Name stones
Last summer for the first time I had to stop and think about which of my colonies was living in which hive, rather than immediately knowing. I keep my records colony-by-colony (or queen-by-queen), rather than hive-by-hive…the difference is subtle but important. I consult my record book for a colony and plan what to do, then I go to do it, which means remembering where that colony are.
As an aide-memoire, I have created name stones. There are 26 stones, each painted with a letter of the alphabet. If Queen Anne’s colony are in a hive, that hive gets the “A” stone on its roof. If Queen Anne’s colony move, or are split, the stone follows the queen. And voila - as long as I don’t have more than 26 queens at a time(!), I will always be able to identify who is where.
Stones U and X are now in use. If these two colonies survive and breed, they’ll hopefully be joined by at least B and C this summer.
