The AP bee colony is happy, healthy, and buzzing with activity. The queen is thriving, fat, and happy. She has been working her way through the hive, laying eggs in every frame that is not occupied by pollen, brood, honey, or nectar. The students met with their bee mentor yesterday to check on the hive. On each frame, there are about 2,000 bees! Good news, considering the colony spent a good part of the fall recovering from the loss of their queen. Next week, we will check for swarm cells, look for the presence of Varroa destructor mites and begin planning for a second hive. It’s still a little early to say that we will have an excess of honey this fall, but it sure is reassuring to see such abundance before the nectar flow in a few weeks.