TIME TO WATCH THE BEES

TIME TO WATCH THE BEES

This past Jan, after we got back from holiday, we discovered that the Varroa mites had taken out an entire hive of ours. It had been real cold before we traveled to Minn but we thought the bees would be fine. They had gotten through one winter that was not nearly as cold as Dec 2013 in SW Colorado.

After closer inspection, Jason realized that he had an attack of Varroa mites in his Carniolan hive. He open up the top box, only to find the entire honey bee colony was dead. Jason brought a sample over to me and I was able to photograph some and sure enough, the mites were attached to their bodies near the abdomen.




Some of the organic ways to treat the mites are with powdered sugar.

 http://www.damoc.com/beekeeper/sugar%20dusting/sugar%20dusting.html

We pulled the Carniolan away from the Italian hive so that there wouldn't be any other infestations, although,in the winter months, the mites will have froze or died with the bees itself. So, the next step is to continue to monitor the Italian hive for signs of Varroa mites.
To help you monitor the mites, you will need a bottom board. I recommend the Brushy Mountain Bee Farm, although, you can pick them up any any bee supply stores.


http://www.brushymountainbeefarm.com/8-Frame-IPM-Bottom-Board/productinfo/254IPM/

The preferred method of pest control while raising bees is the non-pesticide approach. If you are backyard bee keeper, this method will help you out a lot. There are a lot of  references and experts to assist you with this. I belong to the 4 Corners Beekeeping Club and they can be found on the website and they also have a FB page. Check it out.

 http://coloradobeekeepers.org/ai1ec_event/4-corners-beekeeping-club-meeting/?instance_id=

Celtic Knitting Designs

I have been attracted to the Fair Isle knitting technique for some time. I have been to Ireland, Scotland, and England and I hope to see quite a bit more of the British Isles in the future. I feel most at home when I am in these countries. In 2008, my sister Anner and I visited Ireland and we had a real good time over there. We did a complete tour of the country and we absolutely loved it. One of my favorite places was the Aran Islands. We visited Inis mor on this trip and we had a lovely time touring the little island. One interesting place we saw was the Aran Island sweater market. It wasn't that big but we go a chance to see some knitting techniques that they have used for centuries.  


Ihttp://www.aransweatermarket.com/about-aran-sweater-market
http://www.dochara.com/tour/things-to-buy/aran-stitches-and-their-meanings/

Honeycomb pattern

 I really liked the honey comb knitting pattern. The Honeycomb is a said to be a lucky stitch, signifying plenty and in the case of fishermen a good catch.
 We got a chance to see quite a bit of the island and even got to buggy ride with a fellow named Sean and his horse Danny. It was so nice to go along the coastline and see all the houses and paddocks where their sheep, horses, and cattle grazed. Each paddock was build up by rocks on the perimeter. The rocks were so weathered and interesting. The sea thrift and grasses dotted the landscape and the waves brushed up along the sea walls. It was so beautiful. I would love to return to the other islands adjacent to Inis Mor. 

Carriage ride along coastline

The Sea cliffs were real spectacular. I thought it was pretty interesting that they didn't have barricades over looking the ocean. People could walk straight up to the cliffs and look over the edge. I didn't really want to leave that place. It was so spectacular and I will always remember our time there.
 
I have been trying to experiment with fair isle knitting and i have done some projects but it takes awhile. You have to be extremely patient when working with these types of knitting stitches, whether it be fair isle, cable, or Jacquard knitting. It is fun to try these techniques into some smaller projects likes hats and pillow tops. I have been juggling between exercising, reading, gardening, knitting, hiking, walking, etc, so i try and do small projects so I can actually finish them.   

 Here a few of my Fair Isle knitting projects. I hope to do more in the future but it is a start anyway. The fair Isle pillow was knitting in the round and then I had to steek(cut) the work. The other design is a Celtic hat design worked with 100% wool Patons yarn in Fair Isle and it is super warm. It has a braid to separate the brim from the main body of the hat. Looks cool now but i still have to finish it up.

Celtic Tam

Desert Pillow Navajo design

Time to extract some honey........

J's Bees~

Jason lifting Italian box off of the hive

Finally getting some honey out of the hives. Jason took off two boxes this morning and had to smoke the bees so they would move away. That didn't seem to work out to well. The bees are reluctant to leave the honey so Jason has put them on a board that will allow them to exit the box but not allowed to return. There is a screen on the bottom of this board, making it hard for the bees to return. Later today we'll start pulling the frames out and getting them to the extraction area, which is in the garage.

We can only do one hive at a time so perhaps tomorrow we can work on the carniolans bees, which is Jason's hive. Looks like we might be able to get quite a bit of honey from these two boxes. 
Meanwhile, the rabbit brush is really coming on strong now so the bees will have something to forage on, especially after all this lovely rain we got. 


Jason ended up pulling the frames one by one and sweeping off the bees. From there he would bring them over and set them into a  tub covered by a wet blanket. The tub was sitting on the bucket of the tractor. We got 14 frames in all.

Jason moving his frames over to the bucket

  Jason will now scrape the caps off the frames to get the honey flow going and then sets them in the honey extractor. I think he can put 2 frames in at a time.  He spins it for about 70 revolutions. Then, he changes them around and repeats the spinning so that all the honey has been extracted. 

Jason cutting the cap off of the frame

What we are wondering now is what type of pollen do the bees go for around here?

I have heard alfalfa fields adjacent to hives typically have a lighter colored honey and the taste is a bit sweeter. The first batch of honey we have is a great rich taste. It has a taste all of its own. If all goes well, we'll get the two other boxes done today and then we'll wait til next year to try it again. In the meantime, the bees are buzzing away in the garden.

Honey being released out of the bucket

I planted a lot of perennials and we fed the hummingbirds all summer long but my garden is very close to the hives and they have been real busy working in the garden in the morning hours.Honey bees also like the Chrysothamnus nauseosus (Rabbitbrush). 
Most ranchers try and get rid of Rabbit brush because it can be very invasive and spread.
Since we have no livestock needing grasses, we'll just continue to keep Rabbit brush on the property. tj

It is Hip to be Hip

It is actually Hip to be Hip~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I recently had a hip replacement on Aug 7th, 2013. That was an ordeal for me. Knowing that i was going to be out of commission for awhile didn't make me feel to good. In fact, I have been suffering with a bit of depression lately because i haven't been making any forward progress, nor have I been getting enough exercise. I have missed out on a lot in the last 8 months, all because I was either procrastinating or just to scared to go through with the hip replacement.  In July, 2013 when I couldn't walk anymore, I decided to get off my ass and do something about it.

Knitting out in the patio 3 days after surgery.

 I had the surgery through Durango Orthopedic and so far i am glad i got it done but some days are better than others. I am a firefighter and fuels specialist for the BLM and i am expected to give 100 % to my job and that has not been happening. Now I am faced with the decision of changing jobs or reducing the amount of labor I do during our projects. I keep telling myself that this is what i do and that I don't want to reduce anything. I think some of my close friends told me that the hardest thing for me will be recovery. They were right. 

The two week appointment went well enough. My incision looked good and i was getting my mobility back. Everything seemed to be getting better and then all of the sudden, things got tougher for me. I couldn't get my walk back. My leg still felt numb and I started doing physical therapy. I never thought i would say that I was so sore after doing a few exercises for an hour. Heck, I hadn't done any physical exercise for over a month and now I feel like all i want to do is get in best shape of my life.  I actually think i need that challenge though.
I have a long way to go though.

First walk to the garden 4 days after surgery.

Not being able to work in the garden and go hiking, biking, fishing, kayaking, and all the other wonderful outdoor exercises are what is getting me down right now. I did plan this whole thing so I could ski again this fall because that is really what makes me happy. 
If anything makes me tick in life, it is skiing. I don't care if I am skiing in the back country, x-country, or alpine skiing with my family. I love how I feel when I am on skis. I love the tranquil sense you get when you are skiing alone in the woods. Or, skiing down a mountain that you never thought you could ski. 

All I can tell myself now is to keep moving. Never look back. I have a lot of stuff that i want to do and I constantly dream about traveling and seeing the world. I just want to live a life filled with experiences. I want to keep things relevant and focus on what is important. tj

Finally ditched the walker and onto the cane now. Two weeks after surgery

Rocks Formations of the San Juan Basin-New Mexico

I have been working in Farmington, NM for nearly two years and have had the pleasure of seeing some fantastic Rock Formations. I told my co-worker today that Farmington seems to look all the same but at the same time, looks different around everyone corner. Some of these images have been posted to FB. I wanted to take a closer look at some of these quite wonderful rocks in the San Juan Basin.

Eyelet Rock_Manzanares Mesa
 

When I first arrived here in Farmington, i wasn't sure what to think of the place. Once i started looking about, i really fell in love with the place.
The rock formations and unique landscapes are what I really love. Here are few of the awesome rock formations that I have seen. Once I have learned the rock formations in strata, I will post again. tj

Hole in the rock 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Eyelet rock is just off of Highway 64 on your way to Dulce. It is just before you approach Manzanares Canyon.



Hole in Rock is up near the Cedar Hill area. There little community before the Colorado border. I walked out to a fire and spotted this cool formation on my way out. It was so cool. It reminded me of the shafts in those caverns back east. 



Off to right is what i call Molar Rock, found in Kutz Canyon.
Can you say erosion. A lot of formations look like this and you can almost always predict wind and water type erosion through the years.

Molar Rock

Flintstone Rock

I call the formation on the left, Flintstone rock. Just because. Everytime i drive off the beaten path, I see another arch of some kind.







Last but not least (below), Duck in a rock found in Vereda Canyon. Spendid family of Ducks eh? ~ Tess

Ducks in a row Formation

Knitted Navajo rug design

Wide Ruins Design

Starting in the 1920's, Native American rug designs were named for the regions where they originated. Some of my favorite rug designs are from the Navajo Reservation. My friend Hank Hayou from Chinle, Arizona made me two rugs. One was a Ganado Red design with an an eye dazzler.  The other rug Hank made was the Wide Ruins design.  The art of weaving is alive and well. The idea of making a rug sounded so intriguing to me. I liked the mystery of how they weaved designs using wool from local wool, dyed from natural fibers. I once asked one of my friends if she would teach me to weave.  After thinking about it, I decided that i would just watch people weave.

Hank Hayou presenting the Ganado Red with eye dazzler

The rug pictured above was the rug made for my Mom. My neighbor and friend Hank Hayou wove this rug  night after night. He finally finished it and offered it up to me. I thought it was brilliant.
http://navajorug.com/html/navajo-churro-collection.htm

I have decided to knit a pillow using the color work of the Navajo designs with the fair isle knitting technique I know so well.These are the two pillows that I have knit in the round. I will secure stitches and steek them as soon as I can.

Desert pillows knit in Fairisle

When you knit in the round, you are able to see your colorwork, eliminating the purl stitch. This is nice once you get the steeking figured out. The photos below show the technique for steeking. To secure the steek, you crochet up along the steek stitch. Once you have mastered that, you cut along the edge. Then you can open up your work. For this particular project, I am making pillows for my friend Marilyn. The photo shows me securing the stitch up the center of the steek stitches.

Once you have it secured, you cut along the steek, opening it up as you go. This is the scary part because you don't want to cut your work, especially fairisle. Once you are done, you can open up your work. I have put one row of knit edge on this but I am suppose to do an applied I-cord now. Now all i have to do is sew the knit piece to a backing and then wrap around my pillow that i bought for $1.50 from sierra trading post. I will be working on another pillow called the Mosaic pillows. tess *