Bee Witch Diaries

03/22/2026

It’s been a whole year of missing you. You have been my ride or die, and seen me through sickness and health. You’ve been with me through the birth of two babies, and the reinvention of myself. You’ve been there through the loss of relationships and absorbed my grief while I held you. Now Teaco carries your gift and has been doing an exceptional job 💕

A whole year of reaching for you in the quiet moments, and wishing for one more look that somehow always understood everything I couldn’t say. You were never “just a dog” — you were my comfort, my constant, my home. Especially in the times we jumped from place to place and moved so many times. Just keeping afloat, but we had each other.

Grief is a strange thing… my heart is so full because I got to love you, and somehow still aching because I can’t feel your fluffy fur anymore even though I can feel your presence cheerleading me along. I carry you in everything now — in the way I slow down, in the way I love, in the way I remember what really matters - presence.

Thank you for the memories. Thank you for the loyalty, the play, the quiet companionship. Thank you for choosing me, and for every blessing you brought into my life just by being you.

And I’ll never forget your last day — delivering honey together and walking in the woods one more time, side by side, like we always did.

I miss you Ava. Always. 🤍

03/09/2026

Great question from a Bee Haven follower!

“Can you tell us more about queen piping? Where does that sound come from? Does it only happen when the queen hatches?”

Let’s chat about this for a minute because it is one of the coolest sounds in the hive.
First — queen piping is real. If you have ever heard it during an inspection, you never forget it.

The sound comes from the queen vibrating her wing muscles while pressing her thorax against the comb. When she does this, the vibrations travel through the wax comb like a speaker system, and the workers — and other queens — can hear and feel it.

Beekeepers usually describe two different sounds.
🐝Tooting
This is made by a queen that is already out of her cell and walking on the comb.
It is a longer, clearer sound that can last about a second.
🐝Quacking
This sound comes from virgin queens that are still inside their queen cells.
Their response sounds shorter and muffled because the vibration has to travel through the wax cap of the queen cell.

So what is actually happening?
In simple terms — the queens are communicating with each other through the comb.

🐝 When does queen piping happen?
It can occur when a new queen is emerging in a colony or when multiple virgin queens are present at the same time.

When the first virgin queen emerges she may begin tooting. The queens that are still inside their cells will often answer back by quacking.

The worker bees then control what happens next.

They may:
🐝keep queens in their cells for a period of time
🐝allow another queen to emerge
🐝or allow the first queen to destroy the remaining queen cells

Another cool detail
Queens inside their cells can quack for hours and sometimes up to a couple of days, usually very close to emergence when the queen is fully developed.

Worker bees can even hold queens inside their cells on purpose by reinforcing the wax cap if the colony is not ready for another queen yet.
Bee Haven 2026
Remember
🐝Free queen on the comb--TOOT
🐝Queens still inside their cells--QUACK

You may hear queen piping when:
🐝a colony is preparing to swarm or has recently swarmed
🐝a new virgin queen has just emerged in the colony
🐝during supersedure, when the bees are replacing their queen
🐝when more than one virgin queen is present in the hive at the same time

Pretty amazing communication system for such a tiny insect.



https://youtu.be/5Wbs4D-yUsA

02/20/2026

Difference in Queen cells!!

A follower asked me a great question about the different types of queen cells — swarm cells, emergency cells, and supersedure cells — and what each one actually means inside the hive.

Seeing queen cells in a hive can definitely make your heart skip a beat, but before reacting, it’s important to understand why the bees are making them.
Supersedure, emergency, and swarm cells all look similar at first glance — but the reason behind them is very different.
Let's break this down

🐝 Supersedure Cells – “We’re replacing her.”
These are made when the bees decide the queen just isn’t performing the way she should anymore.
Why they’re made:
🐝The queen is aging
🐝Her pheromone output is dropping
🐝Spotty brood pattern
🐝Physical damage
What they look like:
🐝Usually 1–2 cells
🐝Often located mid-frame, right on the face of the comb
🐝The colony remains calm and organized
This is a planned and gentle transition. The old queen may still be present while the new queen is raised. No panic — just the bees doing good colony management.

🐝 Emergency Cells – “We lost her!”
These are made when the queen is suddenly gone.
Why they’re made:
🐝Queen died unexpectedly
🐝Queen was accidentally killed during an inspection
🐝Queen failed and disappeared
What they look like:
🐝Multiple cells
🐝Rough-looking and uneven
🐝Made by extending existing worker cells downward
🐝Scattered across frames with young larvae
This is a panic response. The bees are racing against time, using whatever young larvae they have to try and save the colony.

🐝 Swarm Cells – “We’re ready to reproduce.”
These are built when the colony is strong, crowded, and thriving.
Why they’re made:
🐝Strong population
🐝Congested brood nest
🐝Plenty of resources
🐝Typically spring or early summer
What they look like:
🐝Many cells (often lots of them)
🐝Commonly found along the bottom bars of frames
🐝Large, well-formed, and evenly spaced
This means the old queen is preparing to leave with a swarm, and the colony is setting up the next generation.
Bee Haven 2026
Remember:
🐝Supersedure = planned replacement
🐝Emergency = sudden loss
🐝Swarm = colony reproduction

Understanding the why behind queen cells helps you decide whether to step in — or step back.
As always, the bees usually know exactly what they’re doing. We just have to learn how to read their language 🐝💛

*** The diagram I provided below shows where swarm, supersedure, and emergency queen cells are typically found on a frame. However, it’s important to remember that bees don’t always follow our rulebook. While these placements are common and helpful for learning, bees will build queen cells wherever it makes the most sense for the colony in that moment

02/18/2026

What an amazing experience to swim with the swans! 🦢

Jennifer Cobb, you are so amazing at facilitating these plunges 💕

Friends, Jen has an upcoming workshop on somatic work at the Baxter Art Center! You can find her on Facebook!

10/30/2025

Lively hive 💜

10/30/2025

Bees packed up for winter! 💜

10/19/2025

It’s so warm out today! The bees are happy!

10/11/2025

Current update on the hives!!

I’m not sure how next year is going to look 😬

But then again… the crickets are LOUD and they always bring super good luck!! So we will see! 🦗🍀

10/11/2025

Come listen to me ramble while I figure out the best course of action 😂

I have a dead hive and I have no room in the car for the honey boxes on the dead hive.

So what did I decide to do?

What would you have done? 🤔

10/11/2025

Come listen to me figure out the game plan 💜 🐝

09/28/2025

Bee escapes on, and now finishing taping any holes they may have the ability to squeeze through 💜

09/28/2025

Prepping the bee escapes. Getting those pine needles off 💜