This wont be interesting to very many on the list, but I've started a
board for people on the Central Coast of California to sell equipment,
share experience etc...

http://centralcoastbeekeeping.com/

Things here are great, with the soil moist, lots of warm sunshine and
flowers everywhere. My first splits are filling up supers. Those I didn't
split in time have sent off multiple swarms. It must be happening to the
few ferral hives as well, as there seem to be swarms everywhere. Last week
alone I got a call almost every day, from a guy who somehow ended up with
a swarm partially in his living room, to a swarm which landed at a school
bus stop while the kids were there waiting! It's been nice to fill up so
many of those empty boxes.

So far none of those very small swarms we had in South Africa and Dr.
Wenner recently reported in Santa Barbara (1 hour south of us).

Avocado farmers are paying 50 dollars this year, and for the first time I
can remember they are panicing/hustling to get hives. Some are looking for
up to 3 hives per acre. I think it has much to with several factors, the
lack of large numbers of ferral hives, the huge expansion of acreage, and
the tendency to plant only the Hass variety, with at most a few pollinator
trees, which makes pollination much more difficult.

Russian hives slightly more aggressive than the Italians, and still fine
without any mite treatment, although it's only been a little less than a
year.

Regards to the list

Tim Vaughan

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