Winter Underway

It's official. The temperatures have dipped to the teens most days, the nights are single digit and the rain seems to be more on than off.
I read on my new favourite Beek, Sue Hubbell (dec.) that the Italian bee has a habit of getting out quickly to work as each little day of sunshine. That's what my bees have been doing. Of it's raining, nothing doing, but as soon as the sin shines they're out raiding the blossoms about Merewether. They actually cause traffic jams at the entrance and still, they are friendly or non-aggressive. That's so good, a comfort to any new beek worried whether hos bees have plenty of life and honey on the larder. I'd love to open up each hive and check, but it upsets the heat stores and fractures the propolis joins on the hive. So I'll have to wait another 10 weeks or so.
On the cool winter days I've not been idle either. If  I'm not reading social media posts about novice beeks with problems or watching The Bush Bee Man videos, I've been reading Sue Hubbell and  making up boxes. Ten store bought ones, glued, nailed, sanded ready for paint. SB recommends painting way ahead of the time when the box will be used to allow it to gas off and dry nice and hard. I hope O get to fill these guys next year.