AAARRGGGHHHH! We lost our bees. I still had a tiny shred of hope, but that was crushed tonight when I opened the hive. First I pulled out the hive reducer, no curious guard bees responded. Then when I pulled off the top honey super I found them all in a ball with their little heads stuck down in the cells. Bees cannot cross open space during the winter, they must remain in their cluster while moving. So, they can starve with plenty surrounding them. Either they starved or I fed them syrup too late and they didn't have time to cure it properly. At least I don't see any sign of disease, only dead bees. So, I start over at square one. Oh well, I knew it was going to be harder with just one hive, and at least it will give me another year to come up with the money for the filters and extractors. Boo hoo! I don't know if I can use the honey left in the hive or not? I guess we'll  at least sample it after I collect it.

So, shed a tear for all our golden sisters.