Bees!

Like gardening and keeping chickens, beekeeping seems to be a growing hobby nowadays, not just in Fairbanks but all over the U.S. I have several neighbors who keep bees, and it's always a pleasant surprise to see honeybees in my yard.

Honeybees are not native to Fairbanks, and most people who keep bees expect them to die every fall when temperatures drop. This is not as heartbreaking as it sounds; apparently bees don't in general live very long. UAF has done some research on whether it's possible to overwinter bees, but I'm not sure the status of that project now.

Our only native bees are big fuzzy bumbles, which I love!

Yesterday, I caught this one on the delphiniums, with a friend:


Does anyone know what the one on the left is? It has a fuzzy sweatshirt on and no pants, just like a honeybee, but it is colorblock yellow and black instead of stripes!

Here are more photos of the delphiniums, which are wild. Domesticated delphiniums also do well here, and are more beautiful. But these wild ones are worth all of the effort I put in to grow them, which is none.




Queen Thistle surveying her domain:


Here is a great article on the bear dogs that are keeping the firefighters safe from bears!

Also, also! Look at this Schweetie. Newtok, a beloved neighborhood dog, is getting more and more pets and visits as his cancer progresses. Go gently, Newtok.