The life of a garden
The garden is so very alive these days and it is incredibly exciting. I went out to snip some mint last night at about 10:30 p.m. An all night produce department! There has been an almost daily rainstorm and that is perking things up considerably. Birds and butterflies have been visiting our yard looking for insects, seeds, sustenance and we have thoroughly enjoyed their flittering about. Then there are the bees.
I checked the bees for the first time since the hive installation this past weekend. It was an...interesting experience. I was planning for a beekeeper/bee partnership of marvelous biodiversity. The bees treated my first visit as more like a hostile takeover. One hive is very active and they were not excited to have me poking about in their home. I had some very persistent bees trying to scare me off. It is one thing to work a hive with a group of people (like I do in my Ecoversity TopBar beekeeping class) and another to face several thousand peeved stinging insects by yourself (no matter how well protected you are). The comb was heavy with bees and there did seem to be good progress on producing brood (the next generation) and I saw some cells that looked filled with proto-honey. I will leave them be for another two weeks since they seem to be going gangbusters without my interference.
Hive #2 has been very, very quiet as of late. It is much easier to investigate what is going on there with such a small population. They need some intervention or I'm afraid the hive with die out. I suspect their queen is either not strong or is no longer present. The bees looked very slow and I didn't see any brood production. I've asked for some advice and hope for the best.
Inside the house, the flood of greens from Beneficial Farms continues. I did make the radish leaf pesto and it was determined that if you blended circuit boards with Parmesan cheese, Olive oil, garlic, and nuts, it would taste good.
I've been cooking down the greens and then putting them in the refrigerator and suddenly there is room again. I'll be putting the kale to use this evening for dinner and then slicing some radishes thin as a pre-dinner nibble. I am growing fond of the pearlesence of thin radish slices and their sharp taste in smaller doses. I have thoughts of soy-glazed baby bok choy on an upcoming menu. More greens are coming just in time for warm weather salads and are a vibrant reminder of spring.
For your cooking pleasure:
Radish Leaf Pesto
http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2009/05/radish_leaf_pesto.php
