Two Honeybee Hives Pollinate, Fascinate in Family Garden

Posted in Learning Experiences, Wildlife on August 19 2010, by Plant Talk

See Honey Taken from Hive Saturday as Part of National Celebration

Toby Adams is Manager of the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden.

Every day during the gardening season, the Family Garden is a hive of activity hours before visitors arrive. A diverse staff—coordinators, instructors, explainers, volunteers, and interns—zip about this way and that, preparing for the day’s programs. I’ve described this scene as resembling a beehive—the many tasks to be accomplished are shared by everyone, with necessary details divided and completed.

Veteran staff mentor new arrivals in how to get tiny seeds and delicate plantings off to a good start. Difficult projects are completed through teamwork and cooperation, and the most unglamorous but important of chores (cleaning the tools and washing the dirty dishes) taken on by a willing hand for the benefit of the group.

I’ve come to realize that this analogy to a beehive is most appropriate. Since May 1, I’ve had the awesome opportunity to witness the activity of a real beehive while helping to manage our newest addition to the Family Garden—two honeybee hives placed on top of our garage.

Under the calm and diligent guidance of Patrick Gannon, our volunteer beekeeping expert, and with the spirited enthusiasm of his family of assistants, Nancy, Julian, and Hannah, we’ve watched with great interest as our hives have progressed rapidly through the spring and summer seasons.

The activity we’ve noticed from the ground and up close through our hive inspections have revealed an incredible orchestration of the many distinct tasks the bees take on to benefit the colony as a whole. From the leadership of the queen to the attention of the workers and the drones, tasks are assigned and completed with terrific efficiency. Young workers build the comb to rear the brood and learn to process arriving nectar into honey. Soon the workers are taught how to forage for pollen and nectar and then make their way into the garden to locate their floral targets.

During one of the hottest summers ever in New York City, the bees worked together to cool the hive by lining up and fanning the hot air to one another and eventually out of the hive. All this is vital to the success of the colony and cannot be accomplished without mentoring, teamwork, and cooperation.

This Saturday, August 21, come celebrate the 2nd Annual National Honey Bee Awareness Day. Join us in the Family Garden beginning at 12 p.m. to meet these fascinating insects. Patrick Gannon will be on hand as we introduce the wonders of beekeeping and conduct our first extraction of some of the excess honey produced by our beehives this season. Through pollination of many staple food crops, these industrious insects are responsible for nearly one-third of all the food we eat. Stop by to learn more about these vital gardening partners and try a taste of the honey they made over the past several weeks!