Pollinating the Almonds

[TimV]

Well, the almonds in most of California are in full bloom, which was where these were taken today. It's an old dry land orchard, that's been producing for decades, even though they only get 6-10 inches of rain every year. They plant two kinds of almonds, since almonds won't produce without being pollinated by another genetically different almond tree. Named almond varieties are all grafted, so they are genetically identical, and won't produce anything at all! So farmers mix different types together, and even in high tech California a billion dollar industry all comes down to an insect.

The Septuagint version of Proverbs chapter 6 says

6 Go to the ant, O sluggard; and see, and emulate his ways, and become wiser than he. 7 For whereas he has no husbandry, nor any one to compel him, and is under no master, 8 he prepares food for himself in the summer, and lays by abundant store in harvest. Or go to the bee, and learn how diligent she is, and how earnestly she is engaged in her work; whose labours kings and private men use for health, and she is desired and respected by all: though weak in body, she is advanced by honouring wisdom.

The bees go from one tree to another, and in the hive, the bump into each other and the pollen gets mixed around, so odds are really high that every bee that goes out of the hive has grains from more than one type of almond, and so basically every time they land on a flower, it can cause a fruit to form.

I've been doing this farmer's pollinating for years now, and it's really fun, since he owns a commercial candy kitchen. I don't eat too many sweets, but he makes an almond brittle that's renowned in this area, and when he sends me my pollination fee, he always sends a nice packet of almond brittle. The kids really look forward to it each year.

 

[Augusta]

Way cool!! I wish I could have your job Tim. I just love flowers and trees and everything that has to do with them. Keeping bees would be so neat.

 

[jwithnell]

One year, I had to spend a chunk of time in DC and left in mid-March to go home to the great valley of California. As I left, the weather in DC was grey and spitting snow. When I got home, all the almond trees were in bloom. What a glorious contrast.

And bee keeping; how cool! I always wished I had the kind of room around me to keep bees.

 

[QueenEsther]

Thanks for sharing!
My sister-in-law's family are almond farmers in Durham.
I've looked into keeping bees and maybe someday I'll have some. They are amazing creatures

 

[a mere housewife]

Very beautiful trees (and the purplish grass, sweeping up the hillside).

 

[PresbyDane]

Great pics thanks for sharing

 

[Mushroom]

SLO County almond groves! Worked in them driving a tractor with trailer picking up bags the pickers would leave as they went to take them to the co-op shelling mill. The tree shakers were quite a sight to behold. Beautiful country, Tim.

 

[lynnie]

How are your bees? I thought the ones in CA were hard hit by the mysterious bee killer plague. The guy in PA we get honey from lost a lot of his hives.

 

[LawrenceU]

Nice pictures. One of these days I'll have to post some of mine.

BTW, I note that you are a builder of tops like me.

 

[Semper Fidelis]

That is really cool. How far are you from Monterey or Vacaville Tim? I'll be visiting relatives there in the future and it would be nice to meet you.

 

[TimV]

Monterrey is just about an hour and a half away. My town and Monterrey are both right off the same highway. Be sure to PM me before you go!

Yes, there is something, probably a virus that's been really hard on bees, but mine seem to be doing fine. Not that it's easy, as Lawrence can tell you, but with a bit of work and God's blessing, the bees are out doing their job. This morning I started at 4am to take some hives to a raspberry farmer, so I covered quite a bit of territory, then a tree trimming job, so time for a beer.

Thanks, all.

 

[Seb]

That's way cool Tim... and what beautiful countryside.

I've wanted to keep bees ever since learning the story of Mary Jones of the British and Foreign Bible Society fame.

You make it look easy.

 

[Grymir]

Wow, How cool. You mean you take your bees to the trees, let them do their work pollinating, and then take the bees home? What a great job, and important!

 

[BJClark]

I love Almonds!!!


So thank you for taking your bees to pollinate them

 

[Theognome]

I'm out of 'thanks', as well as allergic to almonds (my loss, I know). But boy, having an office like that is like working in God's rec room!

Theognome

 

[TimV]

Yes, Tim. Almonds bloom from late Feb. to early April, depending on where they are. I keep the bees there about 6 weeks, and then move them to someone else who needs them, or to an area where I can get some nice honey production. Here's one of the bees working on a flower from that same orchard a few years back. She is gathering pollen for the babies, and nectar for the adults, and she incidentally brings pollen from a genetically different almond tree to the female part of the flower, which on almonds, is in the middle, so the tree gets a chance to reproduce.

So everyone scores. The farmer makes many hundreds of dollars in increased production, the consumer gets a cheaper product because with better production supply is greater and the price drops. I get some extra money, and the bees love the almond pollen because it lets them feed extra babies in late winter when not much else is blooming.

 

[jwithnell]

Absolutely stunning!

 

[JBaldwin]

Tim, you always seem to have something wonderful to share about God's creation. Thanks for sharing those.

 

[Grymir]

Thanks Tim for the info. That's one happy lookin bee!