Well that's a vast improvement

What a relief for the eyes to have the beehives undressed for the year. This is the view out my front window.

Such a visual improvement!

The before picture. Good God, what a trash heap. Extraneous stuff wrapped around the bottom is to deter the chickens from pecking at the styrofoam.

Nosey’s a big styrofoam-eating culprit, and me running outside at her shouting does nothing. What? Crunchy! I like Nosey. I don’t want her to die by extruded polystyrene.

In progress. Foam on the brush pile out of chicken reach. There’s Nosey.

Sunflower hive is dead. I noticed a couple weeks ago. I didn’t open it up yet but peering down into it, it seems empty, not so much starved. Bee mysteries.

Violet, far right, is as always, the hive with the chip on the shoulder. I ALmost got stung while unwrapping. One bee zooming out and clung to my cheek next to my lip, buzzing furiously while I breathed, calmed myself, and chanted Don’t sting, don’t sting. I talk for a living, I need the full use of my mouth! It worked, the bee left after giving me a good scare.