> The farmer is a friend of Adrian Wenner, and they did some trials with
> Blue Orchard bees on the same land last year.>
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There are many types of native solitary bees and bumblebees here in the
wild mountains.Some show up right before fruit bloom as they seem to be on
the same cycle as the fruit trees.
  But I cant recall ever seeing anything but honeybees on the almond
bloom.I put this down to the widespread spraying that goes on.While
these bees will fly at lower temps than honeybees ,I cant help but
wonder if they could be raised in any quantity to be a significant
pollinator of almonds.Tim,let us know if you see a lot of orchard bee
activity while you are checking your hives.(I really enjoy walking
through an almond orchard in full bloom on a warm day listening to the
roar of the bees,at least until a fungicide spray rig shows up)
----Mike

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