Miscellaneous: Kitty Troll, Bird Action and Bee Changes

One of the cheapest cat toys around. Artemis loves to play troll in paper bags.

We've had a pair of jays frequenting the garden for peanuts. They are a lot of fun to watch as they cache the goobers in the lawn, placing a rhody blossom or leaf on top to conceal it. They are so bummed when the lawn mower flings their lunch all over. Now it appears that they haven't been just visiting the garden. The other day I startled a scruffy-looking Jay Jr. during a flying lesson with one of the 'rents. Even after Junior flew safely away, I got seriously scolded by the parent until I put some peanuts out.

This morning we had a pair of flickers come down outside my office (aka the breakfast room). Unfortunately they had split up before I could get the camera. Below is Mr. Flicker looking for ants.




After a bit of a queen explosion this spring, my collection is diminishing a bit. I sold Freyja, my Minnesota Hygenic queen to a friend who lost one of hers. Today another friend decided that she needed to requeen a hive, so I checked on my oldest homemade queen. She's finally laying, and looks plump and lively. She goes to her new home tomorrow.

So now I'm back down to four regular hives, plus two nucleus hives with homemade queens (one swarmed out of a nuc last week). One of those homemades is destined for another friend, if she (the queen that is) starts laying. There's hope yet for getting some honey this year.

Lupine Bloom on Bald Hills Road

There has been a lupine explosion on Bald Hills Road this spring. Larkspur, irises and many other wildflowers are also going crazy up there.

Karin and I drove up Friday afternoon, and stayed until near sunset. The scent of the flowers was intoxicating. There was a gentle hum from wild bees, honeybees and other beneficial insects working the flowers. Barn and violet-green swallows swooped about, and lazuli buntings sang their hearts out.

I'm going up again next week to explore, take more photos, and perhaps do a little plein air painting.

Photos can also be viewed at my Picassa site.

Kinetic Sculpture Race

OK, OK. I know it's now called the Kinetic Grand Championship Challenge Tour de Humboldt Competition or some nonsense like that, but it'll always be the Kinetic Sculpture Race to me.

Karin, Kalen and I joined other Fabulous Babes of the Bee Brigade (the FBBBs) and their spouses (the newly-dubbed SOBBs) at the Saint Mary's Catholic Church parking lot on Janes Road to watch the racers go by. Joy and Steve alerted us to this goodly viewing spot, and we had a picnic party for the event.

For those unfamiliar with the event, the Kinetic Sculpture Race is a three-day race from Arcata to Ferndale for human-powered machines. The sculptures can be as simple or elaborate as one wishes. They must be able to travel on land (asphalt, sand and mud) and water (a bit of Humboldt Bay). Cheating is encouraged, but if an official catches you at it, you must be prepared to bribe them. It's a whole bunch of silliness and fun.


Leading the pack: an insect sculpture.


The Rutabaga Queen and retinue

Duane Flatmo makes some of the best kinetic sculptures. This dragon isn't among his most colorful, but it is pretty nifty.

Dragon, hippo and more.

June Moxon also makes impressive sculptures, like this Kinetic Chicken.



Angler Fish and Octomom

Chris' husband Jim is a local TV weatherman, so of course he suffered many a lame joke about his responsibility for the overcast day. We promise to change the subject someday, Jim.

Claire, Jim, Chris, Joy and Kalen


Joy, Kalen & Karin


Julia, Sheri & Lily-pup. Julia's wishing a swarm would fly by.

One poor team was limping along, probably stuck in first gear. Julia and I gave them a little boost, getting them up to 4 or 5 mph for a hundred feet or so. We hope they made it to the day's stop before dark.


All too soon, the sculptures had raced by, and our little party ended. But a good time was had by all.

Oregon Shakespeare Festival

We just got back from a few days in Ashland, where we got us some culture and sunshine. We saw four plays: "Macbeth", "Equivocation", "Dead Man's Cell Phone" and "Death and the King's Horseman".

Equivocation, by Bill Cain was our hands-down favorite. I want to see it again; perhaps I can persuade a friend to go. This play tells about William Shagspeare (one of the Bard's many spellings of his name) and his troupe. They receive a commission from King James I to write a play telling the "true history" of the Gunpowder Plot. It is not a job they want, but can hardly refuse and keep their heads.

The play ties in with Macbeth and Henry VIII, which are included in this season's offerings. I am glad that we saw Macbeth first, especially since I've only known the story in snippets and via Akira Kurosawa's "Throne of Blood" and Rick Miller's comic "MacHomer". I've never seen Henry VIII (it opens in June), but I can imagine how Shakepeare had to make that story palatable for Henry's daughter Queen Elizabeth.

The play is witty, complex and well-done. "Shag" gets in over his head as he researches the Plot and discovers inconsistencies with the official version. His talent of making everyone happy with a play is put to the test. - Consider "The Merchant of Venice", where the Jews can be satisfied that Shylock and they themselves are wronged, then the Christians can be satisfied that the Jews are put back in their place. Trust is questioned and relationships are strained. Shag learns the fine art of equivocation, and creates a classic.

Although set in 1605, this play also touches on modern themes, such as the efficacy of torture: Why bother if the prisoner will tell you anything you want to hear? Exactly!

The small cast play a variety of parts, ofttimes morphing from one to another onstage: An interview with a prisoner in the dungeon becomes a scene in rehersal.

Shag's daughter Judith sililoquizes about her distaste for sililoquies.

This is Equivocation's world premier. I hope it spreads far and wide after this. Go see it if it comes to a theater near you.


Of the other plays we saw, Macbeth was good but not great. In particular, Macbeth's sililoquy about killing King Duncan and the Witches' famous "Boil, boil, toil and trouble" scene seemed canned. What comes out of the cauldron got lots of creeped-out gasps, though. I don't know why the "Noblewoman" was dressed more like a housemaid or nanny. OSF is overly fond of modern military uniforms in their plays; it gets boring. However, the set and lighting were great, and Lady Macbeth's blood red costumes were gorgeous.

Dead Man's Cell Phone was a good little play that disappointed in the last few minutes.

Death and the King's Horseman is a play based on an incident in 1946, when Nigerian custom clashes with British colonial arrogance. Although a couple of lengthy monologues caused us to lose the point, this play is well worth seeing. This is the first time I've seen an OSF play where the cast is racially typed, except for one Euro-American playing a Nigerian drummer. Usually, they just pick good actors, no matter what their race. I may have seen more racial typing if we'd ever gotten to see any of August Wilson's plays here, but this was different for me.

Kalen Graduates!

My eldest, Kalen graduated from Humboldt State University this morning. She now has a BA in Art. She has an eye for photography, and loves the printing processes involved. She's considering going for an advanced degree soon. She also does very well with graphic design. I'm so proud! Her girlfriend Alyx came up from SF to see her take the walk.

We celebrated with brunch at Golden Harvest Cafe, followed by a matinee to see the new Star Trek movie. Plus, the fog cleared and gave us a warm afternoon. All in all, a grand day!

Bloom Day May 2009: Crazy for Columbines

I am really fond of columbines. They may not be my absolute favorite garden flower, but they are in the top five. I have a lot of varieties, many of which have hybridized with the others. The above is, I think, and example. It's pretty darned punky.


I also love irises. The above Louisiana hybrid is a recent acquisition from Singing Tree Gardens. The Pacific Coast hybrids are nearly done, and I'm waiting for the Siberian irises to start. I'm not sure if my Japanese irises will ever bloom. I probably have them in the wrong place.


The roses are also starting to come into their own. Most of ours have been living in pots for about 20 years because I still haven't made a place for them in the few sunny beds we have. But they are troopers, and are generous with flowers when I keep them fed. Above is a "White Butterfly". Karin got this and two other varieties at a job site many years ago. The property was occupied by greenhouses, and was due to be developed for housing. One tenant, Doctor Moray, told her to take whatever plants she wanted. She thinks he bred this one and another white rose she calls "Doctor Moray". I prefer the "White Butterfly" because it has a scent, but both are lovely.


I once lived in a house that had a mock orange in the garden, and fell in love with it. I discovered this plant in our "jungle" after thinning out the area. At the time, I didn't know what it was, but found it blooming the next spring. It has thrived with a little extra sun. It has a lovely citrus scent.

Until I started this Bloom Day series, I hadn't realized how long some plants had flowers. I would note some start and stop dates on the calendar, but would often forget as one faded and another began rioting. The magnolia, hellebore and wood hyacinth have surprised me with their blooming longevity. Others are very brief, perhaps appearing for only one Bloom Day.

The entire album of May flowers can be viewed in the slideshow below, or at my Picasa site.

Salad on the Root

Finally my lettuces are big enough for a proper salad. From top left to lower right: 1 Salad Bowl, 2 Red Sails, 2 Sucrine, 2 Devil's Tongue with 1 Mascara between, and 2 Flashy Trout's Back.

New Royalty

On Monday, I ordered a couple of queens from Honeybee Genetics (popularly known around here as Taber's). A few other people joined the order, which saved on shipping. I asked for overnight shipping, and they don't kid around. Taber's ships on Wednesday, and the UPS man was at the door at 8:30 Thursday morning.


They come in an envelope.


With labels to entertain the UPS folk. This reminds me of when I mail ordered some ducklings. A box of peepers or envelope of queens must break the monotony of package sorting.


The Queen Battery. There was a lot of piping going on in there. Girls just want to fight it out.

I hadn't been expecting the package to arrive so early. In fact, I wasn't sure they'd be here this week. I was feeling wrung out from being sick the night before, and needed to gather my thoughts for a "Flowers for the Bees" talk at the beek meeting that I was volunteered me for (thanks, Joy :/ ). The queens spurred me to different actions, many of which I attempted to do at the same time.

The other queen-buyers were called, most of whom were already at work. So much for coordinating a mass delivery to Arcata. Good. Let them come to me.

Then out to the bee yard to set up some nucs. Remember what those are, or did I not mention them before? In sum, they are "nucleus hives": small hivelets set up for various purposes, including holding queens for future use.

First I checked Boudicca & Isolde's (RIP) combined hive, and found my latest home-grown Virgin Queen. She's rather dark, so I think daddy must have been a Russky. Into a nuc she went, along with some brood, food and bees. One of the new girls will go into her old hive. I think I'll name her Ivanova, after Babylon 5's second-in-command. I know it's not a forename, but I like it.

Then to Ekaterina's hermitage: I found her, too. That was good, because I didn't want to take frames from her without being certain she wasn't on them. She's looking good (for now, *knock wood*). She didn't have as much brood as I'd hoped for, but I managed to set up another nuc for New Queen #2.


Ekaterina is near the edge of the frame, all long and dark, and obviously adored by her people.

Perhaps a little more nuc material could come from Freyja... I found her, too, and managed to cage her while I riffled through her palace. She's a quick & clever one. She was also planning to swarm. I found a queen cell with a larva lying on a bed of royal jelly. I couldn't not let her live, so I pulled that frame for Nuc #2. Hopefully my little looting expedition opened up some space and helped Freyja to decide to stay.

My brain was swirling by this time. I needed lunch, and wound up fielding calls from a couple of beeks about their queens. And I had to make some syrup and pull together everything I needed to set up these nucs temporarily at my alternate bee yard at Holly & Harvey's place. Sofia is currently residing there, and I figured she'd have some brood for New Queen #2 (Svetlana, perhaps?).

I have plans to make some feeder boxes for my nucs, but that's next week's task. Unfortunately that means I didn't have them now. The nucs are 8 frames wide rather than 10. I figured I'd just set a 10-frame box on top, and block the gap with some scrap wood. But I was thinking sideways, and found I was not set up properly. So the nucs went without syrup until later, when I was able to jury-rig something.

Fortunately, Sofia was looking good, and was able to spare some brood, food and bees. That box went back home with me. This whole process took a lot longer than I expected, and I was feeling wrung out.

Now for installing some new queens.



I had held off opening the queen battery, because I knew it also held some loose attendant bees, and I didn't want them to get out too soon. I hadn't expected quite so many, though. You can barely see the queen cages under all the bees. A few attendants flew out, but they really are loyal to their queens. I was able to get a few of the escapees to march back into the battery when I laid it next to their little cluster. Sorry, no video. It is pretty nifty, though.


Here's Ivanova's cage, as she is introduced to her new home. There's a candy plug in the neck of the queen cage, and it ought to take the workers a few days to eat through it. This gives her time to waft her pheromones through the hive, so the workers will forget about their virgin queen, and accept the new regime. Svetlana was similarly installed, and then I was able to sit still for a little while.

On the way to the beek meeting, I took the feeder equipment over to the Harvey's, and forgot to take pictures.

I survived my little talk, but knew it was semi-crap. Hopefully everyone was too distracted by one beek's irrelevant questions to notice.

Four other queens were distributed last night, four to go. The queens are piping again this morning, looking for a royal dust-up.

Tangu no Sekku Revisited

Later in the day, before Chado, I improved my haiku for the day:

Mud-coated fingers
Catch tadpoles then let them go
I am still a child

Tangu no Sekku (Boys'/Children's Day)

Playing in mud holes
Watching tadpoles turn to frogs
Childhood stays with me

May Day Posies

On May Eve, I assumed my secret May Elf identity, and helped make and deliver May baskets. Shhh, don't tell. Here are two bouquets I made from leftover flowers.

I also wrote a haiku:

May Day dawns brightly
Promise of summer bounty
Bouquet on my door

Cat Nests

Isabel & Artemis love to help with making up the bed.