the drone cells. Also, I understood when he said that one hive was not strong---very erratic queen laying and supercedure (queen) cells starting. Mr. C said he would probably requeen that one so that it would not swarm like another one did just yesterday.

The instructor was very quick with his inspections. He believed in getting a general sense about how the hive is doing, then getting out of the hive--no more than 15 minutes per hive. But, he inspects about every 10 days--more often than some beekeepers would do.

The bees were upset because some people were blocking their entrance. I got stung on my hand (I did not have my gloves on so I could take a few photos). The woman next to me handed me a penny to rub on my skin which seemed to get rid of the stinging pain immediately.



We inspected this frame of capped drone brood which works as a varroa mite trap. To make the trap, Mr. C nailed a little strip of wood about 1/3 of the way down the deep frame. The top 1/3 was filled with foundation. The bottom 2/3s was empty which encourages the bees to build drone cells. Mites are attracted most to drone cells.

Some people used their pen knives (I should carry one around like men do!) to dig at the drone larvae to look for the mites. They did not find very many which indicated to the beekeepers that the powdered treatment was working well enough to keep the mite population in check.


See the mite on the end of his finger(much better photo in the Backyard Beekeeper book, p. 86)? It looks like a freshly ground pepper flake but it's brown, not black. When you nudge the mite with a pointed stick or match, it will move and then you can see its tiny legs scrambling like a crab which it resembles a little.

After we poked around in that juicy larvae for awhile, we had lunch--sandwiches and great pecan pie (that Mrs. C made). I brought chocolate chip cookies which were eaten right away.

The workshop continued after lunch with splitting one hive to make two. I was surprised how easy it is to do. Mr. C. just took one hive box and set it aside. He determined which one had the queen so he took one frame of cells which had fresh eggs in it from the queened hive box and then put it in the other hive so the workers could make their own queen. The workers make a queen by making supercedure cells over the egg, then they put royal jelly in to make the queen. Of course, you will need another hive top and screened bottom board to put on the split hive.

A few days later, I used the powdered sugar treatment on my bees. I put my plastic mite grid underneath half of the bottom screen board and took it out the next morning. I found about 12 mites and 1 hive beetle. I am not sure what this means but will do the treatment again every 10 days since I noticed it does not hurt the bees at all--just like the instructor said.

Incidentally, Mr. C. made his own grids to put under the hives to check for mites or hive beetles. He makes them out of old political signs (the ones with corrugated plastic)--a very resourceful man. He also made an inspection cloth out of vinyl table cloth with a strip of wood at the end for rolling it back. I thought it looked like an old vinyl window shade so if I had one, I could make it too. But, I just use a flour sack dish cloth which works good enough.

I plan to attend the workshop next year, especially if they have it at this wonderful farm.

Rainy Days Bring May Treasures

The base of this oak tree in our woods is always covered with Christmas ferns and moss. After several rainy days, it's perfect.


The rains also bring out the box turtles. This one was trying to cross the road so my husband brought him up on our land where he stayed for awhile, then went back down to the road again.


Another common sight after any rain is the toad, like this one on our deck.

Our yard was covered with Buttercups. I hesitated to mow but finally broke down and mowed for the first time in early May. After one day, the buttercups popped up again, just shorter. I also let the dandelions grow since I noticed my honey bees like to work them.


Here, my dog Kookie (all 86 pounds of her) runs through the back pasture which was covered with buttercups up until this week.


This Columbine was also blooming in early May although this wildflower prefers rocky, dry soils unlike the buttercup which likes moist soil.


May is not complete without a photo of the Wild Geranium, here with a pollinating fly or bee and another getting ready to land.


I have been looking forward to seeing the Black Locust tree bloom this year because beekeepers said that honey bees feed on the nectar. I did not see any honey bees on this tree even though it is only about 10 feet from my hive. The smell of the blossoms is so sweet I don't see how my bees could miss it. Perhaps they went to larger trees which were also covered with blossoms. However, other pollinators were abundant including bumble, carpenter and several other types of bees along with butterflies. Ants and beetles were roaming the twigs and leaves, making for a very active tree.

Flying Squirrel, Trillium, and Wood Thrush

Flying Squirrel (April 26, 2009)

This Flying Squirrel was clinging to the brick foundation of our house one morning. Perhaps he was chilly.


Large Flowered Trillium (April 26, 2009)

That same day, I made my annual walk up to a hard-to-get-to cove that has trillium covering the slopes. I think I will call it Trillium Cove because it is the only place that trillium grows on our land.

Wood Thrush (April 29, 2009)

On another early morning, this Wood Thrush was sitting on our deck. I had time to get the camera and get this shot. I was a little worried she was sick. Then, another wood thrush called from nearby tree and the bird left to join him in the woods. Guess she was ok, perhaps a little chilly.

The hot weather last week brought all the leaves out. The dogwoods have been as full and beautiful as I have ever seen them, same with the redbud. But, alas, I didn't get a good shot of them. Spring happens so fast in Appalachia.

Wood Thursh and Other Sightings

Sassafras Tree in Bloom (April 20, 2009)

He was there--a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher, a tiny bird who I see every spring. Had I had my camera handy, I would have gotten a great shot. Oh well--I will just enjoy the lovely colors of the Sassafras blossoms to cherish the memory.


Wood Thrush (April 22, 2009)

On Earth Day morning, I saw my first Wood Thrush, under the feeders acting a whole lot like a Robin--what a reminder to appreciate the wonders of the good earth. This morning I heard his wonderful song for the first time.


Garlic Mustard

Another sighting was not welcome at all--garlic mustard. I thought I had rid my yard of this troublesome invasive two years ago. I pulled up some last year and thought I was done with it. Evidently, I missed a few because there were small stands along the edge of our yard and into the woods. So, I have been pulling them up by the roots. Now is the best time to get rid of them because the ground is moist and the white flowers are easily seen.


The seed pods of the Garlic Mustard will pop out hundreds of seeds from a single plant. That's why I was determined to pull out every plant I could find. I also learned not to put them in the compost pile or let them lay on the ground--they can still do their dirty work. So, I have a 5-gallon bucket full of the plants in my shed--I will let them dry out and maybe put them on one of our bonfires later this year if we can stand the garlic smell.

Last Sunday, I put up my hummingbird feeder and within an hour, I saw a hummer at the feeder. I usually wait until the Columbine blooms but this year it is very late, perhaps because of the cool weather.

Spring is racing along....