Come home, we still love you all.

[Lek]

I split one of my hives a couple of months ago, placed in a new Queen, she was doing great, new hive building strong a healthy, then the rain started to set in. I decided to move the hives [only 4] to about 40 Km. away, got them all settled in, then the rain started to get fair dinkum, checked them once or twice, last week strapped them down just in case Yasi came along, the week before they had been through a bit of a rough trot, cyclone Anthony stirred thing up a bit,  Yasi came along but missed us here in Mackay, anyway the day before yesterday I was able to get out and have a look. I noticed the split hive, now with I half & one full super on, was not all that active, I went back today, ripped the lid off, looked down in the brood box to see if there was any brood, some, but not a lot, then I came across this young queen, apparently her Mum had heard that a bloke called Yasi was heading her way and decided to fly the coop, she exited out the back door and headed for higher ground with 40 thousand horsemen, or should that be horsewomen ,then again it could be horse persons, all the same whatever ya want to call them  they done the bunk……… Ok, now comes the big question, When does the new Queen start laying? before Mum takes off, of after mum gone and she is now the new boss. Or was I looking at a egg laying worker with a pointed bum, as she was only fairly small compared to the old queen… Cheers  Lek.

[Lone]

Blimey Kel,
I think it's about time you and I realised that we just can't keep bees in North Queensland.  I'm waiting to see if the hive that superceded in september and then lost the new queen and then didn't make a queen from a frame of eggs and then lost another queen that was introduced, has made a queen from the last frame of eggs I put in.  I was hoping Yasi would blow the trouble clean away but sadly the strap and steel posts were too much for a little cyclone like that.

Lone

[Lek]

Hi Lone, strike me rowan,  I thought Yasi was going to clean up every hive from here to the black stump, and beyond [ sure hope the black stump still stands, it would take more than a slight breeze than yasi to blow her out of the ground, by the did you hear if the Walk About Pub lost any corrugated iron?
The little gully that runs through Sellheim/Macrossan had a fair flow in it, so I guess the dam full to overflow... Sister up at Cardwell got a bit of a bashing, they were only about 200 Yds back from the beach, I have to take me ute up to T,ville for a service in a couple of weeks, so we are go to tear off up to Cardwell for a few days, I think me mate need a hand to down a couple of tinnies to get over his woes for loosing his tinnie, and all his other fishing gear….I’ll take him up some fermented honey laced with a bit of Bundy, that will bring him around.  Any way, best of luck with the bees, I sure hope ya get a massive blossom of chinky apple this year. I remember as kids we used to walk over to the airstrip and have a great feed of snotty gobbles, in them days there was stacks of ammo laying around the strip that the Yanks left behind after the war, I guess they still find the occasional shell laying around……….  Cheers Kel

[Lone]

Hello Kel,
We have a few trees to stand upright again, including one rather supine fiddlewood.  The bees are in the fiddlewoods now.  The silky oak is at an interesting angle.  I've tried to get rid of the african mahogany a few times by moving it from my garden and having the cattle nibble branches off, but Yasi only gave it a hair cut.  Yasi did take one bunch of nanas though, but left us one.  It might be our last nanas for a while, so long as the camelman's still breathing and putting a halt to those foreign ones.  Remember they tried to get a bit of import tax after Larry but they don't realise we don't need nanas to survive.
Where's the walkabout pub?
The macrossan was only under for a day, so they never had to organise another train to bring supplies this time.  Last time it went under for a couple of weeks the mayor was waiting in anticipation for the cargo to unload, and all there was were several cartons of fourx and a saddle.
Yes, Cardwell was in the firing line for sure.  It's a miracle that folk there survived it...although your mate might not be so grateful after he lost his fishing gear.  There's not much other reason to be in Cardwell - although they have a nice cafe we stop at for breakfast.
I might have to go to Townsville on Monday, so I sympathize with you for having to spend time there.
The chonkies are pretty much under control here.  Bees have to go to the neighbours' for a feed.  I heard it's good honey.  I went the neighbours' side of the fence to get chonky apple sticks to make lagerphones one time.  There's often a good straight stick shooting up and the old fellas used to make their shovel handles from it.  They did say they'd break after a while, but as some brainy person put it, it's probably from leaning on the shovel too much.
I used to swim at the dam near the airport.  There's not been much ammo found recently but there are still signs on the hill.  The yanks left more than ammo, remember.  They grew the rubbervine to make the tyres.  It didn't do much for the tyres but we still got the rubbervine.
Have you found any eggs in your hive yet?  By the way, a laying worker will lay only drone eggs so if your bees turn out to be all big and hairy then you might suspect that.  I'm due to check my hive sometime this week I think, although I lost track of exactly when I put the frame in.
Lone