So I checked the new hives for a sign of a queen yesterday, they should start laying 6-10 days after being removed from the queen cage. I couldn't see any sign of eggs at all, lots of pollen, uncapped honey and the bees were calm. I found three of the five queens and if the queens were not present in the other two they would of been much more aggressive and upset. However they were very calm, I used a bit of smoke into the entrance but once the cover is removed I used a mist of sugar water from a squirt bottle I bought at the dollar store. I have found that the mist of sugar water seems to keep them calm and busy compared to the smoke. The smoke seems to keep them calm but they gorge themselves on honey and its hard to see into the comb as they are all trying to eat it in case of the pending fire (why else would there be smoke).

Here I took fencing staples and put them in the corners to keep the bottom hive body from moving off the bottom board. I seen this idea on my friends hives, it works great.

Honey Peanut Butter Cookie Cups
1 cup Burleson's Clover Honey
1 cup creamy or chunky peanut butter
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

In mixing bowl, beat together honey, peanut butter and shortening. Add eggs; beat until light and fluffy. Combine flour, sugar baking soda, baking powder and salt; add to peanut butter mixture and mix well. Chill dough for at least 1 hour. Roll into 1-1/2 inch balls and place in muffin cups sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes; remove cookie cups, Makes about 5 dozen Cookie Cups or cookies. We suggest baking 12 Cookie Cups and using the remaining dough for cookies. (See tip below.)

    * Tip: Leftover cookie dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. This cookie dough can also be baked by simply placing 1-1/2 inch balls on a cookie sheet. Flatten with a fork or a decorative cookie press dipped in sugar. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. 

Here is a great fruit salad recipe, let me know what you think of this one.

So this is a relatively new chapter in our lives, we are not professionals at beekeeping and we don't know everything regarding bees. We seen an opportunity to enter a very under serviced market in that of pollination of crops in PEI. We will do our best to keep the blog up to date and recent. If nothing else it will be fun! ( I hope)