First bee call of the year, poisons in the food and a microscope

Reader Contribution by Jeremy Marr

I got the first bee removal call of the year yesterday. It’s a bit early, but hey, I won’t complain. The woman said that she thought there were three colonies in her wall.

I asked her to call me come spring when she starts seeing them again. It has to be warm out before I’ll do removals, and it helps if there is a nectar flow on so that they can build up fast.

A bee colony starts looking for forage pretty early. They know that after it warms up enough for them to fly the flowers won’t be far behind.

You’ll see the bees on the pussy willows collecting pollen pretty early around here in Michigan. That’s the first local pollen source that I’ve seen them going to. There is skunk cabbage in these parts too, but I’m guessing they haven’t found any nearby.

After the bees have located a pollen source and there is nectar to be had they start to build up their numbers. The queen starts laying in earnest.

Online Store Logo
Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368