HiHat Honey

My sister Lucy was delivering campaign signs in Andover, New Hampshire when she noticed something unusual, and lovely, at the top of a driveway. Luckily this house was marked for her first delivery, so knock knock knock she went to talk bees and Bass.

lucy's interest was piqued at the top of the driveway

That tall hive on posts (seen below) is called a top-bar hive. It’s a leggier alternative to the Langstroth hives that I have. I’d be interested to see what this beekeeper thought of it since he has both kinds — the painted ones in the background are Langstroth. Top-bars are simpler and cheaper than the stacked supers that I have. I see this beekeeper has put his Langstroth hives on platforms made of wooden planks on cement blocks — this is to keep out rodents and to make inspections easier on the beekeeper’s back.

this new hampshire man will be at the polls in boscawen, nh at the primaries tomorrow

On the beekeeper’s biography Lucy writes, “Well he took up beekeeping when he retired 17 years ago. He has a collie / hound who rides around in the passenger seat of his VW Passat while they drive in the back yard, where he has constructed his own driving range…strictly for pitching wedge shots. Beyond the pitching wedge is the apiary.

Lucy continues, “He did invite me to a spaghetti dinner at the old home day in danbury, nh, but it was about 9:30 am and I still had a parade to march in and a new found lake to swim in.”

Below, you can see an electric fence used to keep bears away. Bears robbing honey is not just the stuff of cartoons. While not a threat in my Brooklyn apiary, they can be big problems for rural and suburban hives. Remember that bear in NJ who kept coming back to Tony Soprano’s backyard hive? Hmm.  If they stick a paw in that comb once, you’ll never be able to keep them away.

bear fence / wouldn't they just love to get their paws in those hives!

Lucy writes, “He made me touch the electric wire and then explained that because I was standing on my rubber-insulated shoes I didn’t get electrocuted. But if I was not wearing shoes, as bears don’t, I would have been very hurt and not messed with that wire again. He said his cat touched the wire once and didn’t die, but was really hurt, and he laughed as he told the story.”

Yikes. I am glad little Lucy was wearing her Nike Eclipses that day.  She’s right — I have never seen a bear wearing that sort of rubber-insulated shoes.

The Russian beekeeper whose hive is robbed in the video clearly did not have domestic security at the top of his agenda, like Lucy’s NH Republican. Just teasing you, Lucy.

this beekeeper turns to crafting civil war miniatures in the winter, a natural progression

lucy prefers to campaign in a cape