Adrian,
 
>As for the sanity reference, I don't think most beekeepers had a
>great deal in the first place.   :->
 
   Great reply, Adrian!  I have watched beekeepers encounter insurmountable
obstacles for several decades (e.g., DDT, parathion, mites), but I have
never seen all of them "throw in the towel."  Opening a colony during a
honey flow is a special experience (but don't keep it open too long).
 
   I had a beekeeper visitor a few months ago from Kenya who wanted to see
how we handled our colonies.  I told her that was find and that we should
meet at one on Wednesday.  She asked, "In the daytime?"  We drove to the
bee yard and parked nearby.  She asked, "Are you going to leave the car
windows open?"  We walked the short distance to the hives and then asked,
"Are you going to open hives in short sleeves?"
 
   I opened several colonies and explained how we operate colonies.  In one
case I could show her the queen backing up and laying an egg in a cell.
Her comment:  "No wonder you people in this country spend so much time
studying bees -- in our country we can only approach colonies at night!"
 
                                        the other Adrian
 
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