Boy, are we a lucky farm! We've had a bee hive box sitting outside, waiting for us to find or purchase some bees to move into it. Yesterday, we think a hive swarmed and moved in without our even asking. Now we have one more colony of bees here to pollinate our pumpkins & veggie garden, and help the local ecosystem. Check out these photos of the bees moving in: The first shot shows a large number of bees near the entrance to the box, and in the second it looks like most of them have moved in already. Their move-in process made it a challenge to get into our own front door for a little while, and it was fascinating to watch!

Some neat information that we've learned about bees this year:

If you see bees swarming, it means that a new colony has split off from the old one, because they've outgrown their hive. They're looking for a place to build a new hive! So, with our pumpkins and veggies in need of bees for great production, we've bought some bee suits & other equipment and are looking to collect any swarms that we see. If you see a swarm, contact us and we'll try to help collect it. Once it's moved in here, we might just name it after you!

It's going to be extra hot all week long! Forecasts indicate that we'll be having temperatures in the mid to upper 80's through Friday. We've paused in transplanting, and want to recommend some care tips for the week.

Last week's rain may not have watered your trees sufficiently. And, trees get wilty when it's hot and sunny, just like we do, so they'll need your help to push a large amount of water up through the leaves. Step outside today and check the soil, to see if it's wet. If not, give them a good soaking so they have a lot of moisture in the root ball. And it wouldn't hurt to check again in a day or two, to see how much they're using. The photo at left shows a handful of soil where a tree would need to be soaked well for this week.

Second, if you haven't got mulch on top of the root systems yet, do it now. Mulch will help keep that moisture from evaporating, so the tree can use it better.

Third, while you're watering is a great time for an application of Root Stimulator. Let's help those roots grow so they can use the moisture in the surrounding soil.