<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/bee-inspection-2-2jul19.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-5715" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/bee-inspection-2-2jul19-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a>My second bee inspection today and all went well. I didn't see the queen but this is no reason to panic - yet. I did see a bee emerging from a cell which was incredible and the "super", the box above the brood box, has started to show signs of honey being stored on three frames

I also discovered that holding the frame of bees and taking a close up photo isn't easy.

<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/bee-inspection2-1jul19.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-5716" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/bee-inspection2-1jul19-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a>During my first inspection the smoker went out but I had no problems this time other than my clothes now smell of smoke. It's a delicate balance to keep the wood shavings smoking without catching fire or going out completely. The bees were very active but not aggressive and were compliant when I brushed them aside to see into the cells. I did find just blowing on them was sufficient when I held the frame close.

I guessed that getting to know what to look for would take some time however I've already started picking out the drones and drone cells. More importantly I didn't see any queen cells because if the colony starts to create a queen it is possible they will swarm although this is more common in May and June. There's so much to learn and I'm already finding it a fascinating pastime.

And so back to the garden...